You don’t need a gym to build strength, says the world's largest exercise science organization

You may have heard about the benefits of home workouts, but are they actually as effective as going to the gym? Well, according to new research, they absolutely are. In fact, you apparently don't need a gym membership at all to build strength.

The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) – which is the largest sports medicine organisation in the world – recently updated its training guidelines for the first time in 17 years.

According to a review of data from over 30,000 participants, non-traditional training, including resistance bands, bodyweight exercises and home-based routines can help you build strength, promote hypertrophy and improve physical function.

The overall takeaway from the review is that doing anything is much, much better than doing nothing. “The best resistance training program is the one you’ll actually stick with,” concluded Stuart M. Phillips an author on the review and a professor of kinesiology.

Rather than recommending a specific form of exercise, researchers suggest that doing any type of resistance training twice a week is what will make the biggest difference for most people.

The review found that the more personal the workout programme, the better. Enjoyment is a big factor, as sticking with a workout programme consistently is the most important thing.

Although complicated training techniques can be useful for athletes, researchers found that they're just not necessary for the average person. This includes methods such as training to failure, which involves completing as many reps as possible of an exercise until you physically can't continue. The review also found no major differences between using gym-based machines and free weights like dumbbells and barbells.

So, as long as you’re doing some type of resistance training twice a week and targeting your whole body, you’re probably doing enough, whether that’s at a fancy gym or in your living room. Let this be a reminder not to overcomplicate your workout routine.