If you really love an exercise routine, is it bad to work out every day? Luckily, there is a way to repeat exercise routines without compromising progress.

When it comes to workouts, most people fall into one of two categories. Some love to mix it up: HIIT one day, running the next, with a few barre classes thrown in for good measure. Others are creatures of habit: Their workouts look the same day after day, month after month. But is it bad to work out every day if you’re in the second camp and do the same workout every time you exercise?

While there are perks to both, most fitness experts will tell you that it’s the people who gravitate toward variety who reap the real rewards of exercise — and studies support the fact that workouts that challenge your body in new ways are the most beneficial over time. However, some of the most popular forms of exercise such as road races, rowing, and cycling call for training that more or less looks the same every time. So is sticking with the same workout every day ever a good thing? The answer is complicated, so read on for a full breakdown.

Is It Bad to Do the Same Cardio Workout Every Day?

If you frequent an indoor cycling class three days a week or are training for a half-marathon, you’re definitely reaping the benefits of regular cardio — such as improved heart health, improved efficiency in your lower body muscles, and more burned calories — says Kyle Stull, a NASM-certified trainer and performance enhancement specialist.

“Repeating workouts is not an inherently bad idea, especially if you enjoy what you’re doing,” explains Stull. And research shows that enjoyment is one of the main reasons people stick to a workout. Once people find an exercise they love, they’ll be hard-pressed to skip a few sessions for the sake of switching it up — just ask any runner why they never miss their daily miles. Plus, some repetition is necessary to acquire new skills. “If you have a goal of becoming better at something, then you must repeat it,” adds Stull. After all, no one’s going to attempt a marathon without doing some long runs beforehand.

The only problem with doing the same workout all the time? The human body is a master at adaptation. “Whatever the body is asked to repeat, it will become very efficient at it. After a few months, you may continue to feel the psychological benefits, but not necessarily the physiological benefits,” explains Stull. Translation: What was once a great calorie-burning workout may become no better than the average walk, he says.

Change It Up

To prevent plateauing and continue improving your endurance, mix up your cardio so you’re not doing the same exact workout every day. The simplest way to do this: Follow the F.I.T.T. principle (which stands for frequency, intensity, time, and type), suggests Jacqueline Crockford, an exercise physiologist at the American Council on Exercise. Implement one of the following steps per week.

First, increase the frequency of your workout. For example, if you’ve been cycling three days a week, bump that up to four times a week — but make sure you allow for one full day of rest each week, too.

Then, increase the intensity, which can be measured most accurately by heart rate. If you’ve been working at 70 percent of your maximum heart rate (MHR), for example, increase it to 75 percent. A heart rate monitor will come in handy here, but you can also determine your target heart rate with a little bit of math:

1. Subtract your age from 220 to find your MHR. (For example, if you’re 30 years old, your MHR is 190.)
2. Multiply your MHR by 0.7 (70 percent) to determine the lower end of your target zone. Then multiply your MHR by 0.85 (85 percent) to determine the upper end of your target zone.
3. To determine your beats per minute (BPM) during exercise, take your pulse inside your wrist, near your thumb. Use the tips of your first two fingers to press lightly over the blood vessels. Count your pulse for 10 seconds and multiply by six to find your BPM. If your beats match the 70-percent mark, adjust your exercise intensity to reach that upper end of your target zone.

Next, increase the time (or duration) of your session. If you’ve been exercising for 30 minutes, add on five or 10 minutes.

Finally, try switching up your usual cardio of choice with a different type of movement. This helps to strengthen different muscle groups, improve endurance, and eliminate the risk of overuse and eventual injury, says Stull. For example, instead of cycling, try running, swimming, or something that changes the motion completely, such as dance cardio, once a week.

Is It Bad to Do the Same Strength Workout Every Day?

Strength training devotees are known for following a set routine each time they enter the weight room. Here’s some good news for those creatures of habit who love doing the same workout: Strength routines need to be repeated for a period of time in order to be effective, says Stull. In fact, if you’re just starting a new routine, there are major benefits in doing the same thing consistently, says Darryn Willoughby, Ph.D., an exercise physiologist and professor at Baylor University. That’s because, in the first four to six weeks, the improvements you’ll experience are mainly neurological — your brain is learning how to most efficiently recruit your muscles to complete the moves. (However, that doesn’t mean you should be doing the same exact workout every day.

The down side: This doesn’t translate into increased muscle size (yet). “A good general time frame to expect noticeable progress is 12 to 16 weeks, but it varies by person and intensity of training,” adds Willoughby. That’s why you don’t want to give up a month into a new strength training program just because you’re not seeing “results” in the mirror. If you’re starting a new program, commit to that 12-week time frame. But after that, as your body adapts to the routine, you’ll need to vary your program in order to continue to reap the benefits and keep seeing results, says Willoughby.

Change It Up

First, switch your strength moves. “The intensity and volume of training must be repeated to develop strength, but the exercise selection can be varied,” says Stull. “For example, you can increase lower body strength by squatting, deadlifting, or doing a leg press. All will require the muscles to work in a very similar way, but will be very different to the nervous system,” he explains.

What that means: Don’t do the same exact strength workout every day. Although there are plenty of moves to work the chest muscles, for example — from push-ups to the bench press — that doesn’t mean any move is better than the other, says Willoughby. In fact, it’s probably a better strategy to change up the exercises on a regular basis so you work the muscles at a slightly different angle, which helps improve muscle adaptation (and growth) over time.

A final way to can change up your strength workout? A type of programming called non-linear periodization, where you repeat the same exercises but vary the intensity (amount of weight used) and the volume (reps and sets), says Stull. For example, if you’re training on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, you could make Monday a heavy day with less volume, Wednesday a moderate day with moderate weight and volume, and Friday a light day with a higher volume. Studies suggest this is a great way to increase strength and has been shown to be more beneficial than performing the exact same routine over and over again.