While gym memes capture the funny side of our time there, to determine if our efforts are worthwhile, we need to align our routines with our desired results.

"Workout effectiveness depends on your goal," Karina Inkster, a vegan personal trainer and nutrition coach, told Bored Panda.

"For example, if you're aiming to make strength gains, you need to track the weights and reps you’re doing, and make sure your overall training volume (weight multiplied by reps) increases gradually over time."

Karina, who also runs the No-B.S. Vegan Podcast—where she shares myth-busting, evidence-based advice to help people achieve their fitness goals—emphasized the importance of having an effective overall program.

"In the case of strength training, make sure you include all six fundamental movement patterns: squat, hinge (deadlift), lunge, upper body push, upper body pull, and weighted carry."

"We can't judge effectiveness from a single workout. You need to give your routine at least a few weeks and make sure you’re tracking the appropriate metrics throughout," the trainer explained.

But when things click, the effort's worth it. According to one recent survey, 55% of gym-goers feel like their membership is important in helping them manage a short- or long-term health condition.

Overall, more than three in four (78%) say that going to the gym has a positive impact on their mental health and well-being, while two-thirds (66%) say they've found that exercising helps them sleep better.

You also probably don't need to worry about over-training. At least not in the beginning.

"Most people need more movement, not less. A very small percentage of the population might over-train, like endurance or strength athletes who don't effectively periodize their training, but the vast majority of us don't need to worry about over-training," Karina explained.

But for that to be true, Karina said you should remember two things:

1. You're following a well-designed training plan tailored to your current fitness level. "If you increase your training volume too quickly, or if your training plan isn’t balanced, you might be at risk of over-training," she said.

2. You're recovering appropriately between workouts. "Under-recovering is a lot more common than over-training."

So how do we approach recovery and rest days? Karina, author of Resistance Band Workouts: 50 Exercises for Strength Training at Home or On the Go, suggests keeping it simple.

"Most of us just need to focus on the basics: getting enough high-quality sleep, eating a nutrient-dense diet, and managing stress," she said. "It isn't flashy or exciting, but this is the vast majority of effective recovery."

The list might get longer as you progress. "For higher-level athletes, practices like regular massages, targeted mobility work, or supplementation might factor in. But even for professional athletes, sleep, nutrition, and stress management still form the foundation of effective recovery," Karina added.

"The more experience you have with strength training, the less rest time you need between workouts. If you're new to strength training, you might want to leave a few days between training the same muscle group. If you’re a pro, many of us train the same muscle groups two days in a row."