From what I've heard (and my own very little experience) the ideal is somewhere in the middle. You need to allow 1-2 days after excercise for muscle growth. So

From what I've heard (and my own very little experience) the ideal is somewhere in the middle. You need to allow 1-2 days after excercise for muscle growth. So doing the same excercise every day might actually inhibit growth a bit, and once a week is too infrequent. You also don't need to do crazy long workouts. It is possible to set the muscle stimulus pretty quickly. The idea is that you train right up till muscle failure (which sounds scarier than it is). What's I've seen recommended is about three sets of each 8-12 repetitions per exercise. You choose the weight so that you cannot do more than 12. Splitting it up in sets helps you edge closer to the point of exhaustion. It is important that you don't overdo it of course. In the end though, any exercise is better than no exercise, and as long as you have something you can stick to and works for you, it's fine.