Is it bad to not take a day off?

Nathalia2009

I find it hard to take a day off from working out. It drives me crazy. I go to the gym 4 days a week. When there, I either do 30 min on the elliptical or the 30 min biggest looser work out(planet fitness). Days I don't go I run for 30 min in the evening. when I go to the gym is at 445 in the morning. I just feel so guilty taking a day off until i get to my goal. Is this bad or is this ok? My goal is 150. I am 5'9. Right now I am down 20 st 173.

sanderdejonge

The more you exercise, the better. Wasn't hard to figure that out.. haha

Nathalia2009

Thats how I feel but I was told i need to give my body a day of rest?

The more you exercise, the better. Wasn't hard to figure that out.. haha

sanderdejonge

By whom?

30 minutes of exercise a day isn't quite what you'd call a lot...
I swim for 1.5h - 2h a day on average and I'm feeling superb.

You're body will tell you when you need to rest.

JonnyQwest

If you are only working out for 30 minutes a day then it's not a problem to work out everyday IMO.

trogalicious

the body needs rest to repair.

take a day now and then. even if it's just walking... or yoga or something..

OMGeeeHorses

My personal trainer tells me to take a day rest, she tells me I need to allow my muscles time to heal and repair from my intense workouts. I find it super hard to do that, so I take my dog for an hour walk without trying to make it intense to still make it feel like a day off .

**add- Also if your not doing anything too intense ( all my workouts are 1h or longer) than a rest wouldn't be needed as your not working out a huge intense amount for the week and your body can repair itself easier.

Natmarie73

If you're only doing 30 mins of cardio each day you probably don't need to take a day off, especially if you feel energetic enough to work out. As you increase the amount and intensity of your excersise it is recommended that you have a rest day to allow the muscles to repair themselves. Listen to your body and use that as a guide.

OMGeeeHorses

If you're only doing 30 mins of cardio each day you probably don't need to take a day off, especially if you feel energetic enough to work out. As you increase the amount and intensity of your excersise it is recommended that you have a rest day to allow the muscles to repair themselves. Listen to your body and use that as a guide.

100% this ^^^

reyzus

why don't you try working out with more intensity or doing foundational strength movements instead of cardio? Doing either will cause greater stress on your body andthen you will actually need to rest to make any progress. rest and diet are critical.

Loralrose

You should take recovery days in between workouts if you are using the same muscles, the same way and you are working those muscles to the point of fatigue.

If you're doing different things each day you'll be fine. Or if you finish each workout and still have plenty of strength left, i.e. you could have gone longer/harder, then you're fine. Just listen to your body and if you feel overly fatigued or have joint pains, do something different for a while.

KristiRTT

Short answer: your body needs rest days, you an stress your body to the point of injury doing the same exercise everyday!

Longer answer: a rest day doesn't mean a day in your bed laying around afraid to do anything! I am a runner, so by nature my legs, hips, knees ect need a break! So I run and cross train 5 days a week and take 2 rest days off from the gym. On my rest days I am still working, where I can clock up to 4 miles walking a day, I still take the dog for her walk, and I still do every other normal daily activity!
If you are only working out at a very easy intensity and for only 30 min, your body doesn't necessarily need as much rest as mine, but what is the point of working out everyday? Just to have the extra calories to eat, or do you enjoy it? I suggest your normal routine 5-6 days a week and then head outside with the nicer weather on its way and so something fun that moves your body! An active rest day!

Spooky_Scully

Short answer: your body needs rest days, you an stress your body to the point of injury doing the same exercise everyday!

Agree completely with this! I exercise every day - high intensity 5-6 days a week, and low intensity (yoga, walking, swimming) the other 1-2 days. Seems to be working well for me

CipherZero

Is it bad to not take rest days? It depends.

I do a full-body workout in the gym; if I didn't work it on a AxBx rotation I'd never get time to repair the damage and make progress. If you're doing a bodypart split - say, lower, upper, back - it's very possible to go every day because you're not tearing up the same muscles before they get a chance to recover.

If your goal is to get big and strong, it's simple: Eat a lot, work out hard, get good sleep.

neandermagnon

The more you exercise, the better. Wasn't hard to figure that out.. haha

not true. Insufficient rest and recovery negatively impacts the potential benefits from exercise. Sometimes, less is more. For weights, 3x whole body routine per week with rest days in between will get much better results than doing the same whole body routine 7 days a week.

although as the OP's talking about 30 mins cardio 4x per week, there's no danger of overtraining there

the thing about resting body parts is for heavy lifting or similarly intense strength training, or other very intense exercise. 30 mins cardio per day - you can easily do that every day of the week with no issues. just make sure the amount of calories you're eating is enough to support the amount of cardio you're doing.

neandermagnon

OP - just something important to add to my last post............. you shouldn't feel guilty for taking a day off. Exercise isn't a punishment, it should be fun. There's no reason to feel guilty about taking a day off here and there. Even when there's no risk of overtraining. Your aim should be long term maintenance and learning a sustainable approach to diet and exercise that you can maintain long term. Exercise should be fun, and taking a day off shouldn't be a big deal. If you're training to win at sports then too many days off will lower your chances of winning. But if you're just working out for general health and fitness then really guilt for missing a session shouldn't come into it. You should focus on getting into the habit of regular physical activity. Don't feel guilty about days off, just focus on getting re-started again after your day off, so you don't lose your good habit of regular exercise. Guilt isn't a healthy emotion unless you've done something really bad like murdered someone or something. Then guilt is justified. Guilt for taking one day off from the gym.....? No. You didn't kick any puppies so don't feel guilty. Just focus on staying in good habits.

benefiting

Short answer: your body needs rest days, you an stress your body to the point of injury doing the same exercise everyday!

Agree completely with this! I exercise every day - high intensity 5-6 days a week, and low intensity (yoga, walking, swimming) the other 1-2 days. Seems to be working well for me

I agree too. OP does running on her days off which is still pretty high intensity. Walking or yoga would be fine though.

kandell

There are 7 days in a week. If you're only going to the gym for 4 of them, then technically you're taking 3 days off.

enks07

There are 7 days in a week. If you're only going to the gym for 4 of them, then technically you're taking 3 days off.

Not if she goes running on the other days, like she wrote.

I work out every single day but I make sure that I train different parts of my body every day. If I feel like my workouts are suffering or that I'm getting tired easily, I just take a day off. But I actually feel fine and I believe our bodies tell us when they need a break. It's just a matter of listening to your body.