[GYM] De-load week and why you need it.

iPlatano

When to De-Load:

This depends on your experience & intensity level, your age & recovery ability, the program you are following, and many other factors. If you are new to lifting, you lack the ability to overtax your CNS, muscles, and connective tissues as much as a very experienced lifter, so you may only need to deload once every couple of months and sometimes every 4-8 weeks fir power-lifters.

Signs that a de-load may be in order:

You feel tired, persistently fatigued, have a decreased desire to train, or other symptoms of under-recovery (overtraining).

Your weight progression is stalling and you can't seem to increase most lifts

You feel tired now matter how many hours of sleep take

You are experiencing aches, sprains, tendinitis, etc.

You train regularly

Note that last point again: If you train regularly, then you should de-load regularly as well. In fact, a regularly scheduled de-load should come before you start exhibiting any of these symptoms.

Why should you De-Load:

To allow your joints, tendons, ligaments, and other supporting tissues to repair.

To allow your central nervous system (CNS) to recover

To give yourself a mental break from the intensity of heavy lifting

To reduce the risk of under-recovery (overtraining)

To prepare you for greater gains

Experienced lifters know that you can't go 100% all out in the gym all the time. Your body can't take it, and you can't keep up that mental intensity forever.

How to De-Load:

The main thing is to back off your total effort to about 50-60% of what you would do during a normal training week. A few examples of how to train during a de-load week:

Do your normal routine and normal volume (sets & reps) but reduce the weight you use to about 50-60% of what you normally work out with for each exercise.

Use the same weight as you normally would, but drop your number of total volume (sets x reps) to 50-60% of your normal volume. (Note that you should stick to an 8+ rep scheme here.)

Train muscle groups that normally don't get a lot of attention

Use light weight and focus on refining your form and technique

Decrease your lifting and increase your cardio.

Source:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=121391461