Taking rest days, is it important?

Ang8178

So I've been working my hiney off :laugh: I've noticed the past few days of exercise have just been ok for me. I don't feel like I'm getting all I can out of it and parts of my body actually feel weeker. I always hear it's important to have "rest" days from exercise, but how important is it?

Ang8178

So I've been working my hiney off :laugh: I've noticed the past few days of exercise have just been ok for me. I don't feel like I'm getting all I can out of it and parts of my body actually feel weeker. I always hear it's important to have "rest" days from exercise, but how important is it?

raincloud

I do take a rest, but that does not mean I don't do anything that day.

I work my butt off 5 days a week in the gym, and the other 2 I will go for an hour walk (just a nice walk, not like pushing hard) and do 30 minutes yoga. It gives my body rest, but I am still moving and burning calories!

Fitness_Chick

So I've been working my hiney off :laugh: I've noticed the past few days of exercise have just been ok for me. I don't feel like I'm getting all I can out of it and parts of my body actually feel weeker. I always hear it's important to have "rest" days from exercise, but how important is it?

Our body does need time to rest and heal....depending on what your fitness activities are. Doing weights it's pretty important to take a rest day every other day...depending on how you set your weight lifting scedule up. Our muscles tear when we lift and they need time to heal before we jump right back in for some more. :drinker:

I've found I do better taking a day off midweek and don't go to the gym on Sundays either....no classes are sceduled on sundays...it's a shorter day at the gym, so I save my workout days for class days etc.

Merely my input:flowerforyou:

Wynnie

It's particularly important if you do strength training (free weights or machines) because the muscle tone you are building is a result of (believe it or not) creating small fissures and "tears" in the muscle and then having it repair by resting. That's a very non-scientific explanation, but muscle toning requires the rest.

If you run or do other hard exercise, different muscles need the rest after real tough work-outs too. Plus, to avoid getting weary of the "same ol' thing", you can change up to stay motivated.

Right now, I run one day, do weights the next, yoga the next and repeat. Then I give myself Saturday or Sunday "off". I have a plan - since it keeps you in the game to have exercise scheduled, but it has variety. And I change the plan every few months, too, to try other things (like that killer-DEATH spin class - OW).

I hope you find your groove!

AJCM

I rest when my body tells me to...

I take a day, or two, or three (but usually no more than two) off from vigorous exercise, and then when I go back to it, I feel AMAZING and ready to go! I find it very helpful for my body.

Good luck to you!
:flowerforyou:

Poison5119

AT this point in time, I'm doing weights (lever/machine and dumbells) twice a week. I listen to my body, and believe wholeheartedly in moving into higher levels of fitness SLOWLY.

Every other day, I do a 30 minute cardio - it's usually a combination of walking and elliptical - but I use 5lb hand weights. So Im not at the point where I'm shredding my muscles yet. Every OTHER day (when I'm not in the gym), I do a slighly less strenuous 20 minute cardio at home with 3lb hand weights. So two days of the week at the gym, I'm adding weight training and slowly working my way up.

At some point (usually about 14 days) I jump up and realize "OMG I haven't taken a day off in two weeks!!!" And I dejectedly go home and force myself to sit. It's like a huge disappointment for me to not work out.

Taking a day off is purely subjective. Listen to your body. :flowerforyou:

Ang8178

Thanks everyone, I guess I needed reassurance that it's ok to rest And I think I hurt my knee worse than I thought a few days ago, I know I need to stop pushing it because it will just make it worse.

jamerz3294

Thanks everyone, I guess I needed reassurance that it's ok to rest And I think I hurt my knee worse than I thought a few days ago, I know I need to stop pushing it because it will just make it worse.

Resting your body is as important as exercising it! It's all about a balanced approach, and your'e abso correct that pushing too hard can, and will result in injury, or just plain tiredness, and such. So do take a rest break, and enjoy a bit of a slower pace for a day, and do something different.