should we take days off exercise and why?

BeautyFromPain

Hey all,

so I work out 7 days a week and have heard you should only exercise 5/6 days... just wondering why this is and if it is beneficial to weight loss at all?

Thanks

Kristy144

I took today off and felt guilty all day. But I do know my body needs to rest, so I think I'm okay with working out 6 days a week and resting once!

Contrarian

Your muscles need to repair themselves. I find that the workout after a rest day is more productive.

mmk137

For me it's to allow my body to recover.

Your body can only take so much, and you need to let it rest otherwise you could cause serious injury.

But that being said I think it also depends on what type of exercise you are doing.

If you are just walking, then go for it, but if you are do extensive training, then you need to allow your body to recovery.

FitRodr

I try to take off one day a week but I always feel like I missed something. Hard to believe that I actually look forward to and enjoy working out. I do listen to my body... if it says enough, I give it a rest.

sleepytexan

it's a good idea to have a rest day. I often take Sundays off, although I can't tomorrow bc I have 2 belly dance shows to do. However tomorrow's shows are quick and easy so it's a light day anyway.

I do think you can work out every day but obviously it's possible to overdo it. Just try to balance out a really big workout day with a lighter day the next.

blessings.

CakeFit21

training = work + rest

maryd523

Exercise can be pretty strenuous on the body, so giving it some rest time lets it repair and heal itself, reduces chances of injury, and helps prevent burnout.

killagb

Recovery time is very important. Always have at least one total day off, and perhaps vary your exercises so that you aren't working the same muscles consecutive days, giving the others time to recover.

AlwaysSarah87

Yeah at LEAST take one day off. Your body needs the rest.

hyde1977

It really depends on what you define as working out!!!! I would not do weights 7 days a week....3-4 times is probably enough and you want to give your body a break.

However, if you are just doing cardio- treadmill, elliptical etc....I would say you can do that everyday! (Not everyone is going to agree with that!)

However, we say that our children need 60 minutes of physical acitvity a day so why would we not?!?!?!? On days where I cannot make it the gym I always go for a jog, walk, bike ride or rollerblade!

Its okay to do something each day in my opinion!!!! Just make sure you are not doing a hard workout each day...your body does need a break from that!!!

Make sure you are fueling your body to match that you are exercising each day!!!!!

BJPCraig

Depends on what you mean by "taking a day off." My wife & I usually do a day when we don't do our normal heavy workout, but on those days we usually do a long walk or some tai chi or yoga or something light.

From what I've heard/read, you not only need some rest overall, but if you want to build muscle, exercise helps to "break down" the muscle, and then you need to take some time off to give the muscle time to rebuild.

06MustangGT

As others have posted you DEFINITELY need rest because during resting your body is repairing its self from your previous workout. If you don't get adequate rest then you'll be hurting your body and your results. Basically when you workout your muscles are tearing. When they are given time to rest they rebuild and thus make themselves stronger than before.

623Hernandez

I read that you should do 30 minutes of moderate exercise everyday. When you start pushing your muscles is when you need rest days. The muscles rip a tiny bit when you work out and they need a day to repair. This is how they get bigger. I am no expert. That is for sure. This is just what I understood from what reading I have done. So depending on what your work out is determines if you need a rest day.

HMonsterX

If by "working out" you mean resistance training to build muscle, then yes, you should take days off, and never work the same muscle group 2 days running. Your body doesn't grow muscle while you train, it grows it while you rest. When you "work out" you make tiny tears in your muscles. Your body then needs time to repair those tears, and as it repairs it prepares itself for that level of stress again, by, in simple terms, adding a tiny amount of muscle. That last bit wasn't very technical, but you get the point!

So yes, if you're lifting weights, definitely take a day off, or at least never work the same muscles 2 days running.

Jeneba

I agree with Hyde! Things would be different if we didn't already have such a sedentary lifestyle. It's really important to have some sort of aerobic exercise every day. Weights are different - THAT is what you need to rest from, but not from aerobic exercise, IMHO.

unequalstars13

It's really important to have at least one day off a week so your muscles can rest and regrow. But like everyone else has said, cardio you can do everyday (although reward yourself with rest sometimes!) but if you are looking to tone and build muscle you have to let the muscles rest.

maryrshstattoo

I exercise everyday, I exercise to eat. I do cardio and circuit training. I have a sedentary job so I feel as though I get enough rest sitting at my desk. Not sure if it is right or wrong, but I have lost weight.

Panda_Jack

I don't rest because I'm only a figment of the interwebz.

MadBabysMama

I try to listen to my body - if I'm too fatigued to work out well, I know it and take a rest day. If I feel well, no reason not to go for it, even if it means exercising every day in the week. I also believe that alternating workouts occasionally during the week is very helpful if you're going to work out every day, to work different muscle groups and not necessarily overtrain/strain muscles and joints with repetitive activities.

Iwillshyne

Because I work out twice a day, I rest 2 days outta the week. Best wishes and Be careful.

CarrieJaneSmith

I am a freelance writer, and I actually wrote an article on this topic. The doctor I spoke to said that when we work out we need time off to allow our body to heal and rebuild from the stress of working out. This makes our bodies stronger, and gives muscle mass time to build. Not resting between workouts can cause stress fractures and other injuries/strains that will end up hurting weight loss goals in the long run, when you lose weeks of workouts because you are healing from over doing it.

TDGee

If you're not working out at least 6 hours a day, seriously, what's the point? WHAT'S THE POINT BRO?!?!

Blessings! :flowerforyou:

JJasMyself

As most others have stated, taking a rest day is important for you body to recover, especially if you are lifting, but a rest day doesn't necessarily mean doing nothing. A few years ago when I was in the best shape of my life I would only take one or two rest days a month because when I lifted each day focused on different body parts, so I was resting the other muscles on days that I wasn't training them. When I ran cross country in college we were supposed to take a rest day before big meets. I noticed I would preform better at the meets after rest days than if I didn't. I recently did some research on this same topic and posted the results on my blog about a week or so ago and then again on MFP tonight. You might want to check it out.