Days off exercise

hiddensecant

I didn't care so much when I was only managing 20 minutes of yoga per day. But these days I'm up to 20-25 minutes of power yoga in the mornings and 30-40 minutes of yoga in the afternoon. I have a feeling that 40 minutes of power yoga isn't that far off so I'm thinking some rules might start applying to me, if not already.

Do I need to take a day off exercise during the week? I remember reading somewhere that it's important.

hiddensecant

I didn't care so much when I was only managing 20 minutes of yoga per day. But these days I'm up to 20-25 minutes of power yoga in the mornings and 30-40 minutes of yoga in the afternoon. I have a feeling that 40 minutes of power yoga isn't that far off so I'm thinking some rules might start applying to me, if not already.

Do I need to take a day off exercise during the week? I remember reading somewhere that it's important.

kpnuts23

I think if i exercised everyday i would go mad!!! i do at least 5 times a week...

Mon - Gym Training
Tues - Gym 1/2Hour + 1 Hour Aerobics
Wed - Gym Training or Day Off (depending on if i go on the weekend)
Thurs - Gym Training
Fri - Swimming
Sat + Sun - Days off unless i dont go wednesday!

Thats me in a nutshell...

Katheirne

xbonbonx

I try to exercise everyday, but sometimes on the weekend I'll take a day off simply cause my life is busier. I do a vigorous/intense workout 3/4 times a week and walking 3 times a week, alternating days usually. I don't want to over do it, but I want to do as much as I can.

It probably is important to have one day off exercising a week. I don't remember hearing that anywhere though.

SHBoss1673

You should take a day off after every 3 or 4 days of strenuous exercise. I have no idea what the intensity level is of yoga or power yoga, that's for you to decide, but if you get out of there tired, sore and achy, then consider it at least moderately strenuous. Give your body the chance to recover it needs. The concept of over training is real and can happen to anyone. If you push your body without a break, the muscles and tendons and other soft tissues can start to fatigue, you need to give them a chance to recover.
The worst part is, these things don't necessarily tell you when they are tired, one day, one of them may just fail, thats how it happens a lot of the time, soft tissue weakened by fatigue can just fail, causing serious injury. So give yourself a recovery day, your body will thank you for it. Remember, your bones are only good when something is holding them together.

hiddensecant

For me, yoga can burn between 171-227 calories per hour so it's relatively moderate. Power yoga, on the other hand, burns 480 calories per hour so that's a decent aerobic workout --a bit higher than a "high impact" aerobic workout.

Thanks for the answers. I'd much rather have a light day than take an entire day off. So maybe I'll start to plan for some moderate stretch routines to separate a few days of power yoga once that gets bumped up to 40 minutes. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to try for one day out of the week right now to get into the habit. ;-)

CTOlson

I find mixing things up keeps it more interesting. Then you can periodize things like aerobic/cardio training vs yoga or resistance training on a weekly basis. Add in upper (chest or shoulders) and lower (legs/core) and you basically can workout 6 days without repeating. I tend to find mixing it keeps me challenged. Then you can change those patterns and throw in some off weeks where you do little resistance.

P90x is the best example and tested for all this, but you can do similar things on your own through experimentation. Of course you might make mistakes etc then you'll have to modify the patterns again - it's a never ending journey, but along the way you'll probably get in great shape!

It's worked for me to workout 6 days a week with one off day. Fewer days like 3-4 is like throwing yourself down the stairs. You'll get sore but that's about it!