REST DAY.... Do you do it and how important is it?
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KarinFit4Life
Posts: 424 Member
I'm a bit frustrated and torn about the rest days... NROLFW states that you do the exercises three times a week with rest days in between and rest on weekends too.
Now I know they also state that you can do some cardio exercises on the days in between lifting... How much is okay to do? And how much is TOO much?
If I want to take a rest day I feel guilty as hell.
If I do something like 30DS in between it feels like my muscles dont recover enough really.
I also do C25K, in the second week now.
Just wanted some of your opinions and what you do a week.
Thanks!
Now I know they also state that you can do some cardio exercises on the days in between lifting... How much is okay to do? And how much is TOO much?
If I want to take a rest day I feel guilty as hell.
If I do something like 30DS in between it feels like my muscles dont recover enough really.
I also do C25K, in the second week now.
Just wanted some of your opinions and what you do a week.
Thanks!
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Bump?0
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I haven't gotten all the way through the NROLFW yet but are you working all the muscles groups in one day?? If so then yes you need at least one day of rest after you lift. I lift heavy at the gym but I do splits. So I work only two major muscle groups a day and never the same ones consecutavely. I find this works best for me. I do take 2 days a week as "rest" days. One is a complete rest the other is a cardio only.0
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Well I am not sure if I am a big help here, cause I am not doing NROLFW (yet)
But I am doing ChaLean Extreme, where I do lift three times a week
The other three days I am doing Insanity at the moment, which is pretty much pure cardio
Sunday is my rest day0 -
I just began eat more to weigh less but I usually make just Sunday my rest day I rotate my exersize yesterday was nothing but cleaning the day before the same. today I did 2 mile race walking and 4 minuets jogging.0
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I do rest days and find it very important! And yes, you work every muscle group every workout so rest days are important. The rest time is when your muscles heal and build, that is when you'll get the results you're working hard for. If they don't have time to repair, you are doing more harm than good.
As far as other activity in between, he goes into his opinions on what is OK and maybe not as ideal. I think only you could know. If you are doing workouts in between that are fatiguing your muscles and you are pushing yourself on your "rest" days, it's probably too much. On my rest days I pretty much ride bikes with my kids, take walks or at the most kayak leisurely.0 -
It is important to give those muscles you worked a good rest. I have a hard time having a full rest day. I am working on it, but right now I cut it down to do weights 3 days, HIIT 3 sometimes 4 days. I am probably in the too much category. Even on weight days I go for a walk with my daughters and do some slight running. My oldest is doing the kids version of the race I am training for but shes 8, there is only so much running she can do
Even on that 4th day that should be a full rest, with 3 active kids and an active Mom we go for bike rides, hiking, swimming...you get the idea. I do think the 30DS would be too much since you are using weights and working those same muscles you worked the day before but some cardio would be good.
I don't feel guilty so much as restless. I don't do a whole lot of just sitting for no reason and even at night when I finally do sit down and zone, I have to get up and move around because my muscles get stiff and I have to move around a bit. Plus exercise is such a habit for me. I have done deliberate exercise since I was a teen off and on then in my early 20's is when I was more consistent. So now its something I do, like brushing my teeth. Getting me to not exercise is like telling me not to brush my teeth. You mean.....the whole day?:noway: and I would find a way to sneak it in anyway.
Edit for bad grammar.....0 -
Thanks ladies! I appreciate the input!
I might drop the 30DS and just do pure Cardio rather on "off" days.
Maybe do the 30DS on the weekend...mmmm.
WIsh my BMF would get here!!! Then at least I can track my TDEE for sure. :grumble:0 -
Rest days are up to you (in my opinion) as long as you don't work the same group of muscles on back to back days (you do biceps one day.. don't do biceps the next day.. back/legs/shoulders/chest/abs/triceps all muscle groups shouldn't be repeated in consecutive days)... If you don't do a rest day but instead do cardio make sure you have something to track your calorie burn and then Eat above your BMR if you burn enough to go under it..
As for me, I am currently doing P90x and I will usually follow the rest day schedule.. but on my rest day normally I will cut the grass, or do yard work or something along those lines (or hit the gym for some cardio if I feel good)0 -
Rest days are essential. As are rest weeks, or "active recovery" weeks. They're essential in preventing over-use injuries, and over-training (which lead to overuse injuries). This is especially important in women, as the bones, joints and tendons lag behind the muscles. So even if a muscle has recovered, it doesn't mean that the other parts have, and if we forge ahead (which most women do) then they end up w/the aches and pains that we feel are inevitable to lifting or running, when it's actually because we ran ourselves into the ground w/o knowing it. We typically feel like, because we don't "feel" it in our muscles then it's ok. But the problem w/bones, joints, tendons, ligaments, is that by the time you "feel" them hurting....it's too late...
I take 1-2 days off per week and 1 week off every 4-6 weeks or so. I just do light activity, something the complete opposite of what I usually do, which for me is yoga, pilates, (recovery workouts) maybe light cardio if I'm bored (which is rare). or ...nothing...
REST is when the "magic" happens, baby! :flowerforyou: Not the other way around. Muscle's grow bigger or get stronger after they *repair*, which can't happen if they're constantly being worked.
Kiki0 -
REST is when the "magic" happens, baby! :flowerforyou: Not the other way around. Muscle's grow bigger or get stronger after they *repair*, which can't happen if they're constantly being worked.
Kiki
That's now become my go-to explanation for my rest days (weeks too). Y'know- yesterday was a heavy lift day so today I'm makin' magic
I love and crave my rest days now that I know how to do them. I don't do active rest well- it wears me out further so I focus on other hobbies/activities that I enjoy but don't 'fit in' with my new lifestyle. I looove video games- so on my rest days, I play them. I love crochet- so on my rest days, I crochet
For me it's about keeping those sedentary hobbies I had but instead of doing them 90% of the time- I save them for rest days. I honestly prefer it that way- it feels more like rest and less like inactivity if I have a hobby to do.0 -
I find rest days to be so demotivating! If I rest one day, I want to rest another and another... But I don't work out at the same intensity every day! I do 1 intense day and one mild day. On my mild day, I will go for a long walk, or something similar to continue burning calories, but not stress my muscles. To me that is rest. If I sit on the couch and watch TV all day, I want to do that everyday! LOL! Hope that helps!0
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I hate rest days, but I take them because your muscles don't repair and grow unless they have adequate time. That doesn't mean you have to be completely sedentary, but it is incredibly important to give each muscle group adequate time to recover. Otherwise, you are only impeding your own progress and increasing your chance of injury at the same time. Not worth it.
But I only take one rest day a week... 0 -
Thanks ladies! I appreciate the input!
I might drop the 30DS and just do pure Cardio rather on "off" days.
Maybe do the 30DS on the weekend...mmmm.
WIsh my BMF would get here!!! Then at least I can track my TDEE for sure. :grumble:
I usually lift 3 days a week with 20 mins cardio after. I make sure to take one full day OFF, it's hard but you have to in order to allow your body to rest and to avoid over training. The other 3 days I usually do cardio, but this can range from a brisk walk, to a Jillian Michaels video to Yoga to housework and gardening. Cardio doesn't always have to be intense (nor should it or you will exhaust yourself).0 -
REST is when the "magic" happens, baby! :flowerforyou: Not the other way around. Muscle's grow bigger or get stronger after they *repair*, which can't happen if they're constantly being worked.
Kiki
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Listen to the woman!!! I have been the queen of overtraining in the past, trying to get better at giving my body the rest it needs. On rest days I may do some yoga/pilates/walking/light bike rides with the kids, etc. but mostly I just catch up on housework. I am finding that now I eat the same calories (TDEE-15%) spread out over the week, even on rest days, it is not as mentally hard as it used to be. Definitely take those rest days!0 -
I love rest days! I do my strength training and cardio on the same days so that I only workout 3 days a week. I feel free and liberated since doing so.
Am I only one?
Michelle0 -
I know a lot of people who will do light stretching or yoga on their 'rest days'. Something that will give them activity, but not tax them too badly.
I suck at Yoga, so I generally just eat a bag of skittles.0 -
Rest days are essential. As are rest weeks, or "active recovery" weeks. They're essential in preventing over-use injuries, and over-training (which lead to overuse injuries). This is especially important in women, as the bones, joints and tendons lag behind the muscles. So even if a muscle has recovered, it doesn't mean that the other parts have, and if we forge ahead (which most women do) then they end up w/the aches and pains that we feel are inevitable to lifting or running, when it's actually because we ran ourselves into the ground w/o knowing it. We typically feel like, because we don't "feel" it in our muscles then it's ok. But the problem w/bones, joints, tendons, ligaments, is that by the time you "feel" them hurting....it's too late...
I take 1-2 days off per week and 1 week off every 4-6 weeks or so. I just do light activity, something the complete opposite of what I usually do, which for me is yoga, pilates, (recovery workouts) maybe light cardio if I'm bored (which is rare). or ...nothing...
REST is when the "magic" happens, baby! :flowerforyou: Not the other way around. Muscle's grow bigger or get stronger after they *repair*, which can't happen if they're constantly being worked.
Kiki
Thanks Kiki!
Now that you mention that overtraining Im wondering... I havent taken a break in probably 10 weeks or more.
I have been having terrible headaches this week that doesnt want to ease even with pain killers, Im more tired lately and feel "off"...
Maybe I just need to take a propper rest and see how it goes.
Guess thats why I threw the question out there - my body is sending messages and I need to listen.
Thank you everyone, glad to know Im not the only one hating the rest but need it. :flowerforyou:0 -
I know a lot of people who will do light stretching or yoga on their 'rest days'. Something that will give them activity, but not tax them too badly.
I suck at Yoga, so I generally just eat a bag of skittles.
Giggle
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Interesting you say that about headaches, Karin, I have been having a reoccurring one these past few days....
Well I am definitely going to work on resting more since what I was doing in the past hasn't worked! There was this time in my life I refer to as "the fluke" where I was super fit and thin after my 2nd daughter. I had taken a job when she was 5 months and was so busy I stopped working out and even stopped obsessing about food. I had too much other stuff to think of and do! Weight melted off me like butter to reveal great muscle tone and a six pack. My friends would ask how I lost so much weight and I would say, I stopped working out! We would laugh because everyone who knows me knows I work out crazy mad!
Apparently my body must have been thanking me for the rest! The more I do EM2WL and read all this, the more I see it was less of a fluke and more of me naturally falling into what you are telling us.
While it is hard for me to rest I am going to work at it more. I have always heard eat less move more. So I would eat less then move more. When that didn't show results I would move more and eat less.
As my parents would grudgingly tell you, I always was one to do things backwards 0 -
Interesting you say that about headaches, Karin, I have been having a reoccurring one these past few days....
Well I am definitely going to work on resting more since what I was doing in the past hasn't worked! There was this time in my life I refer to as "the fluke" where I was super fit and thin after my 2nd daughter. I had taken a job when she was 5 months and was so busy I stopped working out and even stopped obsessing about food. I had too much other stuff to think of and do! Weight melted off me like butter to reveal great muscle tone and a six pack. My friends would ask how I lost so much weight and I would say, I stopped working out! We would laugh because everyone who knows me knows I work out crazy mad!
Apparently my body must have been thanking me for the rest! The more I do EM2WL and read all this, the more I see it was less of a fluke and more of me naturally falling into what you are telling us.
While it is hard for me to rest I am going to work at it more. I have always heard eat less move more. So I would eat less then move more. When that didn't show results I would move more and eat less.
As my parents would grudgingly tell you, I always was one to do things backwards
Well Wow!! What an eye opener post! Thank you for sharing TripleJ3!!
Definitely food for thought.0
