Is it efficient to work out 7 days a week?

Rinflozeu

I have no problem working out every day of the week, but is it the most efficient way to do it? Or does the body needs a day to recover?

Thx.

KharismaticKayteh

I don't think there's anything wrong with working out every day, but if you're looking to build muscle, you need to allow yourself time to recover.

When you work out hard enough, you're literally tearing muscles (which is okay, despite how violent it sounds). Muscles build when protein fills in and scars over those tears. If you keep working out, however, you're continually tearing the muscle and not allowing it to fill in and scar.

genefabes

I'm guilty of running every single morning which probably isn't the best thing especially since I stand all day at work. It's my zen time in the morning and if I don't run my dog to exhaustion she will be a maniac while I'm at work. I do at least alternate distance and intensity between consecutive days.

i definitely couldn't and wouldn't strength train seven days a week. are you splitting up your muscle groups? like say biceps and back one day, legs and abs the next, then triceps and shoulders?

BeautyFromPain

You build muscle whilst you rest.
Plus you will end up burning out... trust me..

vtmoon

Depending on how you are working out. If you are doing exercises that cause a lot of muscle tear (weight lifting and resistance) then recovery is needed. If you are doing exercises that are normal human motions (running, walking and most normal cardio) then you don't really need the rest.

ellie319

Cardio or strength training,you require at least two days of rest.If you dont you run the risk of injury,Im not
Saying be sedentary but dont push your body more than neccessary.

mariagabriella

It could be, granted that you vary the intensity. You can't go hard 7 days straight without burning out. If you do 7 days, make sure you have a few easy days in between the hard days.

jrig9463

yeah are you doing cardio or anaerobic workouts?
if it's weights :
back and bi's (and forearms)
chest and tri's
then legs (thighs)
are generally more common groupings
they work better because the exercises use the same muscle groups
then two days of rest between each group
add in shoulders and calves when you have energy after any of the above 3 workouts
if it's cardio :
don't know, but I've heard it's good to get your metabolism going as soon as you wake up (e.g. a morning jog and eating breakfast) and I'd say everyday would be best partially because of the post exercise bonus calories burned each time you exercise. i try to cycle 1-3 hours at least 5 times per week, but find my legs and body can be quite fatigued if i don't give them a rest day here or there, but some of those training sessions can be pretty full on.
let me know if you get a definitive answer ..

tigersword

Rest is just as, if not more important than exercise.

jennaworksout

i think its too much, a day off is needed to rest and you'll just get burnt out.... i do anyways lol

jrig9463

nah not two days. that would mean you could only train two and a bit days a week. it also depends on the intensity of the workout.

BrianSharpe

Rest is just as, if not more important than exercise.

^^^ This

Your rest day, however, does not mean you need to sit on your butt watching TV. Walk, ride your bike (at a leisurely pace) - low impact, low intensity.

You also didn't mention what kind of workouts you're doing. If you're alternating days for strength & cardio, for example, you've already built a certain amount of recovery time into your program.

robin52077

Rest days are IMPERATIVE.
If you work out 7 days a week you are setting yourself up for failure and injury.
REST.

CyberEd312

I too could workout 7 days a week but there is real importance in working in a rest day a couple times a week... I vary my training so my rest day never falls on the same day.. Now on my rest day, I still incorporate some stretching and maybe a light walk, nothing strenuous, I just prefer to not spend my rest day on the couch... Best of Luck

jhungate

You should not do the same workout every day, need to mix it up. I run as my primary exercise but i only do it 5-6 days a week, I bike and/or do Zumba on the off days. You need to give you body time to recover.

Capt_Apollo

Rest is just as, if not more important than exercise.

yup. think of this as a table and cardio, strength training, diet, and rest are the legs that hold it up.

i know that in the beginning, you don't want to lose momentum. so consider things like yoga, cycling, walking, or swimming as an active rest day.

sometimes on my rest days, i'll do my warm up, and then a big stretching session. my warm up is http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2012/01/09/warm-up/ 2-3 minutes of jump rope, 50 jumping jacks, 20 body weight squats, 5 lunges (each leg), 10 hip extensions, 5 hip rotations each leg, 10 forward leg swings (each leg), 10 side leg swings (each leg)
10-20 push ups, 10 spiderman steps. then i'll stretch for twenty minutes.

docscottj

There are a few ways to group muscles when doing resistance training. I like to do chest/back and arms/legs. If you do arms, it's important to go shoulders triceps biceps in that order because they have a hierarchy in working together, so you don't want to tire biceps before working shoulders, as you won't have enough energy to work shoulders.

Keep up the great work!!

bruceinthepit88

How about to make the rest day active I just skip the resistance training and just do the cardio, say 40 minutes of 300 Calories burnt?

Lina4Lina

Right now, I'm exercising every day, sometimes twice per day. For heavy lifting, I'm giving my muscles rest days but I am doing cardio, yoga and started doing some belly dancing. I'm also listening to my body because that is important.

a_new_dawn

I did the 30 day shred in 30 days straight and a MASSIVE burnout followed. I felt so tired and needed sleep so badly but I just could not physically switch off and fall asleep. When I was lucky enough to drift off, I would wake up, 3-4 times per night feeling all breathless with my heart racing... Almost like a mini panic attack. I heard that this is quite common if your body is seriously overworked. I learnt the hard way that rest is vital, and I always take one rest day per week..whether I want to or not.

sandhillsmom

I am doing something every day to work out but each day is different. I do 30-40 minutes of cardio, either walking or treadmill time 5 days a week. I do an hour of yoga 2 days a week, and I do an hour of circuit training 3 times a week. No matter how I spread it out I am doing at least one of the activities each day. The only activity I do back to back days is cardio. Circuits get a day or 2 break between sessions as well as a day between yoga. So far it's working for me.

bruceinthepit88

I did the 30 day shred in 30 days straight and a MASSIVE burnout followed. I felt so tired and needed sleep so badly but I just could not physically switch off and fall asleep. When I was lucky enough to drift off, I would wake up, 3-4 times per night feeling all breathless with my heart racing... Almost like a mini panic attack. I heard that this is quite common if your body is seriously overworked. I learnt the hard way that rest is vital, and I always take one rest day per week..whether I want to or not.

Holy **** ! this is exactly what is happening to me right now. It's almost like I wrote this....

a_new_dawn

I did the 30 day shred in 30 days straight and a MASSIVE burnout followed. I felt so tired and needed sleep so badly but I just could not physically switch off and fall asleep. When I was lucky enough to drift off, I would wake up, 3-4 times per night feeling all breathless with my heart racing... Almost like a mini panic attack. I heard that this is quite common if your body is seriously overworked. I learnt the hard way that rest is vital, and I always take one rest day per week..whether I want to or not.

Holy **** ! this is exactly what is happening to me right now. It's almost like I wrote this....

Scary stuff isn't it I wouldn't wish it on anyone.

pinkraynedropjacki

I been working out every single day for the last 207days with no rest days. Cardio & strength on the same days, & I'm still going strong. I can't have a rest day or I wont get back into it, that's just me. I'm not burnt out at all, in fact I find I want to keep going for more & have to physically stop myself. Nothing wrong with 7 days of it, as long as you know you can handle it.

doxielvr

Rest, recovery and flexibility training are extremely important for a healthy lifestyle. You body deserves a day to rest and recover. A day or 2 of flexibility training with prevent damage and injury. Think of it like this, you kidneys are what filters out toxins out of your body. We create toxins when we build muscle. Give your body a day of rest to catch up and cleanse.

There is also a chance of over-training when we work out every day. The effects can be permanent. I suggest reading up on over-training if you aren't familiar.

One, or more, rest days will do more for your body than working out everyday.

girish_ph

I have just started exercizing less than 15 days ago. This was the question in my mind. You do not want a rest day, else you will lose momentum. From the responses above, I am convinced that I will take 2 days of rest a week.
Thaks folks

Lyssa62

I go with at least 1 rest day. I lose more weight and inches by taking at least 1 day a week off. My exercise consists of walking 3 miles at right now about 50 minutes...trying to get it down lower than that but that's where I am right now. I was walking every day and not losing anything and once I started taking the day off..it started dropping...odd as that may sound.

Toomestwin

I alternate my strength training and running workouts to allow my muscles time off between weightlifting days. I do have at least one "rest" day a week. Even so, on that one "rest" day, I'll do a short cardio workout on the elliptical trainer or taking the dog out for a good long walk. I do, however, pay attention to my body and will have a day or even two when I don't do anything at all. This comes from the bad experience of forcing myself to workout when my body was trying to tell me to lay off, and I ended up having sluggish workouts. When I finally learned to pay attention to these clues, I ended up having more effective workouts after giving my body the rest it needed. I find that these sort of happen randomly for me. In other words, designating a certain day as my "rest" day doesn't work for me.

Nerdy_Rose

I did the 30 day shred in 30 days straight and a MASSIVE burnout followed. I felt so tired and needed sleep so badly but I just could not physically switch off and fall asleep. When I was lucky enough to drift off, I would wake up, 3-4 times per night feeling all breathless with my heart racing... Almost like a mini panic attack. I heard that this is quite common if your body is seriously overworked. I learnt the hard way that rest is vital, and I always take one rest day per week..whether I want to or not.

Holy **** ! this is exactly what is happening to me right now. It's almost like I wrote this....

Scary stuff isn't it I wouldn't wish it on anyone.

This happens to me when I undereat.

Azdak

As someone else suggested, "rest" doesn't have to mean "inactivity". Active rest and recovery can work ok if you want to follow a daily schedule.

The biggest thing is to be aware of the signs of staleness and overtraining and when they occur, be willing to take a complete break. (I say "when" and not "if" because if you are going to work out 7 days a week, it is almost certain you will go into a state of overtraining at some point).

You also have to understand the importance and benefit of lower-intensity workouts, cross-training, and how to structure your weekly routine.

So, it can be done, but you have to know what you are doing or else it will often become counterproductive.

Rinflozeu

OMG YOU GUYS ROCK!!!

I love this community and thank you all for all the responses..

I will take my rest day exactly as many suggested , maybe some light cardio and what not.

Thank you again.