Rest Days..Important or not?

sheri02r

I think rest days are important. I made the mistake of pushing myself really hard at the beginning of my half marathon training and paid the price for it! I was out for almost 3 weeks! Train smart, listen to your body, and rest!

californiagirl2012

Do you think rest days are important?

Should you/ do you take them or are they just a waste of time?

And if you do take them, how often in a week do you take rest days?
And what do you do on your rest day(s)? Absolutely nothing? Or if you do something, what do you do on your rest days?

Rest days are absolutely important and part of the strength building process. I usually take one once a week, but really it depends. I listen to my body and take them when needed. There is a difference between "I don't feel like it" and "I need rest". Once you know the feeling of fatigue then you know when to take the breaks. Depending on what I do I might go 3 days hard in the gym (usually pyramid workouts) and need a break, other times it is once a week, other times I can go longer. It's all about learning to listen to your body.

chachita7

here is a good read for you...

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/training/the-importance-of-rest.html

amann1976

i work out everyday i find you dont need rest days if you target different muscle groups every day...

mondays back and chest

tuesdays legs

wednesday biceps triceps and chest

thursdays legs

friday shoulders and chest

saturday classes

sunday boot camp class

LorinaLynn

I my rest days. Usually one a week, more if absolutely necessary.

I'm usually still fairly active, but rather than my typical running or lifting, I might go for a 2-3 mile hike instead. Tomorrow, I'll be shambling at a slow pace for a zombie walk.

LennyInFlorida

Rest days are important and I will also take a rest week every few months!! The rest week will only be a week off of something specific like resistance or cardio though. Once I took off a week with no exercise and the extra energy kept me awake all night... it was crazy haha.

hiker359

Important. I think of them as sharpening the saw. The short version is, a woodcutter works hard each day cutting the lumber in order to bring in money. Over time, the saw becomes dull, therefore causing the woodcutter to work harder and longer to cut the same amount of wood. He takes a day off to rest his muscles and to sharpen his saw. When he goes back to work, he is operating at peak efficiency again.

Just like sharpening the saw, rest days allow the muscles to recover, to rebuild, and for you to rebuild your spent energy stores. Sure you could keep trudging along, but you increase your chance of injury or burning out of your program the longer you go.

jennaworksout

I take at least one day off a week, I can just tell when my body needs it, sometimes 2 days in a row once a month, they are important for sure.

Superbritt2drescu

I have rest days, 2 a week. The rest of the week I lift(alternating parts) and run and do some classes. On rest days I only do a little stretching.

OspreyVista

I think rest days are important. However even if I didn't, due to having migraines, I'm usually forced to take several rest days when I don't want to. (usually I can get a walk in or something though)

lallaloolly

it's not a waste of time because your body is actually continuing the process of getting fit even though you aren't exercising that day. very good things happen to your body when you rest; you should definitely let those things happen.

evanesco

Yes they are. I take Sunday's off. The rest of the week I cross train, cardio 3 days, Bodyweight training 3 days.

jacquelyn_erika

I train 3 days on, 2 days off, 2 days on, 1 day off, and repeat. I will have tomorrow and Sunday for rest days. Now, I will be somewhat active as I am on my feet constantly moving at work for 6 hours. I don't count that as activity, but at least I'm not planted on the couch all day long.