Working all muscle groups everyday..

lozzieemayjenkins

So I attend the gym everyday, and normally I'll do body weight exercises such as squats and lunges with & without weight, then use the weight machines that work various body parts such as legs, bum, chest, back and arms etc.. Followed by 20-30 minutes of cardio.

What I'm concerned about is that maybe I shouldn't be training all muscle groups every single day?

JenMc14

Your muscles need 24-48 hours in between workouts to rest. You can run one day, then squat, but you shouldn't be strength training every muscle group without at least a one day rest in between.

AbbyPDX

Try doing different groups of muscles and alternating: chest and shoulders one day, back and legs the next. They do need to rest for recovery and growth. My gym does 'push' and 'pull' days which is a nice way to break it up so you're working several different muscles in a given day, but when you swap you will mostly be putting strain on a different group. I'd say this is all more important if you're lifting heavy weight (for you) so lower reps, higher weight as opposed to a sort of 'light circuit' where you're doing a ton of reps at a low weight that's pretty easy for you. That's more conditioning than muscle building. But if you're looking to build muscle/convert fat to muscle, I'd lean towards heavier weights/lower reps. Then those 24+ hour rests are quite important.

lozzieemayjenkins

Try doing different groups of muscles and alternating: chest and shoulders one day, back and legs the next. They do need to rest for recovery and growth. My gym does 'push' and 'pull' days which is a nice way to break it up so you're working several different muscles in a given day, but when you swap you will mostly be putting strain on a different group. I'd say this is all more important if you're lifting heavy weight (for you) so lower reps, higher weight as opposed to a sort of 'light circuit' where you're doing a ton of reps at a low weight that's pretty easy for you. That's more conditioning than muscle building. But if you're looking to build muscle/convert fat to muscle, I'd lean towards heavier weights/lower reps. Then those 24+ hour rests are quite important.

That's really informative, thank you!

phjorg

if working your muscles every day was an issue then people doing heavy labour every day for hours upon hours using the same muscles lifting VERY heavy things must not be able to work every day. right? right????

The key here is are you lifting to improve and build muscles, thus are lifting to failure? Or are you just going through the same routine every day.

the goal of lifting is to usually literally destroy the muscle fibres. They then regrow stronger. Thats why lifters push themselves to failure, or close to. This act ensures the fibres are being broken down. So if you are doing this, then yes, you will need rest. 2 days.

If you're just on a routine where you don't push yourself, then the muscle fibres are not being broken down. In this case, you're fine to go every day as you're never pushing your limits. Just like how people who do heavy labour can do the same thing every day.