Do you need to take a day off from exercise to benefit?

kirlia
kirlia Posts: 81 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
My gym buddy told me if you're just constantly working out, your muscles have no time to repair themselves, since they can only do so when resting - so it's actually better to occasionally take a day off so your muscles have the time to strengthen. How much truth is there to this?

(I maaaaaaay just be lazy and want to take a day off today because my muscles are exhausted from the rest of the week...but if the above is true, then it's for a good cause, right?)

Replies

  • faupster
    faupster Posts: 86 Member
    Its really what works best for you, but rest days should be in your schedule.
    -helps to not get burned out
    -helps muscles get stronger
    -Some people use on/off days such as on 3 days off 2 or on 2 off
    -Others use the weekend as off days
  • Dahllywood
    Dahllywood Posts: 642 Member
    I take 1-2 day breaks just because I'll get burned out mentally if I don't
  • CakeFit21
    CakeFit21 Posts: 2,521 Member
    training = work+rest

    recovery is important.
  • gungho66
    gungho66 Posts: 284 Member
    yes its true , muscles grow during rest , but thats not to say you cant work out. You simply hit different groups of muscles on different days and can do high intensity cardio another and steady state. mix things up versus the same routine everyday. i usually take mondays off sometimes friday but will do strength training tue,thur, sat and sun and run the other days,jog,sprints, hills ect..or ride a bike or ellipictical
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    yes. not only do muscles need to heal, but your joints, tendons and central nervous system need to heal. those take longer to heal and catch up so in addition to regular weekly rest days, you should also a week where you rest or do something light. especially if you're doing any heavy weight lifting
  • Madholm
    Madholm Posts: 167
    You will hear a lot of opinions on this as certain things you could do daily like ab workouts.

    Physically your major muscles do need recovery days, but mentally you should also give yourself some downtime. When I was getting close to 30 I went into extreme excercise mode and burned out pretty quickly after my first marathon. In retrospect I wish I hadn't go all out for those two years and adopted fitness goals that I could maintain for the rest of my life.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    Your friend is correct. Also a rest day does not have to mean a "lazy" day. You can still go for a walk on rest days, or you can trade off muscle groups on different days.

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