Should you work out every day or take a break

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whitesox56
whitesox56 Posts: 85
in Fitness and Exercise
I usually go to the gym 5 days a week. If I go tomorrow it will be 6 days. Is it okay to do this or should I skip a day and rest? I would just go to do cardio (ellpitical, treadmill, etc.) I am not sore and I feel great.

What do you all think?

Replies

  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
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    Take rest days. You're not going to be able to work out every day for your entire life, so it's best that you base your weight loss around sensible, sustainable goals
  • bdamaster60
    bdamaster60 Posts: 595 Member
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    I train twice a day, 6 days a week. Have at least 1 day of the week off.
  • monty619
    monty619 Posts: 1,308 Member
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    you can workout every day of the week if you wanted... what you need to take into consideration is the 1. Intensity level, 2. Frequency, and 3. Volume...

    you cant do full body workouts 7 days a week with max intensity... but you could exercise every day if you gave your self enough time to recover, and ate enough food.
  • whitesox56
    whitesox56 Posts: 85
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    Right now, I'm just focusing on cardio and doing minimum weights. There's no way I could lift weights 7 days in a row. I usually don't work out on Saturdays, but I will have time to kill tomorrow and I just want to go in and do the elliptical and maybe knock around the punching bag a little LOL
  • delyn356
    delyn356 Posts: 145 Member
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    Like someone else mentioned, it really depends on intensity & duration as well. Since it doesn't seem like your workouts are SUPER crazy intense, there shouldn't be too much of a problem working out everyday. Once your intensity level increases however, you should definitely fit one or two rest days a week.
  • MiTime2016
    MiTime2016 Posts: 50 Member
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    I do cardio every day; weights 3 days.
    I'm sure I do too much cardio but I just can't seem to stop.
  • Sycoholic
    Sycoholic Posts: 282 Member
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    I go every day, but I don't. Wait, what? Down time happens, don't plan on it. If it makes you feel good and you're not hurting then there's nothing wrong with it. The main concern is that you're not overtraining a certain muscle group. Now, I plan to go every day. If I don't I can't sleep at night. I'm jittery and packed with energy. Just can't lay still. Life happens though and you'll miss a day here and there. If you plan Monday's off, then maybe something happens Tuesday and Wednesday that keep you away. OMG! Now you've missed 3 days in a row! If you're like me you'd probably explode or go crazy. However, if you only miss Tuesday and Wednesday it doesn't seem so bad. Now, I usually try to run outdoors on the weekends. Less traffic and I have all day to get lost. However, the day can easily slip by as sometimes you get tied up with chores and errands.

    Go as often as you like. It's your body, listen to it. It'll tell you when you need a break.

    A good saying I read once, "When I train I listen to my body. When I compete I tell it to shut the hell up".
  • alyssamiller77
    alyssamiller77 Posts: 891 Member
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    I'd recommend one to two rest days a week at least. Much of it depends on what your workout plan is. However, I'll tell you this, in the long run trying to go every day will at minimum burn you out mentally and could potentially cause you harm physically. Personally, I've found that by introducing rest days into my routine my workouts have improved in intensity and I've actually seen better progress as a result.
  • Bobby__Clerici
    Bobby__Clerici Posts: 741 Member
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    Rest is paramount.
    Over-training stifles progress as much as crash diets.
    And we do these things with the best of intentions, but nature does not care.
    REST UP!
  • whitesox56
    whitesox56 Posts: 85
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    Like someone else mentioned, it really depends on intensity & duration as well. Since it doesn't seem like your workouts are SUPER crazy intense, there shouldn't be too much of a problem working out everyday. Once your intensity level increases however, you should definitely fit one or two rest days a week.

    Nope, not too super crazy. I do weights 3x a week..chest/biceps one day, back/shouders one day, legs the third day. Plus at least 60 mins of carido each workout. Sometimes I do planks, jumping jacks, wall sits, etc. stuff like that.
  • Abbdul
    Abbdul Posts: 103 Member
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    as u mentioned you are doing cardio and light weights , i guess 5days are enough, you could make 6days if u like .
  • runboettcherrun
    runboettcherrun Posts: 12 Member
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    1 or 2 rest days are best for me. but listen to your body. :smile:

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