is exercising everyday bad?

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anthea1989
anthea1989 Posts: 15
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi,

I was just wondering what peoples thoughts were on exercising everyday. At the minute i have been going everyday to the gym to work on the machines or do classes of various things but i was wondering if this was good or bad for weight loss? At the minute the weight is coming off nicely but i have heard that sometimes doing the same work out everyday can be detrimental to weight loss, however if i mix up my machines regularly and alternate which classes i go to will it be ok? Also is it bad to go work out when my muscles feel sore??

Thanks

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  • amyfritz
    amyfritz Posts: 33
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    Here is the general rule.. You should have at least have one day of rest during the week. Especially if you are lifting weights. Your body needs time to rebuild the damaged muscle or you will never see increases in strength. There is an exception to this and that is if you are lifting different body parts on different days, then you can lift every day as long as its not the same muscle group. As for the cardio, as long as you keep switching if up, your body wont get used to it, but personally I am still a believer in a day of rest. I find If I over do it, its easier to find an excuse to not go to the gym. If your muscles are sore, its fine to go and work out and you may even find that it helps to loosen them up a bit and feel less stiff and sore.
  • kwardklinck
    kwardklinck Posts: 1,601
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    I exercise almost every day. I try to do different muscle groups on alternate days. For example, I can't run one day and then do aerobics the next day. It's too much stress on my knees and makes my calves swell up. I run every other day and on my off days, I work my arms, chest, and core. I'd say do what feels right to you. If something hurts, give yourself a break every now and then.
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
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    It's commonly accepted in exercise circles (and I happen to agree) that you should have a day off every week from hard workouts. Besides the obvious factor of muscle fatigue, you also need to give your body time to recover from impact and isometric stresses.

    This doesn't mean you can't burn calories on an off day, it means that if you're going to do so, do it at a low rate so as to not fatigue the muscles.

    I still prefer taking a day completely off once (and sometimes twice) a week as it completely removes soft tissue fatigue (usually) and gives muscles a chance to really recharge.

    It's not only the concept of resting fatigued muscles either, it's a body chemistry thing. A hard working body can start to see diminishing returns after more than 10 days of continuous moderate to high intensity work. It's a great thing to work out, but it's not a panacea. Think of working out hard every day the same as you would doing a physical job every day, you can, and will receive repetitive stress trauma, even if you mix up the exercise types, because certain areas of the body are always working during these events, and that means eventual breakdown because of overuse. At a minimum; 1 day a week should be spent either resting or doing something akin to a moderate walk (for your fitness level) or a leisurely bike ride, in order to recharge the body and give you a break.

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