Why every day?

For me it's cabin fever. I'd rather be on a bike than on a couch.

I try to work out every day as much as possible. I exercise very early in the morning (4:15 am). It energizes me and just sets the tone for an amazing, productive day. Usually, my body will force me to take at least one rest day a week, and that's okay too.

I think for some it stems from the belief that they have to workout to burn calories of the food they are eating that day to lose weight. For me, my exercises are yoga, walking and running. I don't run on consecutive days so I don't really feel that I NEED a rest day, but I usually take Saturday as a rest day. I have been known to go for a long walk or do some yoga on Saturday if I am bored though. I used to could spend all day bingeing Netflix, but I don't really do that too much any more. I only feel bad when I miss a scheduled workout due to weather or unforeseen events, but that is really more disappointment than guilt.

Depends on what your individual goals are.. If you are trying to loose a certain amount of weight (especially a large amount) in a shorter time frame, then your goal would be to hit the gym 6-7 days a week.

If you are just maintaining and happy where you are at, then you don't need to. If you have other things going on in your day-to-day life and simply do not have the time nor need to really loose weight / gain tons of muscle, then you won't need to go.. I believe it is all based on just personal preference, Everyone is different.

I will always give myself 1 rest day a week, But I will do cardio 6 days a week for 30 minutes.

Where your question stems from can be that according to the Department of Health, They recommend, as quote;

"Department of Health and Human Services recommends these exercise guidelines:
Aerobic activity. Get at least 150 minutes a week of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes a week of vigorous aerobic activity. You also can do a combination of moderate and vigorous activity. The guidelines suggest that you spread out this exercise during the course of a week."

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/expert-answers/exercise/faq-20057916

GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »

MeanderingMammal wrote: »

lorrpb wrote: »

Where does the belief come from (for those who have it) that you have to workout every day? Someone is always stressing out that they missed a workout or have to take a scheduled rest day! Why is this a crisis?

The weight loss industry is predicated on absolutes.

You see those posts from newbies, or those whose focus is scale weight. You don't see them from trainers, in the main.

This.

I do something every day, but scale back one day a week because I need to move every day to keep my joints from stiffening up due to psoriatic arthritis, but that's a special case. I feel better when I move throughout the day on a daily basis. I'd likely be different if this weren't the case.

I'm with you--I HAVE to move everyday. On my exercise days I'm tired, but because OA makes me stiff, on those days I'm extra elastic--which means less pain. Even if it's just stretching or yoga, it helps so much.

MeanderingMammal wrote: »

lorrpb wrote: »

Where does the belief come from (for those who have it) that you have to workout every day? Someone is always stressing out that they missed a workout or have to take a scheduled rest day! Why is this a crisis?

The weight loss industry is predicated on absolutes.

You see those posts from newbies, or those whose focus is scale weight. You don't see them from trainers, in the main.

I think that is the difference.

Scale focused vs training goal focused.

Sara1791 wrote: »

For me it's building habits. I don't work out everyday, but I try to be active everyday.

Same for me. If I let myself skip too much, will I ever really go? Or will it be one of those things that I "mean to do" in perpetuity.

That said, rest days are important.

it's a part of my routine. my day isn't complete otherwise

I try to move every day - most of that is through my routine, structured programs or it could be as simple as an easy walk/jog on the weekend. But there are some days that my body needs the rest. I can tell - it's a totally different type of tired than my usual "ugh, it's 4:30am" tired. On those days, I take the rest...and I don't beat myself up over it.

I wouldn't say I get stressed if I missed a day, but fitness is very important to me and I look forward to my workouts.

I work a very sedentary IT job and I don't get in much activity outside of exercise.

Exercise makes me feel amazing, it keeps me fit and healthy and I really love the results it gives my body. I love my walks, weights and Pilates!

I'm maintaining so I don't workout for the calorie burn. It just a habit for me now and I like to move it, move it.

I run 40-60 minutes 6 days a week. I do plan a rest day because it's also nice to rest and do something else. I had two stress fractures because I would do this everyday and it was apparently too much for my bones - but that was before I learnt the lesson. That's only my humble personal experience

Or maybe it's partly things like this, from the US Centers for Disease Control:

https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/adults/index.htm

that recommend 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week, plus at least 2 days of muscle-strengthening activities per week . . . which one sees translated in other places to "30 minutes a day of aerobic activity 5 days per week, plus 2 days strength training" (or some such)? Starts to sound like working out every day, one might think.

If the real question is "why be obsessive about it", well, once people think they need a habit, it's pretty easy to be obsessive about it, and stress about missing the target. Also, I'm always amazed at how much people want to catastrophize, and create drama for themselves - on many fronts, not just this one.

Considering the source (i.e., what I know about OP, as one of her MFP friends), I doubt the underlying question ignores the idea that some people have training or fitness goals, or feel better when they work out. I'm thinking the emphasis is more why the stress (freak out) if one misses a rare day (just because of missing), or hesitancy to take a rest day, even when a rest day is clearly needed based on other things the person happens to be saying at the time. At times, rest days are a necessary part of the process.