day of rest?

jenifer7teen
jenifer7teen Posts: 205 Member
edited November 9 in Fitness and Exercise
Is it important to take a day off from working out even if you feel energetic/aren't sore? If so, why? How often?

Also, it you are working out...say with 6-7 mile runs...would doing a slow paced 3 mile run count as a "rest" day?

Replies

  • lookslikeyoda
    lookslikeyoda Posts: 161 Member
    Saturday is always my rest day, I still keep on my feet tho but I just don't do any actual focused workouts. I've been told its good to have a rest day so I just do it.
  • PedmomJill
    PedmomJill Posts: 505 Member
    Your body needs to recover from the workouts. I take one rest day per week, always the same day (Monday for me). And that means NO exercise at all. A 3 mile slow run is NOT resting. (Good try lol) It's hard for me mentally sometimes, too, but I know it's necessary even if my brain doesn't think so.
  • pethead30
    pethead30 Posts: 15 Member
    Yes, rest is important, even if you aren't sore. Your muscles need time to repair themselves, and if you don't allow this time, you will never see any gains in your performance and you be at an increased risk of injury. You won't feel sore after every run/workout, but eventually you will become fatigued and start to see a decline in your performance. If you are really active, allow at least one day a week where you do not do any running or strength training. I would say that any run would not count as rest, but a leisurely walk would and you can still burn some calories in the process.
  • jenifer7teen
    jenifer7teen Posts: 205 Member
    Saturday is always my rest day, I still keep on my feet tho but I just don't do any actual focused workouts. I've been told its good to have a rest day so I just do it.

    i've been told this too... but i wonder why?
  • jenifer7teen
    jenifer7teen Posts: 205 Member
    Yes, rest is important, even if you aren't sore. Your muscles need time to repair themselves, and if you don't allow this time, you will never see any gains in your performance and you be at an increased risk of injury. You won't feel sore after every run/workout, but eventually you will become fatigued and start to see a decline in your performance. If you are really active, allow at least one day a week where you do not do any running or strength training. I would say that any run would not count as rest, but a leisurely walk would and you can still burn some calories in the process.
    ok.... that is helpful. i just feel so lazy if i don't do ANYTHING, plus i want to burn the calories. maybe a leisurely bike ride. :)
  • pethead30
    pethead30 Posts: 15 Member
    Muscles, like any part of your body, need time to recuperate and rebuild after "injury" - which is what a work out is in the sense that you are tearing and breaking muscle fibers (this is how muscles get built!). Allowing rest between workouts will increase stamina, strength, and endurance over time and will allow your body to recover from the damage to muscle fibers you have done. Without rest between workouts, you will see a decline in your overall performance and risk injury from overuse of specific muscle groups.
  • I know exactly what you mean, i have been working for over 365 days in a row with heavy weight training and some high intensity cardio, today i am taking my first day off, so far it feels weird to not go.

    rest days are important they help you recover some cns functions that are compromised from heavy and high intensity lifting or exercising.
  • pethead30
    pethead30 Posts: 15 Member
    Yea, I usually go on a stroll if I am feeling antsy. But I always resist the urge to go out and just run anyway. I've done it before and paid for it! Nothing like trying to sneak in more than you can handle and then ending up not being able to run for 2 weeks because of overuse. :sad:
  • withervein
    withervein Posts: 224 Member
    Rest is a weapon.

    To quote Krista Scott-Dixon of Stumptuous:

    "You don’t really need to remember this; but what you do need to remember is that the building-up and recovering from trauma part happens between, not during workouts.

    In other words, what you do outside the gym is as important as what you do inside.

    In addition, the body is a system, not just a collection of unrelated parts. Stress on one part becomes stress felt all over. You know how you get a stomach upset when you’re nervous, or a headache after being tense? Same idea. The body operates as a dynamic system that responds to a stimulus holistically. In other words, all for one and one for all. If your body is not allowed sufficient time for repair and rebuilding, you will not recover and become stronger. You will be at risk for chronic injuries, minor (or major) illnesses, and eventually, overtraining."

    "A beginner can make gains training as infrequently as twice weekly, with one set per exercise. Many elite trainers train nearly every day, or even twice a day. Most people fall somewhere in between that, opting to train with weights around 3-4 times weekly, for somewhere around 30-60 minutes.

    A good rule to go by is that as frequency of workouts increases, the workload of each individual workout should decrease. So, if you train twice weekly, you can do a full body workout with fairly high intensity or a lot of volume. If you train 5-6 times weekly, you should have a shorter workout that may only consist of a few sets of a single lift. Or you need to rotate your exercises and the demands of each workout."

    The full post is here http://www.stumptuous.com/sit-yo-*kitten*-down-the-importance-of-rest
  • jenifer7teen
    jenifer7teen Posts: 205 Member
    oh....one more question

    so does this rest thing just apply to the STRENGTH training? I don't really feel like i am tearing my muscles doing more endurance things like biking and running. I only do weight stuff 3x per week.
  • jenifer7teen
    jenifer7teen Posts: 205 Member
    Yea, I usually go on a stroll if I am feeling antsy. But I always resist the urge to go out and just run anyway. I've done it before and paid for it! Nothing like trying to sneak in more than you can handle and then ending up not being able to run for 2 weeks because of overuse. :sad:

    ahhh yeah i ran on a fractured foot thinking NO PAIN NO GAIN.... now my foot is slightly sore every day and didnt heal right. haha i suck.
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