Are rest days always necessary?

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  • Meggles63
    Meggles63 Posts: 916 Member
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    Mine is mostly from my ankle. I have 17 pins and a plate. Plus, I have psoriatic arthritis. But, I can't run (except from the po) so, I walk real fast. Real fast when I take a tylenol #4.

    Guess I'm not the only one with leg troubles....titanium bar in my right leg.
    You too! Mine's in my left. Actually no pain, but I've got a bit of a limp. Funny thing is, when I run, it doesn't bother me :smile:
  • Fit_Canuck
    Fit_Canuck Posts: 788 Member
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    I'm doing C25K which has me jogging 3 times per week with a day of rest in between each. Yesterday was my day to jog and today should be my rest day. I'm going to be over my calories but not enough to the point where I couldn't exercise to get back under. So my question is would there be a problem with doing another jog today? Is there a specific reason for the rest days? It felt necessary when I started but I just finished week 7 and it doesn't feel necessary anymore.

    As someone who just finished the program personally I needed the rest days, if you don't you may start to experience tendons becoming a tad too tight, runner's knee is another symptom. Follow the program as recommended :) You'll have plenty of time to push you limits after.
  • 5Goodyz
    5Goodyz Posts: 10
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    First - I concur with everyone that you should take the rest day. A couple of reason why - prevent injury, let the muscles recover from the stress. Couple of other issues that I did not see but are also factors.
    1. Some of the soreness (depending on your effort level) is due to lactic acid and other toxins that build up in the mucsles when you exerted effort against them. Your body needs time to flush these toxins out and get new O2 and nutrients into them. A good alternative to cardio or strength training is yoga. I know its not man-ly or whatever, but I have been doing it for about 3 years and love it. I helps stretch out all of your body and is still a workout.
    2. You can also look at lower stress events to do on a rest day (although if the program says rest - I would rest - it gives you something to look forward to) Take a look a cycling (no impact - but still a potential smoker (focus is recovery) or swimming. Swiming engages all of the muscles but no impact and can still work on your cardio.

    Again - if it says rest - enjoy the break. Continue to hydrate, stretch and look forward to your next workout.

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