Totally Exhausted!

kaytbognar
kaytbognar Posts: 249
edited September 20 in Fitness and Exercise
I just started a jogging program, and I do about 1-2 hours of yoga daily, in addition to having a physical job (I'm a massage therapist.) This has been my first week of diligently doing all three things, plus looking after my diet a lot more carefully.

Today is my rest day from jogging, I was planning on doing some yoga this afternoon, but i'm finding that after a really light half hour walk this morning (I just took my camera out to do some shooting of the mountains, it was pretty stop-and-go the whole time I was out) I'm freakin EXHAUSTED!

What do you guys think about days of full rest? Meaning no cross training, no aneriobics, just sit-on-your-duff and REST days? I don't know if I'd call it guilt but I'm worried that if I don't do something to keep me moving, I'll just sleep all day long!

Replies

  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
    I just started a jogging program, and I do about 1-2 hours of yoga daily, in addition to having a physical job (I'm a massage therapist.) This has been my first week of diligently doing all three things, plus looking after my diet a lot more carefully.

    Today is my rest day from jogging, I was planning on doing some yoga this afternoon, but i'm finding that after a really light half hour walk this morning (I just took my camera out to do some shooting of the mountains, it was pretty stop-and-go the whole time I was out) I'm freakin EXHAUSTED!

    What do you guys think about days of full rest? Meaning no cross training, no aneriobics, just sit-on-your-duff and REST days? I don't know if I'd call it guilt but I'm worried that if I don't do something to keep me moving, I'll just sleep all day long!

    What's wrong with sleeping all day? Just eat a bit less. Or eat your normal amount and give your body some fuel for repairs. There's no reason to feel exhausted regularly. When I am seriously depleted I'll carb up and rest.
  • thica03
    thica03 Posts: 44 Member
    I agree with songbyrdsweet, you don't want to over work yourself and get burned out, rest up and get back in the game after your free day.
  • LittleSpy
    LittleSpy Posts: 6,754 Member
    Are you eating some of your exercise calories? I find if I don't eat enough, I run out of energy really fast.

    Also, you could be overdoing it by running every day if that's not something you're used to doing. I was running every day for about 2 weeks, and then my body really let me know that wasn't a good idea for me at this point. I took an entire week off running and the next time I stepped on the treadmill expecting my performance to be awful since I hadn't run in a week,it was actually much better than it had ever been before! Now I'm running 3 days a week (Monday, Thursday, Saturday) and doing low-impact exercise on my off days (biking, walking). Yesterday I actually did no intentional exercise because I had pushed it a little too hard Saturday but that was the first full day with no exercise I've had in over a month. My new exercise schedule is working a lot better for me than trying to push it so hard every day. I'm losing more weight plus I have tons more energy.

    I don't think taking a whole day off from exercise is a bad thing at all. Listen to your body when it comes to that. I like being active, so my exercise schedule lets me be active every day without overdoing it very often. :smile:

    And of course this is all based on my experience & is just my personal opinion. :wink:
  • cerdmann
    cerdmann Posts: 60
    I'm also curious about a day off. I'm usually very good during the week -- I go to the gym 5 days a week for 80 minutes insanely early in the morning before work. I generally do about 50 minutes of cardio and 30 minutes of weight training each day. About once a week I'll do a full 70 minutes of cardio and no weights. Then on the weekends I find I have too much to do at home and not enough motivation to go to the gym. I do try to get a couple of 30 minutes walks in with the dog or 30-60 cleaning house, but that's about it on the weekends.

    I generally do eat about 75% of my exercise calories back but on weekends when I don't have as many exercise calories I'm finding it very hard to stay at the 1200 calories. I'm scared to death if I don't do something -- anything -- on the weekends to burn calories that my weight will go back up. I'm just so tired, though. I'd love to have one day off a week and not have to worry about it. Or is a day a week off too much to ask? Does everyone feel guilty for this?
  • sournotez
    sournotez Posts: 14
    In my opinion, you are exercising excessively. No one needs 2+ hours of exercise a day unless you are consuming several thousand calories. take it easy! your body will never repair itself if you keep pushing it, and that ulitmately slows your progress.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    When you start a program, there is always a period where you have to deal with the initial onset of residual fatigue, What you are experiencing, independent of any other variable, is pretty predictable. You can deal with by taking a rest day, or my sharply reducing intensity or duration (or both) for a day or two. I understand the psychological need of either wanting to "burn some calories" everyday or of trying to stick to a daily schedule. If that is the case then you still can take "rest days" just do something very low level.

    There are also other considerations. You mention being "diligent" and monitoring caloires more carefully. That's a good indication that you are not replenishing glycogen stores after exercise and not eating enough. It could also mean you are not eating enough carbohydrates. When I first started my program, I had just been diagnosed with type II diabetes, but had to wait 2 weeks for an appointment with a diabetes educator and dietitian. To establish some baseline responses, I went very low carb (i.e. 60g /day) and was also holding to a 1500 Cal/day intake (at 255lb). Within 4-5 days (exercising every day), I had become so exhausted I could barely walk around the dog park path--at the shuffling pace of a 90 yr old. It took about 3-4 days of boosting up my carbs and low-level exercise before I was back to normal. .
  • kaytbognar
    kaytbognar Posts: 249
    Thanks for all the responses!

    In regards to calorie consumption, I'm definitely eating enough. Adzak, what I mean by being "diligent" isn't being militant in terms of calorie intake, but being mindful of what and where those calories are coming from (ie. ensuring that I am getting enough carbs and protein to still function and heal properly.) My diet previously was awful (up until a month ago almost the only thing I consumed was beer, rye whiskey, pasta with hot sauce, and frachos.) I also keep an eye on my exercise calories, I find I usually eat most of them because I get pretty hungry now that I've changed my diet.

    In terms of exercise, I don't know if you could call what I've been doing "over"doing it--my jogging program is pretty minimal at the moment (I'm only jogging about 4 days a week, and most of it is interval work) and the yoga I do is not particularly strenuous--my focus is more on stretching and improving flexibility and balance that getting a real "workout" from it. I don't get tired at all, usually, on the days I'm doing stuff.

    It's just today that has me wiped (and scratching my head becuase of it!) I suppose my issue isn't really the lack of exercise or not burning calories, but the boredom that comes with almost two hours worth of stuff scratched from my list of things to do in a day. Those holes in my afternoon really seem to cramp my style, I guess I'll just spend more time reading and napping.
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