Surely you’ve heard, “If you aren’t looking forward to your rest day(s), you aren’t training hard enough!” But, what about people who genuinely enjoy their gym time or other physical activities?
Do you really NEED to take a rest day?! Friends, I’m here to tell you, YES! Yes you do!
Benefits of a Rest Day
During rest is the time when your body begins the process of rebuilding the muscle fibers that have been broken down.
In the society we live in today where everything seems to be, “Do as much as you can as fast as you can” and everyone is after quick results, It’s easy to get caught up in the “must work out every day” mindset and completely disregard the fact that rest and allowing our bodies to work it’s magic during recovery time is just as important as putting in the actual work itself! Your body just cannot perform effectively when it’s tired, overworked or underfed.
Think about it this way, what’s even worse than taking a day or two off of intense activity each week? Being forbidden from the sport for weeks or months at a time! Every athlete from beginner to elite may experience some sort of injury at one point or another. But you can greatly decrease your odds and avoid major damage with intelligent training and, even though we may very much hate to admit this, adequate rest and recovery.
Signs you may be under-recovered and in need of more rest:
Your body is smart enough to show you all the warning signs, you just have to know what to look for AND be smart enough to listen to the early warning signs!
Early warning signs could include:
Lack of desire to train
Discomfort
Unusual feelings of weakness
Extreme soreness
Lack of energy or sluggishness
When the above early warning signs are missed or ignored, being “under-recovered” could lead to actual “over-training”.
In these more extreme cases, warning signs may include:
Moodiness
Loss of appetite
Poor sleep patterns
Increased resting heart rate
Reproductive disorders
Decreased immunity
As well, physiological warning signs could come at you in the form of overuse injuries, such as:
Stress fractures
Muscle strains
Joint pain
What exactly qualifies as rest?
An important thing to mention is, rest doesn’t necessarily mean complete inactivity. For general health reasons, intentional daily movement is necessary. Some days should just be less intense than others.
Examples of activities that are done at a mild to moderate intensity:
Yoga
Pilates
Recreational activity or active play
Walking or hiking
Sleep is also an important part of the rest and recovery process.
“During REM sleep, your body’s production of growth hormone increases, which aids in repairing and rebuilding of muscles post-workout,” says Crystal Reeves, a NASM certified master trainer.
Reeves also added that if your goal is to build muscle, by not getting enough quality sleep on a regular basis, the production of your growth hormones will be negatively affected and your efforts will be disrupted.
This doesn’t mean that if, despite your best efforts, you’re unable to get an adequate amount of sleep on a regular basis, you should just give up!!
It could mean, however, that you may just need to pack a little extra patience and take things slower with longer periods of rest between your higher intensity activities.
How to learn to appreciate and enjoy your rest days:
No matter which type of exercise you enjoy, the same recovery concepts apply.
Even talking in terms of our favorite cardio activities like running, swimming or cycling, keep in mind that the heart is also a muscle and this muscle needs some R&R too!
The process of recovery isn't just about whether our muscles still feel sore or not or whether we feel tired or not. Dr. Cedric Bryant says, there are important biochemical processes such as restoration of the immune system and strengthening of bone tissue that are also taking place during the recovery period.
Understand that rest is just as important as exercise. While knowing this may not help you enjoy missing out on your gym escape, or your runner’s high on your rest days, it is a true statement!
Find low to moderate intensity activities you enjoy that you can partake in on your rest days.
This could be a win/win situation for both your mind and your body :)
References
“Avoiding Injury: When In Doubt, Rest.” The Active Times, 17 July 2015, www.theactivetimes.com/avoiding-injury-when-doubt-rest.
“Rest Days: How Much Recovery Do You Really Need Between Workouts?” The Active Times, 17 July 2015, www.theactivetimes.com/rest-days-how-much-recovery-do-you-really-need-between-workouts.
“Why Rest Days Are Just as Important as Working Out.” The Active Times, 17 July 2015, www.theactivetimes.com/why-rest-days-are-just-important-working-out.
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