Rest Days

Let's talk about why you need rest, how often you should rest, and some best practices for rest days.

Are rest days that important?

Yes. Now, for our next topic...

In all seriousness, your muscles need to rest and recover the same way you need sleep to function. The harder you train, the more important it is to give your body time to go through its natural repairing process. You can slow your progress by not allowing your muscles to heal those little tears in the fibers that result from your workout.

Not only does the repairing process help you gain more mass and strength, but it's also vitally important to avoid injury. Think about it, if you continue to tear and break something down, without rebuilding, eventually, what are you left with? A lack of rest can result in overtraining, a decrease in performance, and injuries such as muscle tears, joint issues, and more. 

How often should you take a rest day?

My general rule is to rest every 3-4 days. But it ultimately depends on how you train. You may need to rest more frequently if you're workouts are primarily full-body. Or you may need to rest after training certain muscle groups like legs. 

Depending on your workout split, one muscle group can rest on the days you're hitting another group. For example, resting your upper body while you focus on your legs. However keep in mind, that a lot of moves activate a primary and secondary muscle group to perform the move properly. 

Having a well-structured plan helps you include rest days in the most beneficial spots for maximizing your schedule, growth, and recovery. 

What to do on your rest day?

Rest days aren't your excuse to chill on the couch all day. (Sorry) 

You just want to avoid intense activity. Going for a walk or doing light cardio is a great way to keep your muscles warm and help them release the build-up of lactic acid as they repair. Stretching, form rolling, using a percussion massager, and hot-cold therapy also aid repair. Along with adequate sleep and fueling your body with nutritious food.

Should I take a full break from training? 

In all honestly, I’m guilty of not doing this as often as I should. Even on vacations, my wife and I still get our workout in. But there is a benefit to taking a complete rest from training. 

An entire week off every once in a while allows all your muscle groups to rest and recover. This can also help to kickstart your body back into gear when it begins to plateau or get used to your current workout. 

Growth isn’t a result of constant nonstop work. While consistency is important for transformation, life needs balance. A successful rest day allows your muscles to repair so you can get back to training hard.

Need a workout plan that incorporates rest days? We can craft a custom plan so you have one less thing to worry about.