Rest Days: A Necessary Evil

I used to be one of those people who thought in order to see significant results in your body, you’d have to train every single day of your life (I also used to think a lot of exercise myths that far too many people believe…but that’s another post for another day). I would fear I’d lose my results by taking rest days. But let me give you insight to a little secret, over training is just as disadvantageous as under training. In fact, it’s simply counter-productive. So what if I told you that it was possible to see an increase in tone, size and strength by working out less? I’ll be honest, that wouldn’t have me jumping for joy. I absolutely loathe and despise rest days, because all I want to do is go lift and I can’t allow myself to. However, for those who aren’t freaks of nature like myself, would be ecstatic at this news. As much as I hate taking them, I know that it’s a necessary evil that I must practice. Days off from exercise can provide far greater benefits than an actual workout itself, and can allow you to train twice as hard during your next session.

First of all, thinking that you are going to lose any results or progress by taking a couple rest days is absolutely ridiculous. It is not physically possible for your muscles to atrophy in that sort of time frame. So get that shit out of your head right now. Once you start realizing, thinking and implementing the idea that taking a couple rest days a week will be more beneficial to your training, I promise you’ll see greater results.

Scheduling recovery days is just as crucial as scheduling workout days. This is the time that the body adapts to the stress that exercise can put onto your body. It allows your body to replenish energy stores, repair damaged tissues and to overall just repair and strengthen your body. Without adequate time to both repair and replenish, your body will continue to breakdown and you won’t be able to develop the muscles you are working so hard to build. If you want to continue to perform at a high-level, you have to allow your body to rest. It’s as simple as that. I don’t care how strong you are, overtraining will weaken even the strongest of athletes.

Now having a rest day or two does NOT mean you can sit on the couch all day and eat like shit. Your diet should actually be even cleaner than days when you do hit the gym. A rest day simply means that you aren’t working out. But that doesn’t mean you need to let everything else go down the drain. Do the same things you’d normally do, eat the way you know you should be eating and don’t be a lazy blob.

Active Recovery & Post-Nutrition
Now there is more to recovery than just taking complete days off from the gym. Active recovery occurs in the hours immediately following an exercise routine. This is the time for soft tissues (such as muscles, tendons and ligaments) to repair and for the removal of chemicals that build up as a results of cell activity that exercise promotes. The most important component of active recovery though, is replenishing energy stores and fluids that have been lost with the proper nutrition in order to optimize protein synthesis. Nothing irritates me more than when someone just worked their ass off in the gym and they try justifying a post workout gorge-fest because “oh, it’s ok…I just worked out”. Sorry, but that doesn’t give you free reign to eat whatever you so called please. Eating the wrong foods after working out is just as bad as not workout out at all. If you don’t replenish your body with the proper nutrition, I hate to break it to you, but your workout was a waste of your time. First of all, after your workout make sure to eat within 30-60 minutes, since this is the time frame in which your muscles will do the most repairing and need nutrients in order to do so.

Post workout you should combine both carbohydrates and protein. The optimal carb to protein ratio is 4:1, four grams of carbs for every one gram of protein. Protein provides the body with the amino acids that are necessary to rebuild damage muscle tissue as well as increase the absorption of water from the intestines to improve muscle hydration. So please, be smart. Don’t gorge yourself with food after a workout. Reward your body with the hard work you just put in by giving it healthy, clean food that is jam packed with nutrients to nourish your body.

Sleep is NOT overrated
Let’s say you implement all of the above, but you don’t sleep. Hate to be the bearer of bad news (not really), but if you aren’t getting quality seep…all of the above is pointless. Strive for eight hours, but don’t get any less than seven. Otherwise, your body isn’t going to be able to repair and build your muscles. Your body needs plenty of sleep for a multitude of reasons, but if you’re throwing weights around and putting your body through extreme levels of stress, it needs enough time to recover. So shut off the TV at night, and get your ass to sleep.

SO. Do me a favor, don’t make the same mistakes I’vemade in the past withovertraining, lack of proper nutrition and especially lack of sleep. Schedule rest days throughout the week. If your body feels like it needs a rest, it probably does, so listen to it. Properly replenish with the right foods post-workout. Last but not least, make sure you get plenty of sleep.