What's the most effective use of rest days?

[BeigeTurtle]

If this sounds like a newbie question, well, it is. What's the most effective way to make use of rest days? How often do/should you take them? What are the advantages of active recovery (e.g., going for a long but easy walk or bike ride) v total rest day? How do I balance my body's need for rest with my desire to do as much as possible to get in shape?

Any advice or suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks, guys!

[andygates]

Stinky gym kit laundry!

Active recovery is less important for newbies than for more advanced trainees, but some is always good. I'm of the opinion that body and soul benefit from a day completely off each week.

[Knightwatch]

How do I balance my body's need for rest with my desire to do as much as possible to get in shape?

Besy way to do this is to realize that taking rest days is doing something to get in shape. You absolutely need them, especially when you're first starting. Remember, you're not getting stronger in the gym. You're getting stronger when you recover from the gym, while your body stitches itself back together again.

Best way to know when to take them is to follow a regimented program. On days you're supposed to lift, life. On days you're not, don't. On off days, it doesn't hurt to go for a nice long walk or do some stretching. In fact, that'll help the recovery and, thus, getting-in-shape progress all the more.

Another option is to use those rest days as food prep sessions. That, right there, is about the most important thing you can do to get in shape.

[esteel]

you're not getting stronger in the gym. You're getting stronger when you recover from the gym, while your body stitches itself back together again.

Sure thats true.. but i also belive that the body can adapt to a lot, including training frequency. I think you see this the most in people that do really hard work like furniture remover or olympic lift athlets, they usually train for hours each and every day.

I think ultimatly its just important to NOT damage more in training then the body is recoverying inbetween trainings and you will improve. In fact the more often you train the more often you urge your body to improve!

As for whats the best way to spend you days off.. well that depends on your life and schedule. While active recovery is nice (it gets the blood flowing, more oxygen into your system and thus helps with recovery) it just hast to fit into your day. Simply relaxing might give you more peace of mind and be just as fine as paying a visit to the next sauna or a long walk for active recovery. Someone that has a dog might get this for 'free'.. someone else might have to drop an other hobby.. just do whats most natural and fun for you..

There is also an other active thread about high frequency training: http://www.nerdfitness.com/community/showthread.php?16992-Is-this-even-possible-for-a-normal-person

[BeigeTurtle]

Thanks everyone, this is most helpful. Knightwatch, I like your idea of using the time for food prep - I often find myself relying on quick fixes or snacks, so having some healthy options pre-prepared could help me make a big improvement.

What about stretching? Do you guys stretch every day, whether you've worked out or not?

[TurtIe]

I foam roll every morning and night and I do dynamic stretching (so moving stretches) during my warm ups before workouts, I find that works best for me.

Also, if you're struggling with lifts you can use your off days to fix them by 'visualising sets'. I usually take five minutes aside in the morning to close my eyes and imagine doing a few sets of squats, deadlifts or bench presses. Really try to imagine the feeling of the weight on your back and the difficulty it takes to complete it.

Sound like a waste of time? It's not. Researchers performed an experiment on two groups of people, one did a weight bearing movement and the other just visualised doing the same movement. At the end of the study, the average weight bearer improved his/her strength by 30%. The visualiser also improved his or her strength by 22% which is a huge gain for doing absolutely nothing. Imagine the benefits you can get of doing the workout and then visualising the workout when you're sore!

That's just me though =P

[TheOtherScott]

I'm a big fan of commuting by bike. Doesn't need to be anything crazy, but biking 15 minutes somewhere instead of driving 5 can't hurt.

Or you could play video games.

[shortstuff]

How often do/should you take them? What are the advantages of active rest?

You should take total/active rests as often as your body needs them

As for the advantages of active if your anything like me you will feel less guilty about taking a rest and as such more likely to take one if it's active, such as a easy walk or bike ride. I have also here that it helps to get the blood pumping which is meant to be good for recovery but don't quote me on that one

[BeigeTurtle]

Thanks for all the advice, guys! I've tentatively settled on a schedule of two days of exercise followed by one day of rest, but I'm trying out different variations to see how my body responds (e.g., I just had three days in a row of exercise). I'm also trying to stick with somewhat active recovery, walking at least a few miles on my days off. I'm hopeful that as I get stronger my recovery days can get more active and less frequent.