One of the keys to success in any workout regiment, whether you are rehabilitating an injury, or stepping up your workout program, is taking rest days. It can be hard to accept that when you are trying to accomplish something, sometimes you have to do the right amount of nothing. Here are the four reasons why rest should be part of your workout routine and practice.
Believe it or not, rest days lead to muscle growth!
Remember the last time you got a solid workout in and you were sore for a couple days after? That was most likely caused by a bunch of microtears in your muscle tissue during your exercise routine. Don’t panic! These are good for muscle growth, and the healing process to repair those tears is what builds strength. Rest is an essential part of this healing process, and you could actually limit your results if you limit your rest.
Rest is a key ingredient to Injury Prevention.
We can get a little over ambitious with what we put our bodies through. Scheduling rest days are essential to not overworking muscle groups that can be cause for injury. This also applies to rehabilitating existing injuries, as sometimes our bodies will overcompensate when it gets tired and put stress on other healthy body parts. Scheduling rest allows time for that healing process, and protects yourself from further injury.
Give your immunity a boost!
Exercise is known to be an excellent way to enhance your immunity, but there is a key component of rest for that to happen. Exercising non-stop can actually deplete your body of the energy it requires to elevate your immune system.
Build in sustainable goals and expectations.
Building in down time in your exercise schedule is a good way to hold realistic expectations and also hold yourself accountable to giving yourself time to reflect. You may ask how many rest days is the right amount? And like most things in fitness, the best way to begin determining that is to listen to your body and notice what it needs.
“What does one do on a rest day,” you ask?
Rest doesn’t always have to be synonymous with parking yourself on the couch. It might mean you go for a walk, work on your yoga practice or any other low-impact activity. The beauty in rest is that it’s flexible. Sometimes you need a nap, and sometimes you still want to be active – do what feels right.
So next time you’re feeling that drag about getting to the gym, or going for that run – ask yourself if that’s really what you need…or if maybe today you just want to go for a float in the pool!
If you have additional questions about the benefit of rest days, let us know, we’re happy to help!