Are you getting enough rest days?

Rest days are so important for our physical and mental health but many of us dismiss them as a waste of time! Far from it, rest days are as important as the exercise itself. It’s the balance between the two that really drives health and wellbeing. Only on rest days do the beneficial effects of exercise actually take place.

Rest allows muscles to grow, replenishment of energy stores in muscles, tendons and ligaments to repair and, just as importantly, allows the mind to rest supporting healthy sleep.

How to do rest days

Here’s where the type of exercise you are doing means everything.

Cardio – Walking is fine without incorporating rest days, unless you are doing more vigorous walks, in which case you need a rest day every 3-5 days.

Running – Running needs a specific approach. As a beginner you should only run every 3 days, giving you 2 rest days, as too much too soon can quickly lead to injuries or burnout. With experience and  muscle adaptation you can reduce the number of rest days to 3 a week.

Weight training – This is much easier! Simply rotate which muscle group you work on, allowing rest days for different areas. Work arms one day then let that muscle group rest for 2 days whilst you work on legs, chest, abdomen, etc...

What to do on a rest day

They don’t have to be completely sedentary, you can do some gentle exercise such as walking, yoga or stretching.  Cross training (doing a different type of sport) can also be helpful.

Although we need less calories on rest days, we still need to support our bodies in the repair process. Protein is really important to help muscle growth, whilst complex carbohydrates such as wholegrains and beans help restore glycogen levels.

Often overlooked on rest days, water is essential for delivering these nutrients to the muscles for the growth and repair process. Regular hydration throughout the day is best.

Signs you many need a rest day

Persistent Sore muscles – It is normal to feel sore after exercise but persistent soreness usually means your muscles haven’t recovered from the last workout

Sluggishness after working out – If you feel spent it is probably time to rest

Sleep disturbance – high levels of adrenaline and cortisol can make it hard to get good quality sleep

Mood changes – serotonin and cortisol imbalance when we exercise too much can cause irritability, mood swings and crankiness

Reduced beneficial effects – you stop seeing progress in weight loss or muscle gains

Summary

If we don’t get enough rest days, our muscles and joints will not get adequate time for repair or building, and it can lead to mental exhaustion and mistakes whilst training. We get none of the benefits of exercise despite all the effort and put ourselves at much greater risk of getting injured. So, if you are exercising, make sure you are building in rest days into your training schedule.