When you find your workout motivation, the last thing you want to do is take a break, especially when you feel like you are finally starting to see results. But the fact is that you can't keep working the same muscles out without giving them a break, your body just wasn't designed for that.
Logically it might seem like the best way to keep those workout results going is to keep pushing those muscles, and that is partly true. But if you keep pushing those muscles without giving them relief not only are you more susceptible to get injured, but you are also less likely to get the results that you are looking for.
Resting your muscles is what gives them a chance to rebuild themselves. As they rebuild, they will become stronger than they were before. The result is that you will be able to push your workouts even further and get even better results.
But if you spend too much time resting those muscles, then you will start to lose all of the muscles that you had started to build.
How Long Should You Rest Your Muscles?
Studies have shown that you should give your muscles 36 hours to relax, rebuild, and be ready to workout again. This equals out to about a day and a half.
For example, if you do a heavy weightlifting session on Monday morning, then you would take Tuesday off and workout again on Wednesday morning.
Could you workout on Tuesday if you wanted to? Yes, but you would have to be sure that you workout an entirely different muscle group then you worked out Monday.
And no matter what you should take two days off a week where you do not do any exercises. This will give your entire body a chance to rebuild and it will also give your mind a chance to take a break and get motivated for the next week's workouts.
No matter what, you want to be sure that you take the time to listen to your body. You want to learn how to push yourself to your breaking point without pushing yourself to the point where you will injure yourself or lose your workout motivation.
Beginner Tip - How to Speed Up Your Recovery
If you are just starting to workout, especially if you are doing really hard workouts, then you may need more than one day of rest before you are able to do the workout again.
In the beginning stages of the new workout routine, you may need 48 hours of rest instead of 36 or you may need to take three days off. This is fine. But one thing you should do is make sure that you do some light stretches after 36 hours, this will not only keep the muscles loose but it will also keep your mind focused on working out even though you aren't really working out.
Remember, a big part of your workout success is simply getting into the habit of making exercise a part of your normal routine, so just the act of getting out your workout mat and spending five minutes on light stretching will keep you in the mindset of making this a routine.
While working out is important, allowing your body the time to rest is equally as important. Only when your muscles get the chance to relax will they be able to grow, rebuild, and continue to make you even stronger.
No comments:
Post a Comment