Rest from working out----is it needed???

[MantisKungFu]

I've been running on a daily basis for awhile now, and maybe take one day a week off. Now, I'm going to mix up my exercise where I run 4 days a week and do bag work for 3 days a week.

Is it too much to not have a complete day off? Can it be harmful? I feel like I'll lose conditioning if I take a day off. Could this happen? On my day off, should I just rest and not do pushups/jog/anything?

Rest just feels like I"m being lazy and not getting anywhere. Am I completely wrong? Let me know, thanks!

[Shadow Dragon]

Ok, here is my take.

Anything you learn/do is both a physical AND mental process.

While you do your physical stuff, the mental side has to take a backseat.
When you don't do the physical stuff the mental side has time to get it's things done, and this includes healing and fixing minor damages that might have occured during training.
Personally, I think too many People today over-emphasize the physical side for quick results and so on.
And thus slow their learning process and maybe cause long term damages to their Body and lifestyle (relations, work environment, etc.)

Most of that is because of ego trying to be the best, fastest, biggest, well-cut SOB around.
Just my 1 cent worth, don't spend it all in one go.

[guohuen]

Hey MantisKungFu, I do Hung Gar in Quechee Vermont. We should get together. Were are you in Vt.?

[Royal Dragon]

Rest is vital, as that is when the body builds the most. I recomend taking a full week of from training every 6 weeks or so. Never train more than 3 days in a row without a days rest.

In wieght lifting, I have noticed the biggest gains, not from lifting, but from taking a few days off AFTER a lift. I generally train 2-3 days in a row, and take a day off for recovery and train 2-3 days again with 2 days off, then I repeat the cycle. There is a whole science to it now a'days.

[Former castleva]

Rest is about as important is training.
When you train,you affect yourself,giving you the spark to grow.
When you rest (sleep) you actually grow,due to training.
Remember,develop slowly,don´t let the training become more like a weight than joy.
You can train a lot,as long as you don´t overdo,stress yourself too much.
The point between decent training-----stress is at least part personal.
When it comes to muscular training,train every second day.
You have to take 48h of rest.
At the beginning,you may not have to do many activities a day,as it may become too much.
It is possible to train with "full force" for some time,but one will probably run out of energy in a couple of days,and ends up with a condition worse than it was before the start.

I threw out some ideas in a row,which might come in handy,but of course,there´s more to it.
I think there are also other threads about training,which might help.
Revealing this thread in health forum may also be beneficial.

:)

[MantisKungFu]

Thanks for the opinions so far, keep it up.

The responses, however, seem to be talking about weight-lifting and other very strenuous activities. I am going to be doing cardio------running about 3 miles one day and then doing 45mins heavy bag the next----while throwing in alternating days of pushups/situps.

Given that exercise schedule, should I still take some time off? What would be a good amount of time off? 1 day a week? 4 days running/bag work 1 day off? 3 days running/bagwork 1 day off?

Let me know guys what you think, thanks!

[Royal Dragon]

To answer your question, YES. You need rest. I used a weight lifting example becasue everyone already understands it. The same rule applies to ALL exercises.

As a rule, if you work to 70% capacity, you can go for as much as 7 days with no rest, but if you push to lets say 95-100% capacity, you can go 2 days tops, and need 1-2 days off.

[GunnedDownAtrocity]

ever since i took a vacation and came back stronger i agree with the statements that rest is vital. however, if this is true why are boxers and high school wrestlers in the best shape of anyone i know?

[The Willow Sword]

when i was teaching and training at the school i was very dedicated,,training 6 days a week for 5-6 hours a night.
you can overwork yourself as i did and induce sleep related disorders,,your liver can be greatly effected by the over taxing of your body due to over work. a day or even 2 days of rest is very beneficial and will not put you into what we call"KArate HEll" also i find that a daily intake of 500mg -1000mg of vitamin c does wonders for the replenishing of your system.

Many Respects,,,, The Willow Sword

[Royal Dragon]

Try a Shot of Ginseng before you train, it boosts your workout, speeds development, and improves recoverytime.

[Feng Huang]

i used to have a similar cardio schedule, except that i would run 3 times a week, followed by an hour of bag work, and techniques, in addition to my regular class schedule. i was able to keep it up, except that i made sure to have at least one full day of rest each week. that day is necessary for your body to heal/rest from what you've been doing the rest of the week, and for your mind to take a breather so you don't get burnt out. make sure it doesn't become chore to work out.

[The Willow Sword]

i have done that ,,however ginseng can sometimes overstimulate your system as it has done to me at times.

[Royal Dragon]

3 days of training
1 day off
3 days of training
2 days off
repeat.

[Royal Dragon]

Use less, or switch to the american stuff.

Also, it helps sometimes to have Ginseng tea frist thing in the morning instead of coffee. My girlfriend does better this way, if she takes it later in the day, right before a workout, she's up all night bugging me for sex. However, if she takes Ginseng in the morning, it helps with her workout, but the training burns it out of her system so she can sleep (an so can "I".:D )

[roughnready]

i have heard that if you eat right that then you can go on working out for a much longer time compared to someone who didnt eat the right kinds of foods.

[scotty1]

Diet plays a huge part in your life.

"I feel like I'll lose conditioning if I take a day off. Could this happen?" NO

On my day off, should I just rest and not do pushups/jog/anything? YES

Don't burn yourself out dude, you'll make much bigger gains if you rest yourself, I personally do one day on, one day off.

When you exercise you are creating the potential for growth and development. If you are always creating potential and never fulfilling it you'll wear yourself down.

[Royal Dragon]

i have heard that if you eat right that then you can go on working out for a much longer time compared to someone who didnt eat the right kinds of foods.


Reply]
Yes, this is very true. I recomend 45-55% raw fruites and veggies, rice (Get the most nutritionaly dense stuff first), the 35% protines (a variety,beef, fish poultry beans etc...) the balance should be healty fats and oils, most of which will be found in your meats.

Always go for the most nutirtionaly dense foods you can find. Example, for salads I no longer use letuce as it is relatively bland and empty. Instead I use large leaf spinach, which has a richer flavor anyway. When I have pasta, I use olive oil rather than butter as it is much beter for you, and more authentically italian (tatses better too).

Instead of soda, I do fruit juice or water.

Instead of coffe, I do Ginseng tea (I add some ginger as well as other stuff from time to time too.)

You get the picture. It's a higher carb based diet and provides tons of energy for long hard training. The body just does not fuel well on burgers, better to eat those AFTER you train when the body is craving protiens for building it self up.