Rest days

[Adventure427]

How do you guys like to do your rest days? What do you think are great ways to optimize a rest day? If you dont beleive in them, comment on that too. I feel like im falling behind because i have so much to practice. But im sore/fatigue lately (i stepped up my trainning)

[Toby]

What's a rest day? Saturday is the only day I don't have a structured training session, but I usually end up doing a fair amount of stuff anyway.

[Adventure427]

well toby, guess nobody else rests either

[Royal Dragon]

Never train hard more than 2 days in a row without rest, unless you have a realy good training wine, then you can go 3.

On your rest and recovery day, lay around a lot, and eat a lot of meat.

I like to invite pretty women over to massage me from head to toe as well.

[bodhitree]

the amount of rest depends on the type of training. When I did powerlifting I would lift three days a week and the other days do light cardio and stretching. Now I've been doing grappling and cardio and high rep bodyweight stuff (no time or money for weights gym) and I generally take one full rest day, and also maybe one light workout day.

On a rest day I

Rest, drink plenty of water, consume plenty of antioxidants, try not to be too stressed, try some deep breathing, massage from the wife, etc.

[Adventure427]

yea getting a massage is one of my favorite ways to recover.....even if i haven't been trainning. =)

I like your idea royal dragon, im going to try that for sure, in the very near future. Any reccomended "trainning wines" and what is that anyway? Jow? Also how often do u reccomend using each?

Side note:

I was thinking, tell me if you've thought about this....Since i train pretty regularly (atleast 4 class days and i usually train a bit outside of class (not as much as i'd like to lately)....im usually (not sore) but 'weakened'...recovering....not 100%...so that if i DID get in a fight, i wouldn't be as strong as if i had 2-3 days of rest. (like i feel before i goto class for example)......so i basically feel....im going to train so much and for so long (like in years, meaning) that even while im not at 100% and am still recovering i can beat the average guy anyway (or better). So, Since im like "man, im so beat, i hope i dont get into a fight"....maybe thats why "good" martial artists (the ones who train hard) are so humble and peaceful :D

[Royal Dragon]

A training wine is like a tonic to help boost your workout. It also speeds recovery, and helps your body develop faster in a shorter period of time.

You basically saok the herbs in rice wine for a few months, and then take a shot about an hour before you train.


The training wine for my system is used only once every 3 days. It is very strong, and you really can't use it more than that.

When I have some made up, I will use it on the first day, and make that my hardest workout. The next day is a bit easier, and the 3rd day is my easiest workout. Then I take a day or two off, and start again.

When I am not useing it, I workout a day, rest a day etc...

Oriental Herb company has some good general training wines and Liqeures. Just Google thier name.

[Water Dragon]

I like to invite pretty women over to massage me from head to toe as well.

Any ever show? :p

[SanHeChuan]

Any ever show? :p

Nice! :D


You should stretch every day, even on your off days.

[Royal Dragon]

Any ever show?
Useually they do, But I have to promis to give them some :p in exchange for the massage.

[Royal Dragon]

You should stretch every day, even on your off days.

Reply]
Wrong. Stretching taxes the muscles too. They need rest. You should stretch after you have trained untill you are really warm. This is when you can increase your range of motion. Stretching before you are really warm does little to make you more flexible and is onle a pre workout for injury prevention thing.

Either way, stretching taxes the muscles just as much as lifting weights does, so you need recovery time as well.

[SanHeChuan]

Well I guess you guys are just too hard core for me. :eek: :D

I've never trained MA so hard I've needed rest days. I've done it with weight lifting programs. This one time in the Marine Corps I over trained my pull ups until I couldn't do any, and failed a Physical fitness test. :rolleyes:

Are you guys doing alot of strength building exercies or what? I get plenty of cardio, but I mostly work skills and techniques. I've also been avoiding my static stance training. :o

[Adventure427]

Well, if i dont take a rest day i can only train half-a$$ so i try to take rest days regularly so i can put my all into it. I mostly train skills/techniques too. Mostly it'll be my arms sore from punching (especially from bagwork) or just if i feel like throwing tons of air punches, or if i grapple. Or my legs will be sore if i work kicks or stances alot....also i do aikido so getting thrown and standing back up a bunch of times is kind of a workout too.

[Becca]

Dunno if I "get" the concept of rest days. I usually reley on my Sifu or Wosu to let me know if they think I'm over training. I have no clue how they know it, but if I *actually* listen to them, I avoid the fatigue that goes hand-in-hand with over training.

Right now, I only strength train Monday (core/total body), Wednesday (lower) and Friday (upper). I do tai chi or yoga every day and try to run every day, but those are what I think of as my base line - they don't count as "working out" just as walking the dogs or mowing the grass doesn't. I work my kung fu on Tuesday and Tursday as much as possible, though it is brocken up into fits and spurts; 5 minutes here, a few runs through a form there.

More often than not, I will also run through my non-caricular forms on Sunday. I guess that means Saturday is my "rest day"?

[GunnedDownAtrocity]

mowing the grass and walking the dogs is recovery :)

actually id put yoga in as recovery too, but then again there might be some yoga thats more hardcore than what im imagining.

[Becca]

Mine's not hard core, but is very good at preventing delayed onset soreness, which is how I descide if it's a tai chi or yoga day. I can tell the next morning if I'm going to be hurting in a day or two more, so I nip it in the bud, so to speek.

[GunnedDownAtrocity]

right right .... recovery ... i need to start doing something like that. my legs are sore all the time anymore.

[Becca]

Try this DVD. (http://www.grapplearts.com/Grappling-Videos-DVDs.php?sid=#Yoga) It's the one I use, though I don't do the bellows breathing at the beginning.

[PangQuan]

Try this DVD. (http://www.grapplearts.com/Grappling-Videos-DVDs.php?sid=#Yoga) It's the one I use, though I don't do the bellows breathing at the beginning.

what do you work for them or something. peddling that thing off every corner i turn :p

ive actually been thinking about buying it lol....i probably will.

[Adventure427]

Yea i do yoga too (shhh, hehe j/k)..... It's great, i dont do that particular video...i got a book on it and i just pick out the exercises that best suit the end. It's pretty amazing how well that stuff works. I did a few energizing poses at night last week and i couldn't goto sleep for like 2 extra hours... (i didn't balance it with calming poses)

Becca seems pretty hardcore, and doesn't even realize it. You run and do tai chi or yoga everyday? Nice...thats a good 'base' to have...you're body is so adept to it. I always thought that the highschool wrestlers regimen was crazy... Well ours...(maybe thats why they were good)....i never joined tho. But they trained 6days a week...running n grappling n all kinds of stuff

[bodhitree]

Try powerlifting, then you'll understand rest days. Yoga, jogs, and tai chi are recovery (not real workout)

[GunnedDownAtrocity]

Becca seems pretty hardcore, and doesn't even realize it. You run and do tai chi or yoga everyday? Nice...thats a good 'base' to have...you're body is so adept to it. I always thought that the highschool wrestlers regimen was crazy... Well ours...(maybe thats why they were good)....i never joined tho. But they trained 6days a week...running n grappling n all kinds of stuff

i am taking absolutely nothing away from becca, but i think shed also agree that a highschool wrestlers regimen is just slightly more intense than running, yoga, and tai chi. theres a reason why wrestling has a season. in fact i dont know if there is anything more intense on that level than what they put those kids through.

[Becca]

what do you work for them or something. peddling that thing off every corner i turn :p

ive actually been thinking about buying it lol....i probably will.
No, but I do have over half of his DVDs so far. Getting the one on Oma Plata next. ;)

Plus I really like the site and getting you guys to buy from it too... Maybe we can get Gene to carry his line of DVDs. Then we can help both with one purchase!

Adventure427 - GDA is right. Yoga is very relaxing. Once you are even a bit in shape and flexable, it stops being a work out at all. Same for tai chi. The running is because I was getting sick of my female dog trashing the house, and the best way to stop a shepard from trashing the hous it to run them at least once a day.

No, no, no to the power lifting. I know myself; I won't stick to it. I weight train only to try to stave off the old age that's starting to creep up on me. I try to keep in shape so group class is a learning experiance, not a work out. the last 2 years, that hasn't been the case.:(

[GunnedDownAtrocity]

i may actually have to pick up this dvd ... i stretched for the first time in months last night and it felt awesome. im dissapointed i havent kept up on it.

[Royal Dragon]

I have been useing this guys methods for conditioning lately.

http://www.martialartsmart.net/pr-bw002.html

He has a good collection of solid, basic body weight exercises. I have also been holding stances more.

I generally condition one day, hold stances the next, and rest the following day. I do flexibility after each session (Except this morning as was running out of time)

[dougadam]

I give a muscle group a 7 day rest period.