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I'm sure there are hundreds of posts about this already but I'm new and still trying to figure out how to navigate my search. QUESTION IS: is it best to schedule in rest days when on cycle and training really hard or am I better off just "listening" to my body and deciding off days the day of. I know everyone has different opinions on this matter but I would like input from both sides and WHY you feel that way. Thanks in advance
mine are always scheduled for Saturday and Sunday... i know when im mentally and physically starting to break down and when rest is needed...
Schedule. We don't always 'listen' properly.
i once argued this topic years ago with some 20 year old who said rest days are for pussies blah blah blah.
yes when you are young you can pound your body into the dirt. look at the NFL.. they draft guys to play RB, pound them into the ground then they are out of the league. you won't find a single starting RB who is over 30 years old for a reason. your body simply breaks down as you age
if you pound yourself into the dirt in your 20's, i promise by the time you get into your 30's and 40's you will have a ton of nagging injuries. be smart when you train that is all i will tell all of you reading this. over the long term it is the people who train smart who succeed in this game.
yes when you are young you can pound your body into the dirt. look at the NFL.. they draft guys to play RB, pound them into the ground then they are out of the league. you won't find a single starting RB who is over 30 years old for a reason. your body simply breaks down as you age
if you pound yourself into the dirt in your 20's, i promise by the time you get into your 30's and 40's you will have a ton of nagging injuries. be smart when you train that is all i will tell all of you reading this. over the long term it is the people who train smart who succeed in this game.
Your rest days should be pretty easy to figure out based on how your training us set up and how your body responds to it. You'll know. If you dont feel like you need a couple rest days a week you aren't working hard enough in the gym. Period
I have never strictly scheduled them. I want to workout a minimum of five times a week, if I feel up that number can increase. I will take a rest day if my body tells me it needs one, but more often life will dictate when my rest days are one way or another. On those days I still try to get in some stretching and light cardio if I can. Scheduling seems like it may be a more consistent method, but this works for me.
