Take Your Rest Days From Workouts

Overworking your body has consequences and can affect your CNS

I used to work out 6–7 days straight without a rest day; doing this was fine for a while. But after I started working full-time, I had to adjust. I found that working out more than 4-5 days straight without a rest day was doable, but the consequences were more visible, which sometimes included: pain, lethargy, or slower recovery.

One of my fitness coaches recommended that I work out two days on with one day off; this workout strategy worked great for my recovery and energy but not so great for building my muscles. I wasn’t able to touch muscles for sometimes a whole week at a time.

I’ve updated my current workout schedule to be 2–4 days on with a day off in between, which is kind to my energy levels and allows me to touch every muscle at least twice a week.

My workout partner made an excellent point when your workouts are high intensity; if you’re not careful, you will overwork your central nervous system.

Make sure to get adequate sleep between training sessions, as this is the best way to let your central nervous system recover fully, according to bereact.com.

Don’t try to go as hard as possible. Your body doesn’t need that. What’s more important is to work out your body hard and rest your body equally hard, so you can continue working out hard in the long term.

Hey, I’m Destiny. Join my newsletter, and get free books from me daily. Read more workout articles: here. If you’re not a medium member, sign up.