Are you incorporating rest days or active recovery days into your programming? Often when the average individual gets rolling on consistently training and sticking to a program they sometimes keep going 6-7 days a week. But it’s important to remember that recovery is a part of the training process as well and often we don’t treat with as much importance as we should. Today I want to shed some light on recovery, what you can do on your active recovery or rest days and why recovery is probably the single most important component of your training program.
When you neglect rest or active recovery days in your training program your body doesn’t have a chance to recovery from the training that you are putting it through. Remember that although exercise is healthy and good for you it is still a stress on the body and allowing the body to recover is part of the training process. Neglecting rest and recovery days can lead to overtraining. Signs of overtraining may include decreased performance, increased perceived exertion during workouts (your workouts feel harder), excessive fatigue, moodiness, insomnia or restless sleep, chronic injuries, loss of appetite, stress or depression. So yes…you need rest days and/or active recovery days included in your program.
Now I know what you’re about to say next…great Ashlee but how many, where do I put them, ect. As the answer often is in the health and wellness space, how many rest days you need each week will be specific to you. It will likely depend on what kind of training you are doing, what the intensity of that training is and what your body is telling you…I know probably exactly the answer you were looking for…but let’s dive into it a little more.
To start off, I want to differentiate between a rest day and an active recovery day. I do not use these terms interchangeably as they do have slightly different meanings. A rest day is a day where you are truly resting and having some downtime. An active recovery day is a day when you are still engaging in activity but below the intensity that you would normally train at. Engaging in some light physical activity on your recovery days can be helpful with regards to your fitness progress. This light activity can look like a walk, swimming, stretching, hiking, bike riding etc. Generally for mommas I would encourage you to include your kiddos especially on active recovery days. Let’s face it…chasing kids around can be an active recovery day in itself. For the most part as long as this activity is at a lower intensity than what you are normally training at then it can be considered active recovery. This will vary from one individual to the next because everyone will be training at different intensities day to day so just ensure that you are working at a lower intensity on your active recovery days.
So how many active recovery days a week should you be including. Again, I’m going to give you your favourite answer here…it depends. When it comes to recovery days (and rest days) it’s important to listen to your body. How many active recovery days I personally include actually varies from week to week. Generally I have 1-2 depending on the week, but there are some weeks where it ends up being 2-3 or sometimes more. I have a workout plan that is similar from one week to the next, but sometimes this plan changes based on what else is going on in my life. Maybe I’m feeling extra sore and tired from the week before, maybe I spent some time lifting or moving heavy stuff at home or at work, maybe I had to teach an extra class that week or maybe I just had a busy week running errands. Obviously this list isn’t all encompassing, but you get the idea…depending on what else is going on in your life you may find you need extra recovery days and there is nothing wrong with that. You may also find that you need a full on rest day because of what else has been going on in your life…and again if you feel like you need then you probably do. Generally, when I wake up and start moving each morning I notice how my body is feeling. If it’s super sore or I feel super tired then despite having a workout planned that day I may adjust the day to be an active recovery day instead. Listening to your body like this can take a little bit of practice at first and you may find that you overdo it once in a while but it’s an important thing to learn. As you learn what your body is telling, you will be able to determine how many active recovery days and/or rest days are appropriate for you.
At the end of the day I would encourage you to try and include “active” recovery style exercises on most days that you are not training at a high intensity. This is a great way to stay active and keep yourself moving and feeling great. However, I do realize that this is not always going to be an option and that’s okay to. Depending on what stage of life you’re in may also impact this. Mommas with newborns at home, you are probably going to have more rest days than training or active recovery days, and that’s okay, because that’s what your body probably needs in that moment. If you are feeling tired and exhausted it is better to take the rest or active recovery day always. Your body gives you signals for a reason…don’t be afraid to listen to them and adjust your plans day to day. When you are in a stage of newborns, infants and young kids this is going to change every single day, and being adaptable and flexible with your training, rest and recovery days is going to be imperative. I say this because I don’t want you to worry about what anyone else is doing…I want you to listen to your body and give your body what it needs. No comparison games here!
Rest and recovery can be one of the trickiest things to master on your health and fitness journey. Generally, most people believe that more is better, but I do want to tell you that is not always the case. If your body is telling you it needs a break, listen to it. The human body is smart…it knows what it needs and it will tell you, you just have to be willing to listen to it and execute it. If you have questions about rest and recovery or how you should be including them in your programming, please feel free to reach out here…I would love to chat with you! Until next week!
ashleepedlowcoaching.ca 