The Importance of Scheduling Rest Into Your Fitness Routine

We all know how important exercise is for your physical and mental health. A workout can help you destress, clear your mind, and keep your body in the shape you want it. However, what’s not talked about enough is the issue of overworking your body and underestimating the benefits of resting. No matter how fit you are your body needs time to rest every once in a while, and in this blog, we will run through why resting is an under-utilised component by many fitness fanatics, as well as the benefits resting provides.

Why Do We Need to Rest?

As mentioned above, working out can feel great as our bodies release endorphins, which boost our mood, not to mention the physical benefits of exercising. So, if working out makes you feel amazing why should you not do it every day? There are a number of reasons why your body and mind need a rest day, some of which are obvious, while others may come as a surprise. Below are several times and signs you need a rest day or two.

Fatigue

The first, and most obvious reason to take a rest day is fatigue. While working out is fantastic, each time you push yourself to complete that extra rep or run the additional kilometre, you put further stress on your body. Working out for several days in a row, especially through highly intense workouts, can leave you feeling drained. If you feel as though you are more and more tired each day following another workout, it might be time to listen to your body and take a break.

Emotional Changes

What goes hand in hand with fatigue is a difference in your emotions. The more worn down you are the harder it is to stay in a positive mood as your body and mind are forced to use more energy than usual just to balance your feelings. This can lead to your overall mood altering, with less enthusiasm and interest in the things you normally find fun or interesting. If you’re finding it difficult to keep up with your emotions and stabilise them, then you should consider a rest day as a possible antidote.

Loss in Motivation

Stemming from the two signs above, a loss in motivation to workout can be a red flag that you need a break. While working out might usually make you feel better, if you find yourself dreading a workout you used to love then maybe a rest is needed. The more you push yourself, the more likely you are to continue losing interest, which can lead to you making mistakes in your workout and potentially cause yourself an injury. Taking a step back every once in a while, can allow you to view your workout in a new light, and help you hit it with more determination next time around or make you realise you need to switch your routine up a little.

Extreme Muscle Soreness

While we all know that the harder you push yourself the better your results from working out will be, but it is also true that at times your body can’t cope with the amount of exercise you’re doing. For everyone this is different depending on your overall fitness levels, but if you feel like your workouts are causing more pain than before, or you have aches in new places, it is important to rest your body. When we work out, we cause little tears in our muscle tissue, which will rebuild itself to allow our body to be more prepared for the next time we perform a certain exercise. However, for this repair to happen, your body needs to be in a resting state, this might just be for a day, or it could take longer with specific exercises, routines, or with your level of fitness, and it’s important to listen to how your body feels during this recovery stage in order to ensure you give it the correct amount of time to replenish.

Lack of Progress

Another key time to take a break is if you notice your body is not only tired but that you are not progressing the same way as you usually do in your fitness routines. If you are finding exercises you normally do with ease, much harder it could be due to your body being run down and is again a sign that you should rest.

Sleeplessness

We assume that working out makes our body tired and therefore helps us to sleep, however, working out too much can in fact cause our sleep patterns to alter as we are almost too awake. Sleep is the best recipe to regaining energy, as well as rebuilding our muscles, so if you find you are waking up at night or finding it hard to sleep you should consider some extra rest with less workouts.

Injuries

It seems like an obvious one, but many people ignore when they are injured and continue to push through the pain. What people don’t think about is that by taking a day or two to recover you could save yourself weeks or months of having to rest if you do work out too hard and cause further injury to yourself.

Illness

Again, being ill is a good reason to take a rest. As a general rule, many fitness experts and doctors suggest you can still work out if your illness is anywhere from the neck up, but if it is affecting below the neck you should rest up before exercising again.

Benefits of Rest

So, we’ve gone through all the times you should rest, but what are the actual benefits of resting. We’ve put together some key benefits of adding resting days into your fitness regime.

Better Mental Health

While most of us focus on the physical side of things, it is important to remember that working out can also put stress on our brains. We are constantly pushing through mental barriers to reach the peak of our fitness levels, but sometimes this can take a toll, particularly when you have a busy lifestyle outside of the gym or pool. Taking a step back and resting can allow our minds time to clear, as well as boost our mood ahead of restarting our next workout. It is vital to keep an eye on not only how your body feels but also your mind, and ensure you get enough rest for both to perform at the highest level possible.

Builds Muscle

We mentioned it above but while most people think that the more time you spend lifting heavy weights in the gym the stronger and more toned you get, it is actually the opposite. Working out to our full potential is extremely important, but to reap the rewards of the hard work in the gym you need to allow your body time to rest. Through workouts we create microscopic tears in our muscles, which not only heal when we rest, but also strengthen the muscles as a whole. So, don’t be afraid to take an extra day to rest if your body needs it as you are also building your muscles for the next big session.

Reduces Muscle Soreness

As we work out our body produces the tiny tears in our muscles which ultimately build up, especially during more intense workouts. This causes the little aches and pains in our body following our fitness sessions. However, resting allows our body to repair our muscles after a workout, and in turn reduces the pain in our muscles. Meaning if your muscles feel a bit delicate after exercise make sure you give them adequate time to rejuvenate.

Fewer Injuries

Working out might build your fitness levels, strengthen muscles along with bones, and provide a host of other benefits, but by being “too fit” you can do more damage than good. The more strain you put on your body the more likely you are to cause yourself an injury. That’s why taking a rest can allow your body to recover properly before your next workout which in turn reduces your risk of injury. Having the correct balance between exercising and resting is a key factor to ensuring you remain injury free at the top of your fitness game.

Allows Your Body to Adjust to Your Fitness Workload

We’ve discussed it above, but it is important to remember that whether you are new to fitness or starting a new routine your body will need time to adjust to the changes within your fitness workload. This means that rest is crucial to maintaining peak body and mind conditioning as your fitness progresses.

Ensures Peak Fitness Performance

To continuously hit your top levels in your workouts your body needs to be prepared which is where rest comes in. Sitting out a workout if you’re drained can be fair more beneficial than forcing yourself to work out and can set you up for peak performance in your next workout.

How Many Days of Rest Should You Take?

Many experts in the field have tried to find the definitive answer to the question of how many days of rest a person should take, but the reality is there is no one size fits all approach to rest days. If you are a beginner you may need to spend more days resting in the week then working out, as your body adjusts to your new workload. However, as you build up your fitness levels you may find that you need less days to recover and can work out more. This balance is down to personal preference as on the other side of the scale, those that partake in hugely intense workouts may need more time to recover as they have pushed their body to it’s limit. It is largely recommended that you take at least one day off per week no matter what level of fitness you have. This allows your body and mind time off, but again, the number of days off depends on the person themselves.

What to Do on Rest Days

Often, if you work out on a regular basis, it can feel odd not having to do so on a rest day. This should be embraced though, as you give your body and mind time to relax, but in case you need a few ideas on what to do on your rest days we’ve got some suggestions for you.

Active Recovery

As discussed, it can be hard to switch off for some people, but having a rest day doesn’t mean you have to drop everything and not move for the day. Lots of people participate in active recovery on their rest day. This entails low intensity exercise such as walking or light swimming, which keeps your body in motion, while not putting extra strain on yourself. It can be a great idea to stretch out your body on a rest day too, as you have taken it through some tough workouts in previous days, and it can feel amazing to relieve the stress you hold through stretching.

Meditation

Another form of active recovery that people often underestimate is meditation. If your body and mind are used to the constant grind of intense workouts, it can be extremely helpful to partake in the soothing, low impact, less stressful, activity of meditation. This may be by yourself or with friends, with a class or with the assistance of an online video, but the most important thing is that you are not pushing your body as you take time out to relax. It is also useful to use a foam roller after meditation or stretching as it can reduce the aches and pains within your body, which can also be useful after each of your workouts too.

Embrace the Outdoors

It is often overlooked just how beneficial being out in nature can be for your mind in particular. If you want to get in some active recovery during your rest day then there’s not much better than doing it outside, whether that’s walking the dog or even meditation outside if the weather allows for it. Being out in the open helps put our mind to rest and relax after a hard week of working out, as well as everything else that goes on in our daily lives. If you want something to do on your rest day, then we recommend looking outdoors.

Socialise

Life can be overwhelming at times, between jobs, family, studying, working out, and so on. It can sometimes be forgotten how important socialising is. While we are busy fitting in the next rep, or another email for work, we should also remember to make time to meet up with friends and family in order to take a break from the rest of the world. You can meet up for a coffee, do a group activity, head to the park with your kids, whatever it may be, just be sure to take a break to allow your mind and body to relax.

Treat Day

Many of us forget that we need to let our hair down even during our fitness filled lives, and that often means we prevent ourselves from enjoying the foods we truly enjoy. A “treat day” or “treat meal” is when you loosen up a little and allow yourself to embrace the foods you don’t on a normal day. This can be a brilliant thing to fit in with your rest day, as it not only gives you something to look forward to, but you can also spend time making your treat day meal or head out for it if you like. This doesn’t mean you sit down and eat as much junk food as possible, but it does mean you indulge in something tasty that makes you happy and encourages you to rest.

Sit Down and Kick Back

Last but not least is the thing that we all need every once in a while, which is to just take a complete day of rest. Don’t be afraid to pick a movie, get in some snacks and chill out for the day. As long as you don’t go overboard and completely let yourself go, you will be doing your body and mind a favour as you hit your relaxation phase. This can be particularly useful on those cold, wet days, when the outdoors just don’t appeal to you, even treat yourself by running a nice bath and soaking your muscles for ultimate relaxation.

So, there you have it! All the reasons behind why integrating a rest day into your fitness routine is not only a nice thing to do but is actually vital. There are so many benefits to be gained from rest, especially when you are pushing yourself to your limits in every workout. Remember to get the best results possible through your workout regime you need to allow your mind and body the time to recover as well as relax!

How Aura Can Help

At Aura Leisure we have a host of fitness classes, some of which offer low intensity workouts which can be perfect for an activity on rest days, particularly our aqua aerobics classes. Our swimming pools are also a brilliant place to relax, whether you are looking to go for a few slow lengths or head for a family fun day.

The Aura Fitness Nutrition Range is another ideal way to ensure you get the most out of every workout along with resting. Aura Pre Workout gives you that energy boost ahead of each workout, while Aura Hydrate helps you maintain the perfect hydration balance while working out, along with Aura Protein which aids in muscle building, as well as recovery, and you can learn all about our Aura Nutrition Products here.