Tag: lack of rest causes weight gain

How Much Rest Should You Get After A Workout?

How Much Rest Should You Get After A Workout? by Jennifer Ledford

Recently, I was scrolling through my newsfeed on one of my social media pages and came across a friend’s post that asked a question regarding exercise and rest.

While I love, love, loved the enthusiasm the people commenting on the post showed toward exercise, some of the comments or answers were either outdated or tailored to their own personal needs which may or may not have been appropriate or safe for the person asking the question.  Exercise, just like diet, is very personal which is why it’s always a good idea to consult with someone that’s trained to answer your question and has a proven track record in the field.

Seeing this post reminded me that while most people know it’s a good idea to exercise, not everyone understands that rest and recovery is JUST as important as exercise itself.

Rest days allow your muscles, nerves, bones, and connective tissue time to rebuild.  It’s during this rebuilding process that they grow back stronger.  A lack of rest or “overtraining” can leave the body susceptible to injury and even slow the metabolism down.

Resting after exercise does not necessarily mean you are sitting on the couch all day.  Most of the time, active rest is best.  The body is designed to move and “sitting” for too long can negatively affect someone’s health.  There can be solid medical reasons for someone to get off their feet and rest for longer periods of time.  However, if you have been medically cleared for exercise, active rest is usually best.

How much active rest your body needs after exercise is personal.  Your fitness level, the type of exercise you are performing, and what your body needs will all come into play.

RECOMMENDED TYPES OF EXERCISE AND REST

Some examples of types of exercise and recommended rest are:

  1. Interval Training.  High intensity interval training, also known as HIIT, is an effective way to burn calories in a short period of time and can improve cardiovascular health as well as blood pressure.  HIIT formulas consist of short “bouts” or intervals of an exercise that feel hard or very hard to maintain followed by a recovery interval that is easy to maintain.  Interval based cycling classes, interval programs designed for exercise machines, Tabata training, and interval based group exercise or circuit routines are some examples of interval training.

The recovery guidelines for HIIT training are pretty straightforward.  After performing a HIIT workout, you will want to wait a minimum of 48 hours before repeating another.  It’s VERY important to allow your body to recover properly from high interval training to avoid overtraining which can have a negative effect on your body.

Years ago, when spinning or cycling classes entered the fitness scene, people (mostly women) were so thrilled with the physical results they were getting  from their “spin” classes, they began attending them five, sometimes six, days per week.  Many of them began to plateau and others actually saw the scale go up due to their metabolisms slowing down.  When it comes to high intensity training, too much can produce the opposite effect you were looking for.  A moderate cardio workout or strength routine (depending on what you did during your interval workout) are great ways to actively recover during your 48-hour rest period.

2.  Moderate Exercise.  The fitness industry considers anything that gets your heart rate up to 50 to 60 percent higher than its rate when you are at rest moderate intensity exercise.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend 30-45 minutes of moderate exercise most days of the week for health purposes.  Doing some sort of moderate exercise daily is optimal which is what makes moderate exercise so popular because you can pretty much do it every day without having to take a rest.

Some examples of moderate activity include:

  • Walking your dog
  • Biking
  • Swimming laps
  • Jogging
  • Moderate Intensity Water Aerobics
  • Gardening for 30 minutes
  • Raking leaves for 30 minutes
  • House cleaning for 30-45 minutes

3.  Strength Training.  One of the simplest ways to know you need to rest a muscle after strength training is if it is sore.  It’s important to note how long your muscle soreness lasts.  Soreness from proper training should not last more than 48 hours after the workout.  If you are sore for longer than 48 hours it usually means that you’ve “overtrained” or worked the muscles too hard and need to scale back just a bit.

A good rule of thumb is to allow the muscles you specifically worked to actively rest for 48 hours before strength-training them again.  A good balance is to train other muscles or perform moderate cardio on off days.  For years, strength training three to four days per week has been a popular formula in the fitness industry because it allows for a good amount of recovery time.

Your body is smart.  It will tell you when it’s time to rest and it’s important to listen to it!  When we balance our exercise and rest properly, the body can get stronger and build more endurance. Or, for some of us, simply help you maintain the strength you already have.  At the end of the day, exercise shouldn’t make you feel run down.  It should leave you feeling good!

Here’s to a lifetime of health and happiness!

Shared with love,
Jennifer

 

Proper Rest Helps You Lose and Maintain Your Weight

With today’s fast paced lifestyle, rest can often seem like more of a luxury than a necessity. But, did you know that proper rest is critical to permanent weight loss?  When I say “rest,” I’m not just talking about sleep. I’m talking about resting your mind as well.

Here’s how lack of rest makes you fat.

Without proper rest, you become fatigued and lose enthusiasm and energy. You may become overwhelmed, leading to emotional paralysis. In turn, this will interfere with physical activity. Your mind will search for an escape such as sitting in front of the TV with a bag of cheese puffs. Or, another common statement I hear is, “My subconscious thinks I deserve that giant bowl of ice cream because I have been working so hard.” Soon you will see the needle on the scale creep up slowly but surely.

Maybe you know you have been burning the candle at both ends. You’re thinking, “yeah, but this is just temporary.”

The human body can handle about three months of being in the pressure cooker and then you need to back off and get your balanced life back. If three months is what you mean when you say temporary, you can probably get away with it and plan a vacation for when you are finished. If temporary has no end in sight, you are at risk of weight gain and serious health issues.

When I first started my personal training business, I was working about 60 to 70 hours per week. It was a thrill in the beginning. However, over time I began to “burn out.” I became overwhelmed and depressed. So depressed I didn’t even want to get out of bed. My health began to deteriorate. The good news is, it forced me to cut back on my hours. That was the best thing I ever did for my mental, spiritual, and physical health.

Here are six tips for proper rest and life balance.

1)  Take a long weekend! Schedule a long weekend with your spouse every three months. Do this if you are single as well. Unplug from technology. Choose somewhere that you can drive to and avoid airport hassles, which would interrupt your relaxation. If budget is an issue, try camping or a staycation — and act like you are out of town. If you have kids, ask another couple if they would like to trade weekends with you and watch each others’ children.

2)  Evaluate! Write your top five to ten life priorities in order of importance. Then, look at your calendar and see how much time is being devoted to each. Is there a balance? Is there something that should be put on hold for awhile? Depending on what that list looks like currently, that may even include formal workouts and temporarily switching to lifestyle activity for your exercise. You can learn how to add lifestyle activity into your day with Lose Weight Living Your Life.

3)  Get help! Outsource tasks. If you are trying to be a do it yourselfer for everything, it doesn’t allow much time for rest. For example, you can hire a business assistant, pay a teenager to mow your lawn, assign chores to your children, and have your car washed professionally. This will open up time for your priorities.

4)  Get some exercise! If you are lacking rest, moderate exercise can help you sleep. However, this is not the time to attend boot camp style workouts. Moderate activity such as lifestyle exercise, walking, and light strength training is more appropriate. This is called active rest. You are still moving and burning calories. However, your body is not being over stressed either.

5)  You have permission to pamper yourself! Get a massage, a manicure, a facial; play golf, or go to a spa — whatever small time out you can take that rejuvenates you! Make sure it’s on your calendar. I get a manicure/pedicure every three weeks, and spend the day in the city getting my hair done every six weeks. These little treats help me rest and relax.

6)  Find water! There’s something about water that feeds your mind, spirit, and soul. Maybe that’s why so many singers write songs about escaping to an island or the coast. When I want to relax, I head to the beach or a lake. A pool works as well. Schedule a weekly swim, or plan a full day at your local beach or lake. You’ll come home renewed!

I’ve shared my personal strategies for getting rest and leading a balanced life. Use this list and feel free to add to it. Get creative! I’d like to hear your personal favorites for rest and relaxation.  Let me know by leaving a comment below. I really enjoy hearing from you!

To your health!

Jennifer