Why Do I Need Rest Days?

Training too often and lifting too much will actually stop muscle growth, hinder strength gains, and possibly result in injury.

For those of us who don't want to spend hours upon hours in the gym just to try and build some muscle, this is actually good news!

INTRODUCING: THE MINIMUM EFFECTIVE DOSE IN STRENGTH TRAINING

This means that reasonable progress towards strength and aesthetic goals can be made through comprehensive and structured programming that takes into account the minimal effective dose of strength training needed in order to elicit a physiological response from the body.

That last sentence included a lot of jargon. Even my eyes glossed over it as I read it. Please, let me explain.

The minimum effective dose represents the amount of training that the body can handle while still being able to recover from said training. Training that exceeds the minimum effective dose is actually a waste of time and energy.

Here is an analogy to try and make it more clear:

First picture the body as an empty bucket. Next, think of training or exercise as water flowing into this bucket. Any water that exceeds the capacity of the bucket is a waste and just washes away. In order to maximize the capacity of this bucket, the goal should be to fill the bucket with as much water as the bucket can hold and not a drop less.Therefore the goal of a training program should be to fill the bucket only with the amount of water that it can carry.

This minimum effective dose approach is the quickest and surest way to build muscle, strength, and athleticism, while also avoiding injury.

The take home message here is that you don't have to go to the gym everyday or spend hours training in order to reap the benefits of strength training. This should be music to your ears.

Instead, work smarter and follow a structured strength training program that includes rest days, sensible progressions, and doesn't beat you into the ground day after day.

HOW MUCH REST DO I NEED?

That is an “it depends” kind of question — it depends on your training style and intensity. However, it’s pretty safe to say that you need at least one rest day weekly, and you’d benefit most from two rest days per week.

Work smarter, not harder!

You can enjoy training and enjoy rest days as well.