How to Rest Between Workouts To Maximize Results
There’s often confusion on how much rest we should give between workouts, especially strength training workouts. Today we’re going to give you some clarity on that subject. If you’re doing strength training and you’re working the same muscles, you do not want to workout two days in a row. You would need to separate your strength training workouts with at least one day in between. So for example you could do a strength training workout on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Split Routine
While most people should follow this type of program there is a style of training that is called a split routine. This is usually for people who are more advanced, have more time to workout, and/or have farther reaching fitness goals. With a split routine an individual might do only a couple of body parts on one day and then a few more on a different date. Because you’re not working the same muscle groups you can engage in strength training two days in a row. There are a variety of splits with one of the most common being upper body one day and lower body the next.
Cardio vs Strength Training
While strength training requires a day in between working the same muscles cardio does not.
You can do cardio most days of the week because we’re not overloading and stressing our muscles so significantly that they require that rest, whereas correctly performed weight training does. While it’s possible to do cardio multiple days in a row with any exercise program, giving your body at least one day of rest is a good idea to help prevent overtraining.
Summary
- Do not do full body strength training two days in a row if the same muscles are worked.
- Split routines allow individuals to engage in strength training two or more days in a row.
- Cardio does not require a day of rest in between, however taking at least one day off a week is a good idea.
Glen Carrigan
Freedom 4 Life Fitness