Good morning!
It isn’t always easy returning to school or work after the last long weekend of summer. So to cheer you all up, I am having a fun chia seed giveaway this morning!
Read on to find out how to enter. :)
Rest Days: What Exactly Do You Do?
Over the years, my thoughts on rest and recovery days have been all over the map.
In my late teens and early twenties, I rarely considered the option of even giving myself a so called rest day. I did too much and I felt burned out. No surprises there.
After my injury this year, something sort of clicked inside me and I started to appreciate taking rest days. I realized that if I was going to give my best performance, I needed to let my body heal itself.
Over the past several months as I have been training for my summer races, I realized even more how important a rest day can be and how much it improves both my physical and mental energy. As my mileage has increased, I appreciate and look forward to my rest days more and more.
What do I do on my rest day?
I typically take the term ‘rest day’ to heart. I don’t exercise or really even move much during my rest days. I see it as a well deserved lazy day when I don’t feel a workout nagging in the back of my mind. However, I will admit, some of my rest days I am left feeling fidgety. Some days I want to exercise a bit, but I feel like I would be harming my body and not giving it proper rest. I am also questioning if I should be doing anything else on my rest days. More stretching, sleeping, icing, eating, etc. Truly, rest days couldn’t be as simple as resting, could they?
Given this dilemma, I was quite happy to see my Runner’s World arrive in the mail. One of the featured cover stories, ‘Rest Right: Make the most of your days off’ caught my attention. Like always, the fabulous people at Runner’s World read my mind.
Here is the kicker:
Exercise physiologist, Dr. Stephen McGregor says to make the most out of your recovery days doing absolutely nothing all day is not ideal.
I’m telling you guys, I almost threw this magazine in the garbage! I said to myself, ‘No one can take away my lazy rest days! Noooooooooo!’
Wait, I’m supposed to move on my rest days? AreyoujokingIhopeyouarejokingme.
Dr. McGregor says that having an active recovery (have you ever heard of a bigger oxymoron!?) can sooth aches and prepare you for stronger workouts better than an inactive recovery day.
Still not liking where this is going. But, I read on. ;)
The article went on to give some tips for increasing the benefit of recovery days.
1) Move It
Do very light activity like walking your dog or riding a bike for about 30 minutes. “Keep the intensity low…you shouldn’t be out of breath.”
2) Loosen Up
We don’t always have time to stretch properly after tough workouts, especially if they are long in duration. Use your rest days to focus on stretching out your tight spots. Research in the British Journal of Sports Medicine finds that yoga boosts running performance.
3) Eat Smart
Focus on eating the nutrients that you don’t get enough of during the week. If you normally spend 45 minutes on exercise, take some of this time to plan out proper nutrition.
3) Tune In Early
Our bodies and brains need sleep to heal from the mental and physical stress of training. Try to get 7-9 hours of undisturbed sleep.
My thoughts:
Ok, so some light activity might not hurt me, in fact it could actually improve my recovery. I think I am going to be more open to the idea of doing some light walking on my rest days if I want to.
However, coming from my obsessive past with exercise, I know that information like this can be used in a negative way by some. I think it is important to stress that even though some light activity may improve recovery, it is still 100% FINE and DANDY to just sit on the couch during our rest days. We earned the rest and we can spend it however we please.
So of course, take this article with a grain of salt. The take home message here is if you want to do some light exercise and find yourself fidgety when sitting still all day then by all means do some. But, don’t allow yourself to fall into the ‘I should be doing more and more’ trap. If you really want to veg out on your rest day, then veg the heck out!
How do you approach rest days? Are you an all out rester or do you prefer to get in some activity? Have you found that activity helps your recovery?
Leave one comment below by midnight EST for your chance to win a 3 pound bag of chia seeds, graciously donated by Chia Seeds Direct. Contest open to US and Canadian residents only please.
I hear that Chia Seeds Direct also has free shipping within the US.
Chia seeds…the wonder seed!
Goodluck and Happy Short Work Week!
See you later for a breakdown of what to do immediately after an intense workout from minutes 0-45. Have I been doing it all wrong? Stay tuned to find out!
I do yoga on one of my rest days and absolutely nothing on my other rest day. Yoga helps me get in much-neglected stretching and is also so relaxing. I deserve to relax, dang it! :)
I hope I win!
I always try my best to fit in a couple of rest days, even though a lot of the time I feel like I should be out running or doing some form of exercise. But it’s true, our bodies deserve a break!
I’ve heard so much about chia seeds in the blog world lately, so I think it’s time for me to give them a try! :)
I tend to do some walking (on the lighter side – no hills, and prob around 3 mph) for a little bit on rest days, along with some light stretching. However, there are days (i.e. if I feel myself coming down with a head cold) where I can read my body and know better than to push at all.
I desperately want to try chia seeds!!!
Ooh! I’m totally curious about chia seeds! I haven’t been able to find them, but I’d love to win some!
I generally take Wed. as my rest day b/c I am usually wiped out by the middle of the week. Since I’m at work all day, I honestly like to come home, make dinner, and plop down on the couch with a book.
I do several light workout days as well. I usually go for some yoga or a quick elliptical workout if I’m not up for anything tougher. If I have the energy I warm up on the elliptical then go lift weights. This is is addition to my 1/2 marathon training schedule though so as long as I get my runs in, I’m trying to listen to my body and not push too much otherwise. I do want to incorporate more walks into my easy days though. I tend to not count them as exercise but I think I am underestimating the power of a long walk. :)
I typically do yoga on rest days. Weight training and running tend to make me tense and the yoga really helps. Aside from yoga, I like to go on long walks on rest days. Yay for Chia Seeds!
My “rest days” pretty much mean a rest from running. I’ll usually go for a walk to get my legs moving and wore out some of the stiffness. Nothing too intense, but it makes me feel better. Stretching afterward is a must!
Isn’t funny how resting is one of the hardest things for some people to do. I am one of those people but over the last couple of years have really learned the importance of listening to my mind and body. On my rest days, I focus on other things, such as reading, catching up with a movie, etc. If I do get anxious and need to release some energy I will go for a walk.
hope everyone makes time for some rest :)
sham
I do a combination of total relaxation on rest days, and light activity. Some rest days, I might walk to the grocery store, for example, and others, I might do nothing at all! It really depends on how sore I am. If a rest day falls after a really hard workout, then I actually prefer to do some light activity to loosen up my muscles. Otherwise, the couch it is!
On rest days I take a slower and more relaxing approach to exercise. I like to stretch and do some yoga moves. I will also take some of my favorite yoga poses and hold them for a few minutes and meditate. Also, I would love to try Chia seeds so I hope I get them!
I try to take a day once during the week and once on the weekends. I don’t technically excerise on my rest days, but with three young kids and a teaching job, I don’t exactly sit around much either. I truly believe rest days are essential for both physical and mental health.
I definitely rest up, but I try to stretch a little and at least move a little bit. I’ve noticed that it keeps me from getting sore!
As a former track and xc runner, it’s always been ingrained in my head to take rest days and NEVER do anything outside of my training regimen. Rest days would often include a massage, if anything at all. I do think it’s true that over time, you can demand more of your body, with less rest as your fitness improves. This is how elite athletes can perform tough, twice-a-day workouts several days a week and ‘easy’ runs on their rest days. However, you have to build up to this gradually, and REALLY pay attention to recovery (i.e. nutrition, ice-baths, listening to your body, stretching, massage). It’s also important to periodize this over the year, where you have off months with less exercise….Rest is critical no matter what your level!
I am brand new to the running world and I have been so impressed with your website. It has motivated me to run better, eat better and be better! Thanks for making this available. I really look forward to your posts!
Yay for chia seeds! I have really been wanting to ty these little guys. =)
For me, my rest day is more of a mental rest day. I know it’s okay in my head if I don’t get a work out. But, because I have a dog I have to at least walk her so I do move at least a little!
I love chia seeds, and I can think of quite a few holiday baking projects that I could add them to!
I usually don’t do anything even remotely strenuous on my rest days, but only because I want to be fresh and energized for my hard or long run the following day. I need to change my mentality and stop beating myself up, and realize it’s okay to take a real rest day and be a bum if I want to, even if I don’t have a long run coming up! We all need a break once in a while.
I’ve been wanting to try chia seeds, but they’re kinda pricey and I don’t really want to shell out the money for something I’m not sure I’ll even like. I’d love to win!
I like to do a variety of things on my rest day, and I always try to keep it fun. Riding bikes with my husband, walking our dog, mushroom hunting, and exploring parks, just to name a few!
I’m notorious for over-training, so I take a required 2 days of rest every week. They’re always Saturday and Sunday — Saturday I spend cleaning, running errands, etc, so I’d say I’m pretty active on that rest day.
Sunday, though, I try to take it easy. I still walk my puppy 30 minutes every day — but honestly until I read it above in your post, I wasn’t really considering it part of an “active rest”.
I also make sure I go through all of my pirformis and hamstring stretches on a daily basis, regardless of activity.
So I was going to say “No, I don’t really do anything on my rest days” — but I guess that’s a lie! LOL
How timely!
I went shopping yesterday and chia seeds were my latest food to try out but I couldn’t find they at Save-On.