Ask The Trainer: Do I Really Need Rest Days?

Welcome to my new series, Ask the Trainer! I take your questions and answer them on the blog so others can benefit from the answers. I am not a medical professional. Please always direct medical questions and health concerns to your doctor. I am happy to provide my opinion on topics of exercise, training and running. 

Our first question is a great one from Annie.

My name is Annie. I came across your blog on Pinterest and have looked through a lot of it. I've been a runner for about 5 years now. I've done several 5Ks and one half marathon. I teach so it is hard to find time to run (I'm not a big fan of the treadmill) and it gets dark early now. I'm wanting to get back into consistent running so I can do another half marathon eventually and honestly running helps me manage stress. I would love to have a running coach, but I can't afford that right now but I wondered if you would be willing to answer a question about rest days... I deal with excessive exercise and anorexia nervosa, so rest days are something I don't take. I do a workout every single day for at least an hour and am on my feet all day teaching, etc. I saw "rest day" on the training plan I followed for my half marathon, but didn't take it (I would take a rest day from running, but not from HIIT and strength). I saw what you wrote about the need for "rest days" but does that mean not to do anything exercise wise or just not run? I would appreciate some guidance. Thank you and I will continue to follow your blog!

Annie

Hi, Annie.

First of all, thanks so much for checking out my blog. I appreciate the support.

As a general rule, I do recommend at least one full rest day a week from strenuous exercise, including running and strength training. I usually recommend stretching, light Yoga, foam rolling or walking on those rest days for clients who want to keep moving.

Our bodies adapt to exercise (build muscle, get stronger, get faster) during rest, not during the actual exercise, so rest days are important to allow your muscles to repair and rebuild. If you are resistant to a complete rest day, I would at least recommend a very easy short run at a very light effort 1-2 minutes slower pace than usual.

However with all that being said, since I don't know you personally it is hard for me to say what your body needs. We are all different and only you know how your body responds to the stress of exercise. Based on what you told me, you seem to have a tolerance for a high volume workout schedule. 

My advice would be to pay close attention to some potential warning signs of overtraining such as irritability, insomnia, lack of focus, exhaustion, lack of progress in training, injuries, among other symptoms. However, if you can honestly that say that you look, feel and perform your best, I'd be remiss to tell you to change something that is working for you. It's important to cover all three: how you look, how you feel and how you perform. If you listen to your body, those things will tell you if you're on the right track in regards to your exercise volume, intensity and nutrition. If you look great but feel lousy and perform at a low level, something probably is not right. 

If you deal with eating and exercise disorders as you mentioned I strongly recommend working with medical professionals to help you navigate those issues. 

So long answer short, I believe that athletes benefit from at least one full rest day a week because our muscles need the rest to repair and rebuild. Very low volume and intensity on those days should be enough rest. I personally alternate between high intensity days, low intensity days and rest days. For example I might have a HIIT (high intensity interval training) day followed by an easy run day, then heavy(ish) lifting day, then an easy run day, HIIT day and a rest day. Sleep is also important for recovery, work towards 7-8 hours of sleep per night. I have found as I am getting older I need more rest days than I did even five years ago. 

If you listen to your body and are willing to make changes to your lifestyle and exercise schedule as needed in order to stay healthy you'll be on the right track. 

Good luck and happy training for your next half marathon! Let me know how your training goes!

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What do you think? Any questions? Let me know in the comments, email me or submit your question to Ask The Trainer to be answered in a future blog post. 

Coach Lea

I am a NASM personal trainer and RRCA adult distance running coach that specializes in strength training for runners. I offer in-person training in the Shredshed, online training and Fit to Run bootcamps. If you are interested in a more in-depth running or strength training plan, please contact me. Have questions? I'd love to help. 

While I am a certified personal trainer, I am not your personal trainer. Since I don't know your exercise abilities, injury background or medical history, please see your doctor before beginning any new exercise program. This is an opinion blog. No information in this blog is intended to be taken as medical advice or prescription. Please see your doctor and/or registered dietitian for any health concerns.

EMBRACING THE SUCK TO REACH YOUR GOALS

My social media friend Fit Regular Guy commented on my post "7 Things You Should Never Say to a Runner" and remarked that #6 on the list was a variation of the "4 Stages of Suck," an article he published on his blog. I loved his article and it got me thinking about what it means to embrace the suck. 

Embracing the suck means accepting the temporary discomfort of the moment. It is about mental toughness. It is about overcoming discomfort. It is about delaying gratification. It means that instead of trying to feel comfortable by any means necessary that you realize that discomfort often means growth, so you not only accept it, but you embrace it. It sucks but you are grateful for it. 

It's a mind shift. It's a way of reframing difficult situations, so your brain isn't thinking of ways to get you out of it, but rather ways to get you through it, because you know on the other side is mental and physical growth. 

This applies to many facets of life, exercise is one. Sometimes exercise is hard and it sucks. Sometimes running sucks. Do you quit or keep going? Do you give up or embrace the suck?

Getting out of bed early in the morning when it is cold may require you to embrace the suck. You could go back to bed because it is warm and cozy there, or you could embrace the suck and do what needs to be done.

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TWEET THIS: Embrace the suck to meet your fitness goals

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An important distinction here is that suck refers to being uncomfortable, tired or out of your comfort zone. Suck does not mean physical pain or injury. In those cases you should immediately stop, rest and/or get help as to not cause further damage.

Train your brain to embrace the suck when doing the difficult things that can lead to positive results. Instead of thinking about how hard it is, think about how tough you are for sticking it out. Think about how you do hard things that other people won't do. Think about the great results that can come from your temporary acceptance of the suck. 

The key is to identify it and embrace it for what it is, not try to get out of it. Next time you are uncomfortable, embrace it, be grateful for it, get through it, because the tough times make you stronger. 

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Coach Lea

I am a NASM personal trainer and RRCA adult distance running coach that specializes in strength training for runners. I offer in-person training in the Shredshed, online training and Fit to Run bootcamps. If you are interested in a more in-depth running or strength training plan, please contact me. Have questions? I'd love to help. 

While I am a certified personal trainer, I am not your personal trainer. Since I don't know your exercise abilities, injury background or medical history, please see your doctor before beginning any new exercise program. This is an opinion blog. No information in this blog is intended to be taken as medical advice or prescription. Please see your doctor and/or registered dietitian for any health concerns.

Make a New Year Race-olution: 5 Ways to a Better Race in 2017

January 1st is right around the corner and everyone is making their New Year resolutions. Instead of paying penance for your holiday indulgences with a diet of carrot sticks and celery, I have a better idea. How about a New Year Race-olution?

Now this is a resolution I can get behind. Whether you are an experienced racer or a newbie wanting to tackle your first race, here are five ways to better race in 2017.

1. SIGN UP FOR A RACE AND SET A GOAL

Choosing a race that is 3-6 months in the future goes a long way in staying motivated to work out well into 2017, when most people's resolutions will be collecting dust along side their exercise equipment.

Choose a race distance that is challenging enough to keep you motivated to train, but not so outside of your scope of experience and abilities that you set yourself up for failure. You should aim high with your goals though, with the proper training and guidance you can do more than you think!

2. DO SPEED WORK

If you want to run a better race in 2017, you'll need to start by logging those training miles. Once you have a solid running base of running three to four days a week for four to five weeks it's time to start speed work, which will be a key element to achieving a better race in 2017. If you want to run faster, you need to train to run faster. Hill repeats, track work, stairs and Fartleks can all be effective ways to build speed. Aim for a speed session once or twice a week.

3. DON'T NEGLECT CROSS TRAINING

Low impact cross training is good way to increase your endurance base without adding additional stress on your joints. Activities like biking, swimming, hiking, rowing, walking or the elliptical are all great cross training choices for non-running days.

While it may be tempting to adopt an all-running-all-the-time training plan, the smartest use of your workout schedule could be to carve out some time for some strength training. A lot of runners neglect the strength portion of training, but it is vital to getting stronger and staying injury free. Stronger legs just may bring you across the finish line at a faster pace. Aim for full body strength training session at least two times a week. There are plenty of quick and effective strength workouts in the archive.

4. BE FLEXIBLE AND REST

Yoga is a great cross training activity that can benefit runners, but when I say flexible I am referring to your training plan. It will be easy to put together an aggressive training plan, then get burnt out, or worse, injured before you have the chance to meet your race goals for 2017. Listen to your body. Take rest days. Take as many as you need. Push through those hard runs, push through feeling uncomfortable, push through laziness but never ever push through pain or injury.

A few days off from running or even a week off (if necessary) for recovery is just a blip in your overall training plan. Remember that it is during rest that your body is recovering and getting stronger! Rest is an important part of the equation. Train smart and schedule those rest days for a better race in 2017.

5. FIND A TRAINING PARTNER AND HAVE FUN

Long after the excitement of signing up for a race has faded, you will still need to be training in order to achieve your race-olution. One way to keep it fun and motivating is to find a running partner or sign up for training with an organized group. Joining a running group or boot camp can be a excellent way to get expert advice from a running coach and make some new running friends. 

I am looking forward to achieving my New Year's Race-olution. I'll be running a better race in 2017. How about you? Are you missing any of these in your training plan? Are you ready to make a New Year's Race-olution? Let me know in the comments.

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Coach Lea

I am a NASM personal trainer and RRCA adult distance running coach that specializes in strength training for runners. I offer in-person training in the Shredshed, online training and Fit to Run bootcamps. If you are interested in a more in-depth running or strength training plan, please contact me. Have questions? I'd love to help. 

While I am a certified personal trainer, I am not your personal trainer. Since I don't know your exercise abilities, injury background or medical history, please see your doctor before beginning any new exercise program. This is an opinion blog. No information in this blog is intended to be taken as medical advice or prescription. Please see your doctor and/or registered dietitian for any health concerns.

The Mind Body Connection

I walked into my massage appointment. "How are you today, Lea?" my massage therapist asked. "I'm a mess." I started to explain how my shoulder injury was still persistent and then I recently hurt my back lifting a bin of medicine balls out of my car after my Saturday morning boot camp. He stopped me mid-sentence.

Don't say that about your body, Lea. Your body is not a mess. Tell your body you love it, that you will take care of it, that you are healthy, strong and resilient. Never tell your body it is a mess. Your body achieves what the mind believes.

He nearly made me apologize to my body for saying bad things about it. 

He's right though. I am quick to tell my exercise class that they aren't allowed to say that they can't during a tough session, because whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right. By making negative comments about the state of my body, I was not practicing what I preach.

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Tweet this: Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right."

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Do I believe that just stating that I am strong and healthy will magically make me strong and healthy? Of course not, but I do believe in a strong mind-body connection. If I tell myself I am strong and healthy and work hard at becoming strong and healthy (which may include rest) than I am more likely to achieve that goal.

If I tell myself I am a mess then my body and mind may just accept that it is a mess...and we can't have that.

I have a shoulder injury, but my back is recovered completely now. I am not a mess. I am a work in progress. I am strong. I am healthy. I am healing. I am resilient. 

2017 is going to be my year. Watch out world. 

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Coach Lea

I am a NASM personal trainer and RRCA adult distance running coach that specializes in strength training for runners. I offer in-person training in the Shredshed, online training and Fit to Run bootcamps. If you are interested in a more in-depth running or strength training plan, please contact me. Have questions? I'd love to help. 

While I am a certified personal trainer, I am not your personal trainer. Since I don't know your exercise abilities, injury background or medical history, please see your doctor before beginning any new exercise program. This is an opinion blog. No information in this blog is intended to be taken as medical advice or prescription. Please see your doctor and/or registered dietitian for any health concerns.

Fitness Voices of Reason: Who I Trust in This Industry

These days there is no shortage of information. Want to learn about fitness, working out or running? There are millions of articles, books, websites and blogs packed full of the all the information you could ever want to know. Herein lies the problem. Information overload. What is the best way to learn new information? The water can get a little muddy between information that is outdated or obsolete and information that is intentionally misleading to sell you something. How do you know what and who to trust? 

Before I became a personal trainer and a running coach, I honestly thought I pretty much knew everything about fitness and nutrition. After all, I had been a fitness enthusiast for over a decade, I read a ton of blogs, books and magazine articles. What more was there? Turns out, a whole lot. You just don't know what you don't know. Until I started the process of getting the education needed to become a fitness professional, I did what most people do, I skimmed the surface of the information available, I took what was valuable, meaningful and made sense to me and threw out the rest. I figured I was pretty equipped to see through the crap. Lose 20 lbs with this miracle shake? Fruit makes you fat? Get in the best shape of your life on 15 minutes a day? BS detector activated! These things were obvious. 

But there is so much more that seems to make sense on the surface, but when you dig a little deeper you realize you're just another layer deep in sales tactics and misinformation. I realized that I had a lot of learn. I am always still growing and evolving. I read a lot, continue to work on certifications, listen to podcasts and talk to people smarter than me to stay up to date on the current trends in health and fitness. 

In the fitness world full of celebrities like Dr. Oz, Food Babe and Tracy Anderson, if you're not careful, it can be pretty easy to be led down the wrong path of misinformation. 

Over the last couple years a few voices have emerged to me as voices of reason. These were the people that I could look to for clarity of information. I know they aren't trying to sell me the latest fitness gimmick or fad. They have established themselves as experts and leaders in their field. These are the people that have proven to me time and time again that I could trust them in a fitness world that can't always be trusted. They are as a whole, committed to moderation in fitness (not extremes), body-positive messages and seeking/spreading the truth. 

ON NUTRITION

JOHN BERARDI - PRECISION NUTRITION

John Berardi is a writer, coach, professor, researcher, speaker and athlete behind Precision Nutrition. I am currently working on my Precision Nutrition Level 1 certification, but I have been following John and the Precision Nutrition blog for about a year. The precision nutrition blog is full of great information on coaching and nutrition that is backed by science and research. No woo or scare tactics to be found, which is all too common in the field of nutrition.

ON STRENGTH TRAINING

TOM VENUTO - BURN THE FAT, FEED THE MUSCLE

I first bought Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle over 10 years ago as a printable e-book. After I used an entire ink cartridge printing out hundreds of pages, I remember thinking that I was going to cancel all my fitness magazine subscriptions. After everything I learned in this literal encyclopedia of health and fitness I felt like there wasn't anything a fitness magazine could write about that wasn't already covered more accurately in this monster book. Tom has been around for a long time teaching people the basics of strength training, cardio and nutrition. His book led me in the right direction shortly after I kicked off my healthy lifestyle all those years ago and lucky for you, that old ebook is available in hardcover now so you can save your ink cartridge. I love his message that everyone's path to fitness looks a little different and you have to learn what works for you and your body by tracking and experimenting. It was a game changer for me in my fitness journey. 

CORI LEFKOWITH - REDEFINING STRENGTH

When I first stumbled upon Redefining Strength I was hooked immediately by Cori's message of strength and empowerment. She is strong, kind and funny. She offers tons of free workouts on her site and Facebook page and I love The Fitness Hacks Podcast. As a trainer and a gym owner she freely shares her wealth of knowledge about training and business. I've only been following for a short time but Cori made a big impression and I have learned a lot from her already. 

ON THE MENTAL GAME

LEIGH PEELE 

Leigh is a writer, researcher and personal trainer. I love her You Need to Hear This Podcast. While she is extremely knowledgable on weight lifting and nutrition, she talks a lot about the psychological side of health and fitness on her Podcast. I'm always interested in hearing her opinions on hot topics because he responses are always based on science and research. I can count on her to be rational and sensible, something that Is not always easy to find in this industry. 

AMBER ROGERS - GO KALEO

Amber shares a message of inclusion, body-acceptance and moderation. She was probably that first voice I heard many years ago teaching that moderation was something to strive for in this fitness world of extremes. She taught me to look at the fitness industry a little more critically. She also seems to be a voice for people struggling with eating disorders. Lately she has taken to a message of overcoming emotional abuse, which honestly has lost me a little since this isn't something that I personally dealt with, but still is a positive message for the people who need to hear it. 

JAMES FELL - BODY FOR WIFE

I am not sure "on the mental game" is the right category for James Fell. I am not sure he fits into any category. Maybe with James, I use the words "voice of reason" a little loosely. I like him because he is hilarious and he has seemed to have made a career out of calling out the bull shit in this industry. If you are offended by strong language or don't appreciate an in-your-face approach to fitness truth, he may not be the guy for you. On the other hand, if you like to laugh and need a little help wading through the misinformation, he may be your new best friend. He tells the hard truth about all the hot topics (and makes some people very angry along the way, he is worth to follow just for the comments). 

Over the years I learned to tune out the many confusing voices of fitness and tune into a few key people that that have proven to operate on knowledge, science, compassion and truth. While I can't say they aren't selling anything, because they all make their living in the fitness industry selling courses, books, training, memberships, etc. I can trust that they aren't selling lies or misinformation.

Who are your fitness voices of reason? Did I miss anyone? 

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Coach Lea

I am a NASM personal trainer and RRCA adult distance running coach that specializes in strength training for runners. I offer in-person training in the Shredshed, online training and Fit to Run bootcamps. If you are interested in a more in-depth running or strength training plan, please contact me. Have questions? I'd love to help. 

While I am a certified personal trainer, I am not your personal trainer. Since I don't know your exercise abilities, injury background or medical history, please see your doctor before beginning any new exercise program. This is an opinion blog. No information in this blog is intended to be taken as medical advice or prescription. Please see your doctor and/or registered dietitian for any health concerns.