Sometimes, gathering the motivation to work out is a challenge. But other times, when we have really decided to achieve a goal or when we feel like we have to make up for lost time, it is the other way around. In this case, we think that we “have to work out every day”. This is not very helpful, because rest is one of the most important parts when it comes to building muscle. We at Sterrenstof will show you more about this in this article, so you don’t have to feel guilty anymore when you are sitting at home on the couch.
Rest is necessary for muscle building
Your muscles get small tears during training, rest after training helps to heal those tears. If we do not let the muscles rest and put them under too much tension, this leads to serious health problems. What happens if you have not had sleep for more than 24 hours? You are sleepy, you feel weak, your concentration decreases and your performance decreases during exercise. This is what happens to your body when you train too much. Performance decreases because your body cannot recover optimally. So make sure you get enough rest if you want to promote your muscle building.
Overtraining a muscle increases the time it takes to recover. If you train 4-5 days a week and take 2-3 days of rest between your training sessions, your body has extra time to repair the damage caused by training. If you don't rest, your body never gets the chance to recover. This means you are essentially breaking down damaged muscle tissue, which is asking for trouble.
Take rest for optimal performance
If you 'overtrain' your muscles, your performance will decrease. This has a major impact on your motivation during exercise. Due to insufficient rest, the muscle loses the ability to grow, which is not optimal for muscle building. These negative changes in the body affect the motivation level of your athlete, resulting in you no longer feeling like training. This means that you no longer enjoy training, but that you 'have to do it'.
The best thing you can do to get your muscle building as optimal as possible is to get enough rest. Make sure you get enough sleep during the day (at least 8 hours) and take a few days off between workouts. By paying attention to this, your body can have all the energy it needs to recover. So you really don't have to feel guilty if you sit on the couch in the evening, the body also needs enough rest.