If you have been doing Crossfit for sometime, or if you are somewhat new to True Core you can relate to the fact that you see similar faces within our community from day to day. You love the workouts because of the intensity and look forward to being a part of the classes. However, sometimes we forget that as good as working out is for us mentally and physically, we must also be sure to program in rest and recovery. Simply put, rest is our method to recover our bodies and for our muscles to repair and grow. So here comes the questions
- 1. How many days should we rest?
- 2. When should these days be?
Traditionally for Crossfit, crossfit.com programmed a 3 days on and 1 day off. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday would be active training, and then Thursday off (repeat the pattern). However, at True Core we program a 7 day cycle so how can you approach this? Find a cycle that works for you. Many people do Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday active training, and then Thursday off, Friday and Saturday train, with Sunday off. With this approach you give your body the opportunity to rest and also get in a routine. I have also heard some members who like to come in Monday-Friday and take the weekend off (5 on and 2 off). This may work for some, but what must be monitored is how that member is responding to the training. On the 4th and 5th day in a row, are they still feeling strong and are they still able to hit the conditioning portions of the workouts hard and keep the intensity that we are looking for in order to gain results?
Now I bring to you everyone's favorite word - mobility. If your schedule for example does not allow you to do the 3 on and 1 off approach why not take the 4th day to mobilize? You will find through speaking with the coaching staff that mobility and rest is equally as important as the functional fitness of class. Without these two components we would not be able to make progress in our training. A second option would be a flush. This is a workout designed for someone to cycle through movements at a low intensity to flush any muscle soreness out and give the body the opportunity to recover.
Personally, my week has two rest days. One day is complete rest and one to flush/mobilize. This allows me to give my body the best opportunity to perform and recover. My flush/mobilize day does not always have structure (I am no training saint). On that day I may mix it up between hiking, a slow bike, a recovery run, yoga and always meditation.
As always we are unique and when you rest and recover will be individualized. However with the coaches at True Core we are always happy to guide you to getting your own best approach. If you wish to schedule an athlete check in to discuss this please email joanna@truecorecoaching.com.
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