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Don’t Forget to Rest

One of the key elements to gaining quality muscle size is often overlooked.

Quite often people who train forget the importance of rest and recuperation; and continue to train more than 4 days per week.

People are always telling me, "it's okay to train more than 4 time per week because I am only training one body part per workout". While it's great that you don't train your body twice in one week; another part of your body which is working out is your Nervous System.

Your Nervous System, each workout is telling your muscles to contract and to squeeze. If your working out most days of the week, your Nervous System doesn’t get a chance to rest; this will lead to overtraining. (Please read the topic of Overtraining for signs of overtraining) If your body is overtrained you will not perform at your best and often your progress is backwards.

So how many days per week should I train?

I currently train 2 on, 1 off; 2 on, 2 off I have found good results with that style of training. A friend of mine trains 1 on, 1 off and has good results with that. Of course, everybody will react differently with different styles of training; you just have to find what suits you. Also aim for a minimum of 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep per night.

Nutrition is another big part which will help you body recover and avoid overtraining. This includes a good quality protein such as WPI or WPC and some Glutamine is essential in aiding in recovery. Try this style of training for at least 2 months and see how you go.

Brown, G. BSC