Rest Between Workouts could be Critical for Muscle Building

If you are not taking a rest between workouts, every now and then, you may be missing out on some critical muscle building.

We have a term in DC training that refers to taking time off between workout blasts; it's called a Cruise.

Not a cruise as in "cruise ship"... I'm talking about full fledged resting.

When you consistently beat yourself up with grueling workouts over the course of a couple of months, your body may be crying out to you to give it a break. I know mine does.

Trust me, taking a break from weight training every 8 to 12 weeks will do your body good!

A week or so away from working out and regimented eating may be just what's needed to kick start some new growth.

If you've been following my journal, you know I just finished DC blasting for 10 weeks. Come week 11... I knew it was time for a break. One thing I made sure to do, was to take a rest from training BEFORE I became too beaten up; at that point it's too late.

Once I hit that point of near over training, getting rested up will take longer. Instead of getting fully rested up in 7 to 10 days it may end up taking 3 weeks to a month to get back on track.

That's why I listen to my body and take a break just when things start to get achy; which is about the same time I start to lose a little interest in training. At that point, I know I'm in need for a cruise.

I usually take between 10 to 14 days off of heavy training when I take a rest between workout blasts. I also drop 1 meal as per DC protocol and try to get some cardio in every morning to tighten things up a bit.

Sometimes I'll go into the gym and do a cruise workout. Basically I just do light pump sets around the 12 rep range mark and definitely nothing is done to failure.

Other times I'll stay out of the gym completely during a cruise. None of my cruises are exactly the same because my body changes with each new blast.

The whole point of taking a break from weight lifting is to allow my body to reset itself and heal up those little nagging injuries that may have occurred during heavy training. I find this is great both physically and mentally as heavy weight training can take it's toll on both.

I also stop taking creatine during this time to give my body a break.

Sometimes I get e-mails asking how long to rest between workouts. Unfortunately, I can't tell anyone that answer as you have to get to know your own body and decide when it is the right time to take a break from your workouts. Everyone is unique and has different rest requirements.

Some trainees are leery of staying out of the gym for a week or so because they are afraid they will lose muscle. The truth is, this is a psychological issue and not a physical one.

I have never lost any muscle mass by taking a week or two off of the gym. As a matter of fact I usually come back stronger and fuller looking.

It can be a daunting task at first to stay clear of the weights for a while, but just remember that there is more to life than weight lifting. Practice taking breaks and you may just find yourself enjoying it!

I like to use these gym breaks to spend more time with family and friends and maybe get to a project around the house that I've been neglecting.

Pointers I like to use when considering taking a break from working out:

• Get to know your body and listen to it. Take a break from weight training before you start to get over trained.
• If things start to get overly achy, your appetite stars to dwindle, you have trouble sleeping or you lose interest in working out... these may all be signs that you need a rest from the gym.
• Experiment with various lengths of time off from working out and see what best works for you.
• Try to get some cardio in to keep your sanity and to keep burning fat.

And remember to have some fun during your rest between workouts and enjoy yourself!