Having a Rest....

[athletic]

I can't remember the last time I took some time off from training and allowed my body to recover - I mean really recover.

On average I roll 4 times a week with my 'days-off' consisting of strength/conditioning work and cardio.

I was definitely starting to see signs of overtraining and had a host of niggling injuries that just wouldn't go away.

It

 

[method115]

Your lucky my sleep schedule is so hectic that I over train if I try to go to class more then 3 days a week easily. If I just went to class I would be alright but the training I do outside of class plus class really takes it's toll.

 

[randomg1t]

i used to do crazy training, every day during the week, a morning session every now and then and something light on saturdays. and this was mma, we were doing ridiculous conditioning and shit.

the problem was our fighters had fights scheduled in a way we just couldn't catch a break. there was always someone preparing for something. i remember in april after some big event they were on, i was so burned out i just stopped sparring. a guy had another fight and needed someone to punch i just told him i couldn't do it anymore. i literally woke up in pain every day after a night i couldn't sleep much anyway.

intense training burns you out hard.

since then i haven't boxed at all, been doing only jiujitsu. the classes are far less intense, 30min warmup, 30min technique, 30min sparring. it feels like vacation, and i love it.

i think loads of training is alright, as long as you do it smart. if you're pushing your body to the limit twice a day, leaving every session exhausted... well let's just say you won't last long. the injuries add up and your will to train just slowly disappears. training every day lightly is no problem though. i think i could train 7 days a week, provided the only intense part of training consists of like 20-30min a day.

 

[PW212]

For me unfortunately, my rest always comes by way of injury from overtraining. I just cant stand to take days off, and when i do decide to take time off i get mad at myself for not going to train. Just stubborn i suppose.

 

[athletic]

Yeah, I think the problem stems from the supplementary training I do. Its just not possible for me to get to the class eveyday so I do other activities to help. Plus, I genuinely enjoy running, kettelbell training and yoga so I try to dedicate some time to it.

That said I guess I'm fortunate to a flexible schedule. I'm director of a boutique finance company so I have a degree freedom when it comes to organising my week, if I want to train heavily I can always work from home, though ironically this 'freedom' is part of the problem - it gives me time to train hence the overtraining.

 

[athletic]

For me unfortunately, my rest always comes by way of injury from overtraining. I just cant stand to take days off, and when i do decide to take time off i get mad at myself for not going to train. Just stubborn i suppose.

I've always had this problem, i.e. thinking that not training means I'm missing out on something vital to my development. But sometimes taking a break allows your body to absorb to the gains you've made but also your mind (or subconcious as some would say) to really digest the training you've been undertaking.

I have yet to stick to my plan of building in more rest time as I've only just started, but commensense tells me this is the way to go.

 

[PW212]

I've always had this problem, i.e. thinking that not training means I'm missing out on something vital to my development. But sometimes taking a break allows your body to absorb to the gains you've made but also your mind (or subconcious as some would say) to really digest the training you've been undertaking.

I have yet to stick to my plan of building in more rest time as I've only just started, but commensense tells me this is the way to go.

As long as i've been training there's always been some type of injury that i've had to deal with. If its not one thing its another with regards to injuries and i cant remember the last time i ever truly felt 100%. Tape, ibuprofen, and liniment oil, have been apart of my daily routine for years. One of the hardest parts for me when i do rest is trying to get back into it after some time off. I loathe the first couple training when im getting back into the gist of things.

 

[athletic]

i used to do crazy training, every day during the week, a morning session every now and then and something light on saturdays. and this was mma, we were doing ridiculous conditioning and shit.

the problem was our fighters had fights scheduled in a way we just couldn't catch a break. there was always someone preparing for something. i remember in april after some big event they were on, i was so burned out i just stopped sparring. a guy had another fight and needed someone to punch i just told him i couldn't do it anymore. i literally woke up in pain every day after a night i couldn't sleep much anyway.

intense training burns you out hard.

since then i haven't boxed at all, been doing only jiujitsu. the classes are far less intense, 30min warmup, 30min technique, 30min sparring. it feels like vacation, and i love it.

i think loads of training is alright, as long as you do it smart. if you're pushing your body to the limit twice a day, leaving every session exhausted... well let's just say you won't last long. the injuries add up and your will to train just slowly disappears. training every day lightly is no problem though. i think i could train 7 days a week, provided the only intense part of training consists of like 20-30min a day.

Agreed, varying the intensity prolongs your ability to train, but I've found that even doing bjj everyday necessitates a rest now and again - but then I'm an old man at 31 :icon_cry2

 

[Belatucadros]

Right now:

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: Judo
Tuesday, Thursday. Saturday: Jiu Jitsu

the sunday->monday break is always nice as a bit of a breather, but I never feel it's enough. My sleep schedule is so terrible that things are starting to weigh on me....I've recently (last night, haha!) started trying to get to bed earlier, will see how much of a difference it makes.

 

[ShanghaiBJJ]

TS, you need to have at least one FULL day of doing absolutely nothing.

Active recovery (yoga, swimming, ect..) is good, but you also need a full day of rest once per week. Even the professional fighters do that and they sleep and eat way more than you and don't have a day job.

What makes you think you know better then them?

Just accept that resting is actually a PART of training, because you give your muscles time to grow and your brain time to digest, which is important, especially in BJJ.

Plu syou will gain energy and train better each week, if you adhere to the rest day idea.

 

[athletic]

TS, you need to have at least one FULL day of doing absolutely nothing.

Active recovery (yoga, swimming, ect..) is good, but you also need a full day of rest once per week. Even the professional fighters do that and they sleep and eat way more than you and don't have a day job.

What makes you think you know better then them?

Just accept that resting is actually a PART of training, because you give your muscles time to grow and your brain time to digest, which is important, especially in BJJ.

Plu syou will gain energy and train better each week, if you adhere to the rest day idea.

Yep, I agree with everything you say.

My mistake was using my active-rest days as rest days, which just isn't enough. Seeing actual rest days as part of training is a great way to view things, particularly for those of us who have a borderline obsessive compulsion to train.

 

[nikko1]

I normally train 2-3 times a week at 1.5 hours and on my off days from class i spend 1.5 hours at the gym working on Cardio and strength training followed by the steam room sauna to relax the muscles. My breaks are usually on the weekends in which I just relax. I noticed that when I took a week off recently from BJJ and just did light workouts at the gym I found that the nice week long break away from BJJ helped me recover a bit because I mostly focused on light jogs, yoga, and light weight workouts followed by the steam room. BJJ for me in training is always intense especially in the sparring part. So when I took off I was relaxed but sorta anxious to get back on the mats. I was worried that because I took off that I might have forgotten a couple of things, but instead it was the opposite. I picked up on the positional sparring and techniques a lot easier and I flowed a lot smoother then I usually do.

 

[stile0]

I should probably take a break myself. I just got off a week of being sick and now my knee is bothering me. But with competitions a month away its hard to stay off the mat.