When it comes to exercise and fitness routines, rest days are just as important as workout days. Taking regular rest allows your body to recover from exercise and helps prevent overtraining, burnout and injuries. But how many rest days should you aim for each week? Here is a detailed look at expert recommendations for rest days per week based on your fitness level and goals.
Quick Answer
For most people exercising 3-5 times per week, 1-2 rest days per week is ideal. More frequent exercisers or elite athletes may benefit from additional rest days. Here are general guidelines:
- Exercising 3 days per week: 2 rest days per week
- Exercising 4 days per week: 2-3 rest days per week
- Exercising 5 days per week: 2 rest days per week
- Exercising 6 days per week: 1-2 rest days per week
- Professional athletes: 1+ rest day per week, depending on sport and training load
Your optimal number of rest days depends on factors like your fitness level, exercise programming, lifestyle and individual recovery needs. Adjust your schedule to allow for enough recovery between workouts.
Benefits of Rest Days
Here are some of the key benefits of taking regular rest days:
- Muscle repair and growth: Exercise causes small tears in muscle fibers. Rest days allow time for tissue repair and muscle protein synthesis which stimulates growth.
- Energy restoration: Exercise drains glycogen energy stores. Rest and proper nutrition helps replenish glycogen to power future workouts.
- Reduced risk of injury: Overuse can lead to strained muscles, stress fractures and joint pain. Rest allows the body to fully recover between exercise sessions.
- Improved performance: Recovery days help maintain strength and endurance. Without rest, performance declines as fatigue accumulates.
- Prevention of burnout: Rest provides a mental break and allows enthusiasm for exercise to be maintained over the long-term.
Factors That Determine Optimal Rest Days
Several key factors help determine your ideal number of rest days each week:
Exercise Frequency
Your weekly exercise frequency directly impacts rest needs:
- Less frequent exercise (1-3 days per week) requires fewer rest days.
- Very frequent exercise (6-7 days per week) requires more rest days.
- For most regular exercisers, aim for 1-2 rest days per week.
Training Intensity and Volume
High training loads require additional recovery:
- Intense exercise like heavy weightlifting requires more rest than lower intensity activities.
- High training volume and long workout duration increase rest needs.
- Athletes may take 1-3 rest days following intense competition or heavy training loads.
Type of Exercise
Some sports require more rest than others:
- High-impact activities like running increase injury risk if overdone, requiring extra rest.
- Sports requiring skills practice (tennis, golf) may benefit from a light rest day instead of complete rest.
- Cross training different muscle groups on consecutive days allows for adequate rest of specific muscles.
Fitness Level
Your training experience impacts recovery needs:
- Beginners recover more slowly and need more rest days when starting a workout program.
- Well-trained athletes can train more frequently with fewer rest days.
- Over time, recovery ability improves allowing for condensed training schedules.
Age
Older adults need more recovery time:
- Masters athletes (>35 years old) benefit from additional rest to recover between workouts.
- For older beginners, starting with 2-3 rest days per week is recommended.
- Light active recovery days may be used to increase exercise frequency for older athletes.
Outside Life Demands
Stresses beyond exercise impact rest needs:
- High job demands, poor sleep, travel and life stresses increase recovery requirements.
- Athletes may take 1-2 extra rest days during high stress periods.
- Schedule exercise and rest days wisely during busy life periods.
Injuries and Health Issues
Ongoing injuries or health problems increase rest needs:
- Extra rest days may be required when recovering from an injury.
- Illnesses like cold or flu require avoiding exercise until symptoms resolve.
- Those with chronic conditions may need to schedule frequent rest days.
How to Schedule Rest Days
Types of Rest Days
There are a few types of rest to incorporate into your weekly schedule:
- Total rest: Taking a day completely off from exercise allowing full recovery.
- Active recovery: Light exercise like walking, yoga or easy swimming to aid recovery without overexerting.
- Crosstraining: Doing an alternative activity working different muscles like cycling after running.
- Reduced intensity: Cutting training volume and intensity by 30-50% to allow muscles to recover.
General Scheduling Guidelines
Here are some evidence-based tips for scheduling rest days throughout your workout week:
- Avoid exercising intensively on consecutive days to allow muscles adequate recovery time.
- Schedule at least one total rest day per week for full recovery.
- Use active recovery or crosstraining days to break up intensive training days.
- Take 1-2 full rest days after high-intensity interval training or heavy resistance training sessions.
- Evenly distribute rest days throughout the week instead of consecutive days when possible.
Listening to Your Body
Adjust your rest day schedule based on individual recovery needs:
- Take extra rest when feeling overly fatigued, sore or drained.
- Decrease weekly training if chronically fatigued and add extra recovery days.
- Increase rest days during periods of high life stress or after competition.
- If injured, modify activity to avoid aggravating the injury or take complete rest.
Signs You Need More Rest Days
Watch for these signs indicating a need for more regular rest in your workout schedule:
- Persistent muscle soreness
- Lack of energy during workouts
- Decreased motivation to exercise
- Declining athletic performance
- Disturbed sleep patterns
- Increased irritability and moodiness
- Elevated resting heart rate
- Frequent illnesses or infections
- Inability to complete workouts or average pace/weight
If experiencing these symptoms chronically, add 1-2 extra rest days per week and monitor if symptoms resolve. Persistent fatigue, continuing declines in performance or constant soreness may indicate overtraining, requiring a more extended rest period.
Sample Weekly Rest Day Schedules
Here are examples of ideal rest day schedules for different training frequencies:
Exercising 3 Days Per Week
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise | Rest | Exercise | Rest | Exercise | Rest | Rest |
Exercising 5 Days Per Week
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise | Exercise | Exercise | Exercise | Exercise | Rest | Rest |
Exercising 6 Days Per Week
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exercise | Exercise | Exercise | Exercise | Exercise | Exercise | Rest |
Customize your own schedule based on training frequency and make sure to listen to your body’s need for recovery days. Taking adequate rest is critical for avoiding burnout, overtraining and injury.
Conclusion
Determining your optimal number of rest days per week depends on many factors including your exercise frequency, training intensity, type of activity, fitness level, age and other life demands. Most regular exercisers benefit from 1-2 rest days per week to allow their body to recover and adapt to training. Increase rest days during periods of high stress, when feeling overly fatigued, or recovering from an illness or injury. Scheduling a proper balance of exercise and rest enhances fitness development, prevents burnout and reduces injury risk. Listen to your body and adjust your weekly workout schedule to include the rest days that you need.