Do you have to force yourself to rest?

[NeilD]

I find I really have to force myself to have a rest day, Like today! - Had a really hard MMA sparring session last night including some horrible tabata fitness beforehand.. feeling pretty beat today but I have a rest day scheduled in today. But I really want to be out training lol

Dave Elliott, my coach has finally drilled it into my thick skull that I HAVE to rest if I want to improve... but still need to force myself (will probably still do something easy like grip strength - lol)

Anyone else like that? - Guess I love training.

[MikeyL]

depends on the week, if I really get the itch I will go and do some light stuff like swimming

[The Natural]

dude..ur body and performance will dicate to when u need a rest day..

im exactly like u and i take a rest when my head amnd performances tell me to...:D

[Duchman]

im always amazed by the ammount of people train on here..if peopel realy train that much they are hurting there own progress and will be burned out fast. rest is key even on vitamin S

[Alex Gold]

I have the exact opposite problem, I have to motivate myself to do the bare minimum. Luckily I know what I'm doing so can get good results off minimal training.

[NeilD]

lol lazy git... good point though ;)

[Smiler]

Hmm, its a problem I had when I sorted my diet out...eating healthily I was so full of beans it was unreal!

Even now I rarely have a day off training...

BUT!

I allow myself at least 24hours of no training to allow my smooth and cardiac muscles to repair.
I don't do the same thing all the time each session - variety of training helps put different demands on the body.
I periodise my training...two week's hard, one week easy (as a real basic breakdown)
For example this week:

Saturday: Rest, giving 'nutrition for endurance athletes', and 'psychology to win' seminars - training my mind lol!
Sunday AM: 8.5mile x-country run, sprinting hills, and speedwork on singletrack trails in bursts
Sunday PM: 4mile speed walk with 20kg vest
Monday AM: Power weights, clean and press, cable work
Monday LUNCH: 1hr no-gi grappling
Monday EVE: 1.5hours technical kickboxing
Monday EVE: 1hours kickboxing sparring
Tuesday AM:6.5mile x-country run (pace)
Tuesday PM: Boxing sparring (v v hard!)
Tuesday EVE: Judo 1.5hrs...

Tomorrow is an easier day, just 45minutes body box first thing and an hours grappling at lunch, before I'm back into three hard session thursday, and another three on friday.

Saturday I'll so my power weights workout and a long x-country run...

But then I've got an easy week, as I'm off to Lapland skiing and stuff! Yippee!

Duch - if you periodise right, build volume so your body gets used to it, get your nutrition and rest right, listen to your body - you can train that much...

Just some thoughts!

Smiler

[Nak-Muay]

YES!!! :( I train until my body stops me

[NeilD]

think thats the thai mentality in you mate? ;)

[James Saville]

i love resting
i love it when you cant hardly walk because you ache so much..then you do some more excecise..so your pretty much dead.

then i just like to not do anything for a couple of days unitl im healed.

[Nak-Muay]

Yeah man, I guess so :) I think I just bottomed out with my weight. I am 64kg and I think I ran out of fat to burn, haha. I just ate a load and took 2 days out and am fine this week. I love training right now though...

[KidKimura]

I seem to go through phases of wanting to train 7 days a week, then burning myself out and taking a week or two off, then feeling like a lazy barstard and starting over again!

Think maybe allowing myself to rest in the first place would be alot healthier!

[NeilD]

lol yeah thats probably not the greatest way to make overall improvements ;)

I'm now forced (on pain of a chinning lol) to take 2 days rest a week and it's making me improve so much cos I can work all that harder after the rest. I CAN work 7 days in a row but feel that doesnt work to well for me leading up to a fight with it being so intense.

Like Gary said though, it's all individual.

[Duchman]

Hmm, its a problem I had when I sorted my diet out...eating healthily I was so full of beans it was unreal!

Even now I rarely have a day off training...

BUT!

I allow myself at least 24hours of no training to allow my smooth and cardiac muscles to repair.
I don't do the same thing all the time each session - variety of training helps put different demands on the body.
I periodise my training...two week's hard, one week easy (as a real basic breakdown)
For example this week:

Saturday: Rest, giving 'nutrition for endurance athletes', and 'psychology to win' seminars - training my mind lol!
Sunday AM: 8.5mile x-country run, sprinting hills, and speedwork on singletrack trails in bursts
Sunday PM: 4mile speed walk with 20kg vest
Monday AM: Power weights, clean and press, cable work
Monday LUNCH: 1hr no-gi grappling
Monday EVE: 1.5hours technical kickboxing
Monday EVE: 1hours kickboxing sparring
Tuesday AM:6.5mile x-country run (pace)
Tuesday PM: Boxing sparring (v v hard!)
Tuesday EVE: Judo 1.5hrs...

Tomorrow is an easier day, just 45minutes body box first thing and an hours grappling at lunch, before I'm back into three hard session thursday, and another three on friday.

Saturday I'll so my power weights workout and a long x-country run...

But then I've got an easy week, as I'm off to Lapland skiing and stuff! Yippee!

Duch - if you periodise right, build volume so your body gets used to it, get your nutrition and rest right, listen to your body - you can train that much...

Just some thoughts!

Smiler

You having been in holland loads.. YOu know the intensity people smash each other in the legs and body in thai boxing.
Would you still the same way as you do now for mma if you where dutch based? not a question to steal your training routine.. dont even train thai anymore.. but i remember being in the kops/team aerts trainings and at milton 'felters club also.. and i dont see my selfs.. doing loads of running plus thai and wrestle being out being completly whiped out..

But i totalty agree about periodising.. very overlooked. But im always amazed but people who train bjj 5 times a week, plus thai and weights and wrestle and have a full time job :)

[Smiler]

Hi Duch, yeah, most people have no idea of the Dutch intensity!

Some of the work I do over here matches the intensity I went through in Holland. Incidentally, the thursday night carousel over at FFC was the hardest set of sessions I have ever been through...

Yesterday's boxing sparring with the British Army Team matched it for sure, as does my friday night sparring...

I would still train to the same levels now if I trained all the time in Holland. Although the training times would change, as the Dutch tend to train lunchtime and then evening. So I would probably end up doing conditioning myself first thing in the morning, then lunchtime grappling, evening kickboxing for example...

It took 5 years to build up to the intensity of work I'm doing now. Even then with carefull periodisation to ensure I don't overtrain. When I first went to Holland I would nearly die after just two days....

Smiler

[Duchman]

Cool thanks for the answer. The punches loads of times where not the trouble. But the smashing to the legs always drained me.. Maybe just block legkicks beter ;)

You still train in holland btw?

[Smiler]

Hi,

I've not been over there training properly for nearly a year, but only because my training partners have got their work rate up to recreate the intensity over here...

Kops gym and the legs lol, yeah, I know all about that!

Where's my wheelchair......?