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How Many Recovery Days Are Really Necessary?

by | Sep 19, 2024 | News

How Many Recovery Days Are Really Necessary?

For athletes undertaking training blocks, there’s a critical question to maximise performance: how many recovery days do you need every week? The concept of rest days are prevalent throughout the fitness world, with many experts even stressing the importance of not overtraining and giving the body time to build muscle between sessions. 

But taking time “off” between training doesn’t have to mean doing nothing. In fact, a multifaceted approach to training and recovery can help yield the greatest benefit for athletes. 

In this guide, we uncover the truth behind muscle recovery, rest days, and how to optimise your workout for maximum gains and performance benefits. 

The Science of Muscle Recovery — How Muscle Grows Through Rest

Recovery helps you avoid injuries, muscle fatigue, and exercise burnout, but it also plays a key role in promoting muscle growth. Muscles grow during the repair phase, which takes place after you workout.

The microscopic tears you create in muscles as you train triggers a healing response, which in turn helps the muscles grow back stronger and more adept at doing their job. This is why, over time, you’re able to perform exercises faster and easier and increase your loads. 

Resting ultimately provides your muscles the opportunity to grow stronger, which improves your performance later. Without adequate rest, your body cannot regulate itself and restore a state of balance (homeostasis) after a workout, which induces physiological stress. 

The point of recovery is to give the body time to respond to physiological stress, which in turn gives you stronger muscles and a healthier body.

How Many Rest Days Do You Need? 

It depends on your training regime and training goals. One or two rest days per week should suffice for seasoned athletes who train regularly, but beginners will likely benefit from a day-on, day-off approach.

Having a recovery day between training would mean beginners have three days a week of rest. During that time, however, they can participate in what’s known as “active recovery.” Instead of not exercising at all on rest days, athletes can engage in a low-impact or low-intensity exercise, like walking or swimming, and avoid overworking their muscles. 

It’s important to remember that every athlete is different, and recovery schedules should be based on factors such as:

  • Your current fitness level 
  • Your training goals
  • The types of exercises you perform 

Working with a personal fitness trainer or coach can ultimately help you personalise your training schedule to set and obtain realistic training goals.

The Role of Nutritional Supplementation in Recovery

Many athletes are familiar with the quintessential post-workout protein shake. This helps muscles refuel by supplying amino acids — your body’s muscle building blocks. Supplementation in training focuses on using amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and electrolytes to promote greater muscle growth and faster recovery. 

Nutritional supplementation for athletes should be highly personalized to every individual’s needs and goals. The type of supplements you take will depend heavily on your health, any medications you’re taking, your fitness level, and what you want the supplements to help you achieve.

Some supplements provide immediate benefits, like cramp relief, while others are designed to promote long-term benefits, such as reduced inflammation, increased joint mobility, and energy maintenance. 

What type of supplements are best for muscle recovery? Some of the most popular include:

    • Protein powders: Protein supports muscle repair and helps reduce post-workout soreness. 
    • Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs): Essential amino acids (leucine, isoleucine, and valine) that help prevent muscle breakdown and promote muscle growth. 
  • Omega-3 fatty acids: Omega-3 fatty acids reduce inflammation and prevent joint pain.
  • Electrolytes: Electrolytes are essential minerals that help distribute energy to muscles, aiding in recovery and preventing cramps and fatigue. 

Integrating nutritional supplements before or after a workout can help you train more effectively by improving your muscles’ energy usage and preventing negative side-effects, like soreness.

Before incorporating any supplements into your training schedule, it’s best to consult with your doctor if you have any underlying medical conditions or take prescription medications. They can help you set guidelines, screen products, and ensure that you only take supplements that are safe for you.

How to Engage in Active Muscle Recovery 

After your training session, the thought of sitting on the couch the next day can be difficult for many athletes. You may be tempted to just push through any pain or keep working out when you feel like you can. But active recovery helps you strike a healthy balance between training your muscles and giving your body the rest it needs to recover from exercise.

Common strategies you can try include:

Swimming

Swimming is an excellent low-impact exercise. The natural buoyancy of water lightens pressure on your body, allowing you to workout with less strain on your joints and muscles. 

After a training session, some water aerobics can offer gentle stretching that promotes blood flow, which can reduce soreness and promote faster, more comprehensive muscle recovery. 

Sauna 

Heat from saunas help soothe muscles, promote circulation, and eliminate metabolic waste through perspiration. In addition, routine sauna sessions help reduce stress, improve cardiovascular health, and may help athletes improve endurance. 

Ice Plunges

An ice plunge, or cold water therapy, helps reduce soreness and muscle inflammation. The less inflamed muscles are, the faster they can recover. The cold water ranges from 10°C to 15°C (50°F to 59°F), and it can help prevent delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), accelerate recovery, and allow athletes to continue to train faster and achieve results sooner.

Cryotherapy 

In cryotherapy, the body is exposed to extremely cold temperatures (-110°C to -140°C (about -166°F to -220°F)) in specialised chambers or cryo devices. This controlled exposure helps reduce inflammation by constricting blood vessels; it also numbs nerve endings, which can reduce pain and soreness during the recovery period.

Tips for Muscle Recovery

Athletes can optimize their training programs by prioritizing rest days and using active recovery strategies. To increase your results, be sure to:

  • Personalise your training regime to your fitness level, abilities, and goals. 
  • Consult with a trainer or coach who can help you customise your strategy. 
  • Vary your training techniques to avoid muscle fatigue and burnout.
  • Listen to your body, respect its needs, and focus on gradual gains vs. rapid progress. 

The Bottom Line

Recovery days are important for any athlete, but the exact amount they need each week will vary depending on their fitness level and goals. Seasoned athletes can often be fine with one or two days while beginners will benefit from taking 24 hours off between training sessions.

For more training tips, read the Fixx Nutrition blog. 

Sources