2501: Why You Shouldn't Do Cardio Every Day by Rachel Trotta on Achieving Fitness Goals

[00:00:00] Hey, I have a secret. Uh huh. I use secret whole body deodorant because more than just my armpit stink.

[00:00:06] Can I use it with my braw rubs under my...

[00:00:09] Oh yeah. And what about down there?

[00:00:12] You know, my totally four out of five gynecologists would recommend it.

[00:00:16] So I tried it and now I get 72 hours of freshness from my pits to my...

[00:00:22] Oop. I love that it's a spray.

[00:00:24] Me too. And it comes in sticks and creams too.

[00:00:27] Go get your secret whole body deodorant.

[00:00:30] Out!

[00:00:32] Those uncomfortable things we do for beauty.

[00:00:35] Oof. Ouch.

[00:00:37] And when it comes to wider teeth, same story.

[00:00:40] Until now, enjoy Winsfree whitening with new Sensitifying Clinical White.

[00:00:46] You'll get clinically proven whitening technology in an enamel safe formula.

[00:00:50] For two shades, wider teeth and 24-7 sensitivity protection.

[00:00:55] Sensitifying Clinical White, a wider smile without the Wins.

[00:01:00] This is Optimal Health Daily Episode 25-01

[00:01:04] while you shouldn't do cardio every day by Rachel Trata of RachelTrata.com

[00:01:09] and I'm your host and narrator Dr. Neal.

[00:01:12] Happy Saturday and welcome back to another weekend edition of Optimal Health Daily.

[00:01:16] This is where I read to you from some of the best health and fitness blogs on the web

[00:01:20] and always with my commentary at the end.

[00:01:23] And with that, let's get right to the post as we optimize your life.

[00:01:31] While you shouldn't do cardio every day by Rachel Trata of RachelTrata.com

[00:01:38] The importance of rest and recovery days.

[00:01:41] Last year I trained a highly active young professional who had the goal

[00:01:46] of being at competitor level muscle mass and body fat percentage.

[00:01:51] His commitment to attaining a ripped physique was realistic at his current level of fitness

[00:01:56] and he arrived at every session with a fantastic can-do attitude.

[00:02:00] However, as months of training went on, he did not make significant gains either in muscle mass,

[00:02:06] in fat loss or in his performance.

[00:02:09] He maintained his healthy weight but still carried that small baffling margin of fat

[00:02:15] that is maddening to people who want to lean out.

[00:02:18] Then I began to notice that every time I arrived at his apartment gym for our training sessions

[00:02:24] he was warming up on the elliptical.

[00:02:27] It was so consistent that one day I casually asked him,

[00:02:30] you're not doing the elliptical every day are you?

[00:02:33] As it turned out, he wasn't just warming up.

[00:02:36] He was banging out 30-60 minutes of cardio every single day on top of our training sessions.

[00:02:43] If you take rest days, I said conversationaly,

[00:02:46] it will give your body a chance to catch up with itself and you will make more progress.

[00:02:51] Otherwise your body is just adapting and you'll probably lose muscle.

[00:02:55] His half-joking reply revealed why he was not making progress.

[00:03:00] Rest days are for the week.

[00:03:02] Rest days are for the wise.

[00:03:05] Over training, especially doing cardio every day, is more than a mistake.

[00:03:10] It is a mindset.

[00:03:12] It is a ritualistic death grip on calorie burn,

[00:03:15] motivated by fear of weight gain that blocks people from their goals

[00:03:19] by allowing the body to adapt to non-stop training.

[00:03:23] You need rest days because your body learns how much energy it needs

[00:03:27] to expend for your lifestyle and it adapts through efficiency.

[00:03:31] You need challenge, not efficiency.

[00:03:34] In fact, the best way to provide metabolic challenge for your body

[00:03:38] is to vary your workouts and to give yourself plenty of rest and recovery time.

[00:03:43] So here are my top 10 tips for maximizing your cardio work.

[00:03:48] Tip number one, do something fun and easy on rest days.

[00:03:52] When I advocate rest, I'm not saying you should spend the day being a couch potato.

[00:03:57] Instead, keep everything moving by taking long walks or doing gentle yoga.

[00:04:02] However, avoid formal heart pumping exercise, even jogging or biking.

[00:04:07] Tip number two, limit your rest days to three per week.

[00:04:12] In other words, taking rest days isn't a license to exercise once a week.

[00:04:17] It just means that you're peppering your exercise days which should be quite intense

[00:04:22] with recovery days in between.

[00:04:24] One to three days per week is sufficient.

[00:04:27] Tip number three, shorten but intensify your workouts.

[00:04:32] You don't get extra points for long sessions.

[00:04:35] Focus on getting 20 or 30 minute difficult high intensity interval workouts

[00:04:40] into your schedule three to five times a week, mixing up weight training, cardio and muscle areas.

[00:04:47] Tip number four, eat fewer carbohydrates on rest days.

[00:04:51] Notice I didn't say no carbohydrates.

[00:04:54] You will still need energy for going about the business of your day

[00:04:58] but not as much as if you were going to hit the gym.

[00:05:01] Tip number five, never exercise sore muscle areas.

[00:05:06] If you are sore, that is your body's message to take it easy.

[00:05:10] If your legs are still stiff but you've already taken a rest day, don't run.

[00:05:14] Take a day to work on your arms, chest or core.

[00:05:18] Tip number six, foam roll to help speed recovery.

[00:05:22] Using a foam roller helps to increase circulation, relax chronically tighten muscles

[00:05:28] and improve flexibility.

[00:05:30] Foam rolling is a great activity to do before stretching on rest days,

[00:05:34] and it will help ease soreness, especially in the glutes.

[00:05:37] Resting is not for the week, remember?

[00:05:41] Tip number seven, shift your habits so that you are more active overall without formal exercise.

[00:05:47] If you have to kill it at the gym every single day to feel active,

[00:05:51] then you need to incorporate more on your feet movement throughout the day.

[00:05:55] An hour of intense exercise doesn't compensate for eight or nine hours of sitting.

[00:06:00] Tip number eight, get your sleep along with other healthy habits.

[00:06:05] Sleep is an important component of recovery and having the same routine every night

[00:06:10] as well as the same waking time every morning helps with restorative rest.

[00:06:15] Decrease screen time in the evening and make your bedroom a place of peace and renewal.

[00:06:20] Tip number nine, hydrate well.

[00:06:23] Your body naturally detoxifies when it is adequately hydrated,

[00:06:28] drink plenty of water on rest days as well as on exercise days

[00:06:32] and soreness may heal more quickly.

[00:06:35] And most importantly, tip number ten, trust your body and trust the process.

[00:06:41] Over training, especially doing too much cardio and dieting come from a place of fear.

[00:06:47] Rest comes from a place of trust.

[00:06:50] Your body is not an enemy that must be punished into submission through exercise.

[00:06:55] It is a partner on your journey and it will work with you when its needs are met.

[00:07:00] Tip number ten, hydrate well.

[00:07:04] You just listen to the post titled,

[00:07:06] What You Shouldn't Do cardio every day by Rachel Trata of RachelTrata.com

[00:07:11] I'll be right back with my commentary.

[00:07:13] When you're hiring, it feels amazing to finally close out a job search

[00:07:17] but what if you could get rid of the search and just match?

[00:07:20] You can, with indeed.

[00:07:22] Indeed is your matching and hiring platform with over 350 million global monthly visitors

[00:07:28] and a matching engine that helps you find quality candidates fast.

[00:07:33] Ditch the busy work.

[00:07:35] Use indeed for scheduling, screening and messaging.

[00:07:38] 93% of employers agree,

[00:07:40] indeed delivers the highest quality matches compared to other job sites.

[00:07:44] One of the things I love about indeed is that it filters out incompatible applicants.

[00:07:49] So, when you're hiring, the process is much faster

[00:07:52] and you only have to consider applicants that are already likely to be a great fit.

[00:07:57] And listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsor job credit

[00:08:01] to get your jobs more visibility at indeed.com slash health.

[00:08:07] Just go to indeed.com slash health right now

[00:08:11] and support our show by saying you heard about indeed on this podcast.

[00:08:16] Indeed.com slash health terms and conditions apply.

[00:08:20] Need to hire? You need indeed.

[00:08:42] With delicious options available without the effort, find hundreds of Easter deals and delights now at Whole Foods Market.

[00:08:48] Dr. Neal here for my commentary.

[00:08:50] Rest to lose weight.

[00:08:52] Rest to gain muscle.

[00:08:54] It sounds like the exact opposite of what we should be doing right?

[00:08:58] But Rachel's explanation of why this is so important for our fitness goals was perfect.

[00:09:03] It's not about being a couch potato.

[00:09:06] It's not about giving yourself so much rest that you will lose some of the progress you've made.

[00:09:11] Instead, it's about supporting your growth.

[00:09:14] It may mean mixing up your routine somehow, even if that means performing less intense exercises, or, as Rachel mentioned,

[00:09:21] being a bit better about sitting less and getting in more steps throughout the day.

[00:09:26] But be honest with yourself.

[00:09:28] I know it can be easy to convince ourselves that we deserve a rest day,

[00:09:32] even when we haven't participated in structured activity for over three days.

[00:09:37] So yes, truly listen to your body, but make sure that its messages aren't getting lost in translation along the way.

[00:09:44] Alright, that does it for today. Thank you so much for listening.

[00:09:48] I'll see you back here on Tomorrow's show where you're optimal life awaits.