Let's take a moment and define this idea of a rest day. First of all #norestdays is absurd! I believe that most people do not know how to determine what a rest day actually looks like. A rest day is not relocating from the bed to the couch, ordering take out or making a frozen meal in the microwave. I would refer to that as a SICK DAY! If you cannot or will not perform regular household activities, if you are unable to prepare a proper meal for yourself or even take the dog for a walk, you must be SICK. Declaring that this is what you have accomplished in a day is not taking a rest day. By the way... watching tv is NOT an activity! I repeat, watching tv is NOT an activity. While you sit and contemplate what you might want to mindlessly watch on youtube think for a minute what you have accomplished today and don't just assume you deserve to sit and do nothing for hours upon end... And don't call Domino's for delivery!
Let's step back in time for a bit to better determine what a rest day is. Prior to modern (wo)man, humans were required to perform daily tasks that were necessary for survival. Some of these tasks might include hunt/gather and prepare meals for yourself, your family or even a village, tend to gardens and/or crops and care for farm animals, etc... Get where I'm going? When you were a kid you didn't tell your friends that you had to stay inside and sit because yesterday was a very strenuous play day. You went outside and climbed a tree or rode your bike. You didn't calculate how many miles you rode or calories you burned. The thought of being tired never even crossed your mind. You rode until your parents made you come home.
So here's my thoughts... a rest day starts with mindfully choosing to not workout or train your body the way would on a regular scheduled workout/training day. I believe this includes training days that are at your maximum effort or even an 80% effort day. A rest day is an active recovery day. This means doing activities that utilize your body in the way it was meant to be used, whilst enjoying whatever it is that you happen to be doing. Isn't this the point behind training for most of us anyway? (I'm not including the pro athlete's here) So take a rest day and go out and play like a kid. Run with your dog in the woods, go for a hike and even bring a picnic. Or try a new activity like climbing or sailing, go snowboarding or skiing, take a swim, or stay in and stretch or foam roll, take care of some house hold chores.
Either way, the choice is your but sitting on the couch is counter productive to what you are trying to accomplish.
http://board.crossfit.com/showthread.php?t=48370
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