Whole new way of working out for me!

[EpicTortillas]

No more rest days;
Whenever I’m not doing weight training and cardio, I’m going to start doing calisthenics! 
I just got inspired try and do it and man its a killer. 

[Ozzie65]

Hi @EpicTortillas - Keep us posted on how it's going! For me personally, I feel my body needs a weekly rest day... But I'm probably older than you! Good luck!

[Hanne]

I just asked my dietician yesterday, if an occasional couch-potato-day would be a help in the effort to surprise the body so that the metabolism stay high.  She said the science is not there yet.  I keep my very active minutes (the red graph in the 30 day diagram) zigzagging.

[GisselleM]

I find it very interesting to not have rest days.  Do you have a daily goal? Personally, I try to get to my daily goal 6 days a week, 1 day a week (usually Mondays) I still try to reach my goal but I'm happy if I get 50%.  😄

[Hanne]

@GisselleM

I have found that it is easier for me to exercise every day than, say, 3 times a week. Doing it every single day turns off my negative inner dialogue/discussion of whether to exercise that day. It was a huge relief to just stop that inner dialogue. My goal is 10,000 steps a day, every single day. It is a goal, I forgive myself if I don't meet it, but it is not often I don't meet it. I don't allow myself to get dressed until I have taken an hour on the treadmill. Crazy rule right? But it works.

[TandemWalker]

I don't use rest days either @GisselleM.

If I happen not to have any activity burn one day, it's not because I'm resting but rather because of day-to-day life or health issues. Otherwise, I try to do somelthing every single day and avoid doing the same thing two days in a row. I cheat on the latter, as there are seasonal activities that I will inevitably be doing daily, at least for a time; but by and large, I try to vary my activities from day to day. So that pretty much elliminates the need for a rest day, as some activities vary between cardio and strength training, etc.

         TW         

[WendyB]

I dont take rest days either @GisselleM I try to make my goal daily.

But I do slow down on Sundays. I just do my morning walk and nothing else like I do the rest of the days.

[TandemWalker]

@WendyB - Ditto on slow days. What can I say, great minds think alike! 

No, kidding aside, if I do 30 miles on the bike one day, I might do weights (light weights, 10-15 lbs, the next, which is not as exhausting -- I take breaks and stretch between sets; and not meeting my step goal on those days definitely does not bother me one iota.

On a side note, I can't help but to notice your regular avatar metamorphoses. Is this a peacock fanning its plumes by any chance?

Cheers!

Hope this helps. Have a nice day.

         TW         

 Life is too short -- so don't miss out on having fun!

[WendyB]

No @TandemWalker Its a turkey for Thanskgiving  Santa will be coming soon 

Gooble Gooble 

[EpicTortillas]

@Ozzie65 Thanks for the luck! I'll tell you I've never been this sore or felt this great from weight lifting. I've managed to train a lot because I can a calisthenics workout anywhere anytime. I feel like its a great way to start my day and its always a challenge. 

@GisselleM no rest days are a good thing. There is no such thing as overtraining in any form. Now don't get me wrong. If some pain comes up in a joint or something like that yeah I'll rest it so that I don't hurt myself. I always believed I was alright, not that I was the strongest person in the world or the fastest. However; doing calisthenics has proven that I'm far from where I could be strength, endurance, and in overall fitness. As for a daily goal, I don't really have any daily ones. I have more weekly/monthly goals that I try to reach.

[GisselleM]

Wow! 😄 @WendyB @TandemWalker @Hanne I'm very impressed by your routines!  

@Hanne around how many steps do you walk in one hour? I'm sure it has a big impact in your daily activity, for me I can only be in the treadmill for about 20 - 30 minutes. 🙂

@EpicTortillas I agree with you 🙂 is not that bad to have a rest day huh?  I'm thinking that once I get some days off from school homework I'll have more time and I'll give it a try to the "no rest days - rule" :D.

Keep it up! 

[Hanne]

I can only do about 6000 steps an hour. I have tried speeding it up, but it ends in painfull knees which stops the daily routine. So to get to 10,000 steps, I have to walk for a very long time. My treadmill is always set to going uphill because that is okay for the knees, the speed is at 3.5 miles/hour. My ambition is to loose another 18 lbs and reach a "normal" BMI that I have not had since I was a child. I am curious to see if loosing that weight will allow me to move faster, so that I don't have to spend as many minutes every day. (I should say I am 57 and have some chronic issues in my knees: a torn ligament in my right knee and arthritis in both knees). Curiosity can be a driver for change

[TandemWalker]

Hi @Hanne. Losing the extra pounds will lighten the load on your body, thus you will have more energy;  and yes, you will likely be able to walk faster.

One would think that by walking faster, you will end up burning more calories, and perhaps you will. But there is a flip side to this: The lighter your weight, the less you burn because your body is working less, it is carrying a lighter load.

So, as you lose the pounds and improve your speed, energy and stamina, it may not be a bad idea to incorporate wrist weights in your workouts. You don't need anything too heavy, two or three pounds is on each wrist is more than ample; I would probably start with one pound and work up from there as you become more comfortable. That, combined with your increased speed, should more or less compensate for the reduced effort on account of your weight loss and help you keep your BMR in the fat burning zone.

Have a great day!

         TW         

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[Hanne]

Thank you @TandemWalker . Using hand weights to substitute for the lost weight makes a lot of sense. I am hoping to get to the point where I can run, but I am not sure that it will be possible with the knees I have.

[TandemWalker]

But you know @Hanne, running is not necessary and can even be detrimental. You get almost the same benefit with walking; and the faster you walk, the closer you get to a jogging equivalent, without the pounding on your feet, knees, back, etc. Should you decide to try it any way, I would highly recommend an interval scheme, starting slow with a 4 minute brisk walk followed by a 1 minute slow jog; and alternate like this for the duration of your workout. Once you feel comfortable, use the 1 minute jog segment to increase you speed a little. Fast forward a week to ten days, change the scheme to a three-minute brisk walk followed by a two-minute jog.... The idea is to slowly transition your body to jogging. Once you reach the 5/5, I would keep it at that. It's a lot better for your joints to alternate between walking/jogging than just jogging. The interval scheme allows your foot and leg joings and muscles to recover during the walk segments; and that's a good thing. That's also a good thing for losing weight, because the interval scheme will cause your heart rate to go through peaks and valleys, thus keeping your burning rate high.

TW

[Hanne]

Thank you very much TandemWalker. I have saved this info and will try it.

[prolango]

@EpicTortillas my rest day is 10,000 steps at a slower pace. Otherwise, I'm moving! I had been too sedentary for a while and never thought that I would get healthy again. Thanks to Fitbit, my life is back on the right track!