After the aerobics class yesterday I asked the instructor about this knee pain I have been having. We ran through what I have been doing and her thought was that I either did something out of alignment on the machines or I need a rest. She asked what my schedule has been and got a bit wide eyed and said I need to rest.
So today, I rest. I think that the combination of not seeing the scale going down and feeling like it was time to up my work out efforts got me a little, shall we say, over eager?
I will also admit that is is the influence of a TV show I have never actually watched. The Biggest Loser. I don't know the diet, I don't know the exercise or what all else they do - just that they manage to lose LOT'S of weight in a few months. So, of course, I want to do that.
I also read that the process of building muscle - which we know burns more calories, which is a good thing - requires time to replace the broken down proteins and energy stores. If muscles are not given enough time to recover, they become leaner, which means the metabolism is actually lowered. So this can lead to those dreaded weight loss plateaus that need more exercise or fewer calories to shake things up.
So - lesson learned. Mix things up. Take time to rest after a hard work out. Keep the quality protein in the daily food intake. Drink lots of water and get 8 hours of sleep. All of these things contribute to maximum recovery and metabolism.
2 comments:
Knowing when to rest is important. When my knee bothers me, I'll walk less and bike and swim more.
What happens on "The Biggest Loser" is not what you should follow. I read an article several weeks ago that talked about the extremely unhealthy lengths the contestants go to in order to lose weight rapidly. 1-2 lbs./week is more normal and a lot healthier.
This is the first season I have watched the show. My husband and I are both inspired to workout longer and harder now... thinking if those out of shape and overweight people can work out all day long, surely we can do more ourselves!
I knew you were supposed to rest muscles but did not realize they become leaner if you don't!
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