Are rest weeks necessary?

[Wronka]

plain and simple. is a rest week every now and then necessary when doing a heavy lifting bulk

[VIsland]

plain and simple. is a rest week every now and then necessary when doing a heavy lifting bulk

Totally one hundred percent depends on the fitness and conditioning of the athlete. At the high levels some guys have incredible means of recovery and they virually are good to go next day. Others benefit tremendously from the rest and come back better and stronger than ever. There really isn't a definitive answer to the question other than it depends on the individual.

[dnixon]

plain and simple. is a rest week every now and then necessary when doing a heavy lifting bulk

I took a de-load week last week and have done the first 2 days of a new routine this week (I train 3 days as heavy as I can go) and I have had lots of energy and increased slightly on around half of the lifts. I'd say go for it. I had a total week off too, not even cardio.

[ygbodybuilder10]

i would say yes, gives ur body a chance to rest, let a minor injury heal, and get things done that you couldnt before

[angelofangle]

I say yes...but it's really up to you. Depends on how you do it, you can slide by w/o having one. Like with my OLifting coach, when he schedules "rest week" for us it usually a deload where we just lift 50% or something really light rather than a complete rest.

[TheKoiCarp]

Minor niggling injuries are the indication for me to take a week off and recover, so i guess that is my body telling me they are essential.

[GuyJin]

It all depends on how you feel. I don't like to lay off and only do so when I'm sick i.e. bad cold/bronchitis and even then, I feel sort of bad for not doing anything. But in my case, it's really better to let my body rest up. Whether you decide to do a deload or rest up entirely depends on how long you've been pushing it in the gym, if you have any minor aches that won't go away--stuff like that. Only you know your body so listen to it and make your choice.

[Atheimetal]

Instead of rest weeks I would from time to time have weeks where I'd lower the volume and do different exercises, focused a bit more on isometric an eccentric contraction rather than the traditional 'focus on pushing heavy weight'... instead of taking a week off (unless you need it for above reasons.. injuries.. complete fatigue.. etc) just try taking a week where you do something totally different than you'd usually do.

(also - my primary lifts always shot up after weeks where I did that)

[DJAuto]

If volume and intensity are at proper level, than rest weeks are essential. 4-5 at minimum evenly spaced throughout the year is a good benchmark to follow.