Today I'm taking a much needed day off. Literally my everything hurts from the past 3 days and I'm thankful to have nothing but some light foam rolling on my agenda. I feel the need to tell you all about this because I feel that a lot of die hard fitness buffs don't appreciate the importance of a day off.
I know that some people think that no matter what, the more you do the more you're going to improve. This could'nt be further from the truth. Take it from a guy who's obsessive about fitness- if you try to go hard every day, you're going to go nowhere. Until the past year or so I always thought I could mentally will myself to always do more work and that it would just make me in better shape. I tried to simultaneously lift 5 days a week for powerlifting while in season for rowing and all it got me was a deadlift that was stalled at 395 from April until August.
It wasn't until I talked to some smart people that told me how much of a dumbass I was that I realized I was sabotaging my own training. I credit these people with drilling it into my head that progress is made during recovery. Now this doesn't mean you can lift 1 day a week and you'll make crazy gains but it means take 2 or 3 days a week to rest, eat, and do some active recovery work (foam rolling, stretching, light jogging) and you'll see progress in your lifts, in your physique, and in your mental state.
On that note, I'll leave you all with today's exercise of the day: Fire Hydrant Circles
Take the time to check out all of DeFranco's hip mobility drills. Believe me, your hips will thank you in a few years. I love these to get my miserable tight hips warmed up before squatting, deadlifting, or simply on a recovery day. So many people disregard mobility and its helping to short circuit their gains, but thats a story for another day. That's all for today guys, until next time. Stay pissed.
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