We all know working out and staying healthy takes a lot of time. A lot of time. So much time that fitness very easily becomes our primary hobby, and everything else we love is kind of forced to just sit on the bench while we press it. (See what I did there?)
But remember: just as important as your routine and workout schedule are your rest days. Â You know, those beautiful, glorious days where your aching muscles get to relax, the treads of your running shoes aren’t being worn down, and the only stretching you do is reaching for the remote.
And they are not optional.
Rest days are great because they not only let our bodies heal and give us energy to make it through the next week’s schedule, but they also give us much needed slack-off time so we can catch up on our benched hobbies.
My rest days often consist of vegging out an MMO. Right now, I’m bouncing between 4 different games, trying to find the best fit for my spare time and casual playstyle. When I’m not gaming, I’m typically writing–either a draft of a blog or one of my novels. I would say I read a lot, too, but that’s typically a chapter or so before bed, so it’s not really a rest day activity.
I’ve been catching up on sleep after my kid, then me, got sick. I got about 20 hours of sleep (3-4 hours/night, interrupted) last week and, this week, I got closer to 40 hours of sleep (6-8 hours, interrupted). So yesterday and today had me napping throughout a good part of the day. I feel much better now and I think I’m kicking off the sinusitis, so I’ll be back to normal in no time.