Question on "Listening to your body"

There are days I just feel so tired I don't know if I can go through the motions of my day, much less workout.  I workout and feel great even if exhausted.

My trainer tells me to "listen to my body" - but after nearly 40 years of quitting, I don't know what is true fatigue and what is my body / mind wanting to give in.

What say you?

I have thought a lot about this over the past month.  I am 44 and almost 2 years post op.  I didn't listen to my body out of fear.  Fear that I would fall off the exercise wagon and NEVER get back on and then regain everything I lost.  I dont think I could go back to being that person.  I do think it is important to see if you need more than 1 rest day.  Go crazy take 3.  You will not lose everything you have worked so hard for overnight or even over 3 days.  Then after you have gotten some rest see how you feel.   If you absolutely can not cope with the thought of doing nothing go for a walk, rake leaves (or snow depending where you are) but dont work out.   I ended up taking a month off recently due to some different choices ( I am not going to call them bad) and a few health problems.   While I am not back exactly where I was a month ago, I still feel great and am back at it.  I gained one whole pound and feel better now than I have in a while.  I am NOT advocating taking a month off....I still cant believe I did it.....but remember to be good to yourself.  You have earned it.  

Thanks. Those are my exact fears.  I have done the whole exercise,  take a "break" thing and then never went back.   I am terrified of that happening.  Logic goes against all of my habits / fears/ thoughts.  

You live a crazy, hectic, jam-packed life with your work, your parents and your animals. Just reading your adventures makes me want to take a nap. Add in your intense work outs, well.... something has to give at some point. With your list of responsibilities (and yes, I think taking care of ourselves is a responsibility) you have to prioritize and if you need an extra rest day or two extra rest days or whatever than take it. Your strengths didn't appear overnight (or in a week) and they won't be lost overnight (or in a week) either. Rest up and then move on.

Just my 2 cents :)

Thanks...

  I actually had the "rest day" talk with my trainer today.  She asked what my rest days look like -  Saturdays without a race (5k usually) are working around the house. This past Saturday I moved a truckload of fill dirt (loaded / unloaded iwth a shovel) and Sundays I help my mom and work 10-12 hours (desk job).  She emphasized that does not qualify as a rest day.  Her idea of a rest day is sitting on the couch reading or watching TV and not even walking her dog.

So in May I am going to drop my Monday / Wednesday noon strength classes and start running instead. That will have me Cardio Mon, Wed, Sat and strength on Tues, Thurs , Fri.  Saturday Cardio will be my "active" rest day and Sundays I will try to arrange with my folks for me to sleep late and come help later in the morning.

Runners World just had a really good article on mental training and not letting the mental stuff trip up training. HOWEVER, it's not always mental that tells us to rest. Sometimes it really is physical. I agree with your trainer - you need a real rest day, if only to prevent injury & stress fractures. I know if I get to running too frequently in the week and don't have at least 1 rest day, I start to see it in my pace slacking and just feeling beat.... and those are not very motivating feelings, if I want to sustain this for the long haul!

True stuff.

 I just have to add this to my list of mental stuff to get through.  Resting does not equal quitting.

right?  haha

Great topic. There has to be a great balancing act. Many times your body follows your heart and mind which usually does not want to go through the grind of exercising. So listening to your body here will cause you to miss workouts which is not a good idea, particularly after 40 years of quitting. The other side is if you are so tired you are not going to give it your best effort and just go through the motions you are primarily wasting time. However, these times (missing workouts) should be the exception not the norm. The bottom line is how much are you willing to sacrafice to reach your goal.