Originally Posted by Machka

Strenuous exercise breaks down the muscle, which is repaired during rest.

When I was a bodybuilder, my program was 3 days on, 1 day off. And during those 3 days on, I worked different muscle groups ... Day 1: Back and biceps; Day 2: Chest, shoulders, triceps; Day 3: Legs. I did core work all 3 days and cardio all 3 days.

On my rest days, sometimes I didn't do much of anything, but most of the time I would do light cardio ... a walk, a short easily paced ride.


However, I also think that a person who is not doing strenuous workouts (at the gym, on the bicycle, etc.) can be active 6 days a week, or perhaps even every day. And I think that mixing up the activity is a good idea, similar to what I used to do with bodybuilding, working different muscles.

So a week might include a yoga/pilates class, then an intense spinning class, then a long walk, then commercial intervals on the trainer, then a shorter ride outside, then a long ride outside, and then a long walk. Exercise every day ... but varying intensities and varying activities.. However, if a person were doing a lot of intervals and/or long rides, then rest days at least once a week would be more important.