How much rest do you get?

How much sleep did you get last night? 6 hours? 10 hours? Less? More? Do realize the impact rest has on your body? And I’m not just talking about sleep, but rest overall.

Taking a break from the constant hustle.

8 months ago, I would have raised my hand emphatically to say I worked out daily, I took no rest breaks. I pushed through even when my body was crying out for me to stop. I over committed myself to too many things to do. I was literally running my body, mind, and soul into the ground. I felt like I was failing as a friend, wife, mom, coworker…all of it. Just failing.

So let’s talk a little about rest.

When you sleep, your brain cleans house.

Just like in the movie Inside Out, your brain filters, prunes, and discards info, memories, and details you don’t need. Sleep actually makes your brain work better. It prunes the dendrites that aren’t important and strengthens the one that are needed.

Your brain actually solves problems while you sleep.

It may seem contradictory but while you’re sleeping, your brain is still working. If you go to bed thinking about a problem you’ve been working hours on and can’t seem to figure it out, likely chance is that you’ll wake with a solution you’ll wonder why you hadn’t thought of it sooner.

Your muscles need recovery.

You push and push and push at the gym and aren’t seeing results. You work out daily, lifting harder, running faster. But it’s not working. Did you realize you might actually be doing TOO much? When you work out, your muscles break down and then rebuild. That’s how you increase muscle mass size. But rebuilding takes not only energy (hello, you can’t skip out on giving your body healthy nutrition), but also takes rest.

Rest prevents injury.

Overuse is just as important as underuse. Your joints, tendons, muscles, ligaments, all of it needs a little recovery to repair after stress in order to prevent an injury that might put you out for good.’

Your body is constantly playing catch up.

You want your body to be at its optimum. That’s why you work out in the first place, right? When you let it rest, you let it fully recover, recharge, and can allow you to push further within each of your workouts rather than if you’re only giving your body a half charge each time.

We’re cyclical beings.

Look at the world….we have cycles of the moon, cycles in our seasons, women have menstrual cycles. We aren’t meant to be ON all the time. Allow yourself built in rest to create a more sustainable rhythm in your life. You’ll prevent burn out, fatigue, over work, and deprivation.

Here are some of my favorite tools for rest:

• Essential Oils (particularly lavender, deep blue, and serenity)
• Foam Rollers
• Energize and Recover
• Adequate nutrition (I have LOVED using this method of eating)
• Superfoods nutritional supplements (This is my favorite!)
• Move your body in a relaxed way. Yoga, dancing tai chi, walking or stretching can all be wonderful low impact options.
• Meditation, reading (see some of my top recommended books here) and devotionals (check out my 21 Days of Prayer for Overwhelmed mom)

Interested in a SUPER effective workout program that has THREE Rest days a week? With only 30 minute workouts the other days? AND a “treat day” so bring on the beer and burgers???Join me here!