Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

Why do I need to take a rest day if I have a five day split: shoulders, arms/abs, back, chest, legs. Each muscle group definitely gets plenty of rest before the next time I work it (5 days) but people are saying i should rest two days a week, acting like I'm working the same muscle groups every single day...what is the REAL DEAL?? Not to mention that I sleep 8-9 hours a night and eat like a garbage truck and get 1.5-2 grams of protein per pound of body weight...Feedback appreciated. Thanks.

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Darth Vader from Sandlot once said, "Heroes get remembered, but legends never die." Then he later died.
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Usually, it's recommended to get a rest day in just for the sake of letting your body have some recovery with minimal overall stress put on it. Though, many high-level athletes such as olympic lifters don't often take "rest days", rather, they do active recovery, where they'll take 1-2 days per week that are spent doing other things like taking a light jog, swimming, or other activity that they don't do all-out, but still don't tax the muscles in the same way.

Of course, when you get older, rest becomes far more important. In my early to mid 20s, I could train for 90 minutes and run 3-6 miles every day and never get worn out by it even if I never took a break. Now, nearing 40, I can't train more than 2 days in a row before my body tells me to take a day off. I suppose you don't NEED to rest up if you don't want to, but you never know, it might help your progress even more to let your whole body recover one or two days each week!

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"A 'hardgainer' is merely someone who hasn't bothered to try enough different training methods to learn what is actually right for their own damned body." - anonymous

So I guess training chest after a back day isn't necessarily considered "active recovery"? It makes sense....but psychologically I feel shitty if I don't train....but a lot of times on a day returning after a day off I feel great. I usually take one day off ever two or three weeks (usually on a weekend if I was out late). But that's it. I'm gonna be 27 in December.

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Darth Vader from Sandlot once said, "Heroes get remembered, but legends never die." Then he later died.
https://www.facebook.com/BigMeeeeech

I think active recovery is doing some form of exercise which won't tax you but aims to speed up recovery by getting blood into the affected areas or increase flexibility. Generally combat any of the negative after effects of exercise like muscle soreness or stiffness.

After a hard lower body day sometimes I'll foam roll or do some high rep bodyweight or squats with the bar just to get my flexibility back and I'll often feel better after it. If I just sit about I often feel even worse the next day lol.

Rest days aren't just about giving the muscles rest, it taxes your whole body.

If you don't like doing absolutely nothing then just do something light.

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My training log

Point taken...thank you

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Darth Vader from Sandlot once said, "Heroes get remembered, but legends never die." Then he later died.
https://www.facebook.com/BigMeeeeech

Everything Chewy said.

I hate taking rest days but I'm always so happy after I do. In my experience, a full rest day, where you just stay away from any physical stress to your body, helps you recover in all systems. Like, the immune system benefits from a day off because training hard taxes it no matter what kind of training it is. Beyond the purely physiological, at least for me, it gives me a chance to reflect on recent training and integrate it in a way that I can't do if I'm training every single day, even if I'm switching things up. Active recovery days are important too, but they're different from full on rest days.

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Radical simply means "grasping things at the root." - Angela Davis