Is Less Exercise Better For You?

Most people would be thrilled to hear that less exercise is actually better for you than more exercise. The fact of the matter is, getting less exercise may actually be beneficial for you in the long run. This is surprising information, considering the lengths that some people will go to in order to make sure that they are exercising every day. Instead of wearing yourself out of the gym and trying to squeeze every bit of exercise that you can into your busy life, perhaps you should try backing off a little bit and seeing what kind of benefits you will receive.

There's no doubt that we do need some exercise on a daily basis. This has been unquestioned for many years and it will continue to be unquestioned for quite some time into the future. It doesn't matter what kind of cardiovascular exercise you are doing, you need to make sure that you are getting at least a little bit of it on a daily basis. You should keep in mind, however, that if you are over exercising as far as cardiovascular work is concerned, your efforts may actually be counterproductive to a certain extent. Why is this the case?

Prolonged cardiovascular exercise is what most people consider to be best for them. Spending endless hours on the treadmill or bicycle can certainly help you to burn extra calories but after the exercises over, your metabolism quickly returns to normal. If you do your cardiovascular exercise in short bursts with intermittent easy exercise in between, you can get much more out of it in a shorter period of time. As a matter of fact, this type of interval training is usually only done in 25 to 45 minute spurts. The resultant rise in your metabolism, however, can last up to 24 hours.

The same is also true if you do bodybuilding exercises. Working the same muscles, day in and day out can put a strain on your body. You need to rest on occasion in order to give your body an opportunity to build itself back up. This is really the only way that you're truly going to grow and get stronger. Have at least two days rest in between working the same body part and take one full week off every two months. You would be surprised with how many gains you will have as a result of this rest.