Rest days: How many do you need? What should they contain?

[@JD-uq5sh]

Wow. Epic timing Dave. Obsessed climber here. Sitting wondering how I'm going to get through my second days resting as I haven't let minor injuries heal for some time and up pops this video. That should keep me away from the gym/rock for another 9 minutes 36 seconds at least! Thanks and Greetings from Forres.

[@TucAdventures]

I second this comment.🤣

[@wvbo]

me three

[@goGOgetITnow]

I really like this format, dropping wisdom in the quiet landscape

[@alensiljak]

I like how your videos make me think. Whereas, many other are just prescriptive and too mechanical. Thank you

[@BiggFanDDD]

Climbing 3-6 times a week sounds insane to me. My sessions usually consist of starting with finger training (per your older videos) and then climbing either limit boulders, or just cruising everything in the gym (my sorry excuse for endurance training) when I'm tired. I need a good 2 days to recover from climbing sessions, sometimes 3 days. If I got it right, it sounds like I should cut back on some of the volume during the climbing sessions so that I can recover faster and climb more often? Pro tip for rest days though: do all the chores on that day! Meal prep, vacuuming, mopping, general cleaning, etc. Great way to destress! Great video per usual Dave!

[@iansane1928]

I'm in a similar circumstance to you. Been climbing seriously for about 18 months and I still feel like I need at least 2 rest days, sometimes 3. Then on YT all you see is people saying they climb 4-5 days a week. At the end of the day you just need to listen to your body.

[@JG-of8hg]

18 months is not a lot and your body may still be adjusting to new routines. Since I seriously improved my sleep, I could train 4 or 5 days per week, but only have time for 3 max due to .. life :). I've been climbing for almost 10 years now. I remember myself being so tired after each session during my early years of climbing.. now it's not the case even though I'm 38 now and don't recover as quickly as used to. Be patient, sleep well :). Fingers crossed!

[@trainmoveimprove]

"Actively trying to improve the size of the response to your training" - That's wonderful food for thought Dave. A simple idea that's got endless depth to explore.

[@artursjoblom5142]

Lovely video Dave! Thank you for all your wonderful videos, you're my new favorite channel. How about longer rest periods, as like a twice per year type of thing. Like a full week once every 6 months? What's your thoughts? I reckon that's great for longevity and tendon/connective tissue health? And same question about deload periods, I reckon in between those mentioned rest weeks once every 6 months, you should do a deload week in the middle of that 6 month active period of training?

[@artursjoblom5142]

I would love to buy your book(books?) Btw. Is it possible to get a signed copy from you?

[@Kevin-Woods]

Got those 'hit by a bus' vibes today (linked crux yday tho) so your video is in perfect timing!

[@MP-bx3uj]

I’m behind on rest days now.. thanks for the reminder. Also gorgeous views on your walk!

[@gemigtunnan]

ive been trying out different tips and ideas about training from this guy and goddamn its giving me some long sought after results. thanks alot Dave!!

[@aflictionado5080]

Currently taking a rest day! Love your content!

[@johnfowlertrailrunning]

Wise words indeed Dave! Even at the age of 59 I still struggle to get this right, so thanks for nudging me back on track, especially with regards to cumulative stressors! 🤘

[@tawfiqmorshed2694]

I have been coming up against (what feels like) a barrier in my training in that I can do the climbing and do the climbing rest, but it's only after this video that I've realised that it might be worth shifting my university workload in line with my climbing workload, so I can treat rest days as "rest from everything" days. Great video as always!

[@Martin-ew3ql]

watching this while havin a restweek after a 5 weeks trip to france and planning my next trainingcycle wich i want to start next week! keep up the good work dave and thanks for your books and yt content!

[@samuelchee526]

Hi Dave could you do a video on hip flexibility, especially open hip positions. I'm curious how important flexibility is for you.

[@ScotchGambino]

I think paying attention to how you feel when you wake up is super important and let that dictate how much and "how" you rest. This could be a difficult concept for some folks because it means you can't be fooling yourself about how you feel. When I was young and in my 20's I never considered rest days. I had tons of energy. I didn't do a lot of limit climbing but loads of mileage climbing and didn't need to many rest days from them. But now I'm 52 with a recent history of fatigue and health issues and I have to pay very close attention to how I feel when I wake up. If I don't listen to how I feel when I wake up and decide to push through and train I will pay a very heavy price for it. Rest days are arguably more important than training days at my age IMO,

[@climbermacleod]

Agree with all except your last sentence.

[@Mike-oz4cv]

“I think paying attention to how you feel when you wake up is super important and let that dictate how much and "how" you rest”. No. Sometimes I wake up at 4:00 because I’m full with stress hormones and I kind of feel fine and alert only to crash some hours later. On other days I can lazily stay in bed until 8:00 and feel kind of (comfortably) tired and unmotivated at first but get going within an hour.

[@climbermacleod]

@@Mike-oz4cv I'm not saying subjective monitoring is straightforward, but if you are waking up way too early full of stress, but feel fine, there is probably more to be done in terms of tuning in to, or learning from physical/psychological/behavioural signals.

[@joshworley4228]

Great video Dave, really appreciate your perspective on these topics. Cheers

[@davidhelman3045]

Dave MacLoed posts a video on training and rest, I click and watch, that's how I renew and gain happy feelings.

[@ibex1753]

Thanks for the videos Dave. I have often heard you talking about how important strength work is. Have you considered making a video about the types of exercises you do/think are the most important and how often you do them per week? Thanks again.

[@climbermacleod]

I wrote a whole book on this!

[@ibex1753]

Ah, fair enough! I actually have both your books but enjoy the video format! Thanks anyway for the reply.@@climbermacleod

[@antybris]

I love you man, you somehow found a way for me to be engaged but at the same time relaxed with your soothing voice!!!

[@luciocardoso6306]

Always excited to see a new video! Great as always, Dave!

[@timharmoni1846]

Thanks for you output, Dave. Always seem to find something useful or to enjoy in your videos.

[@jenhowland2627]

Great video, I wish I’d had an idea of what stress (including things like poor quality sleep as well as emotional stress does to your body). Would be really interesting to hear more about stress/hormones and how they impact training. Thanks

[@gregfinlayson8135]

Hey.. Very nicely put. A question: if you started a session and found yourself low on power.. would you walk away and come back another day more rested... or do some kind of easy session? I think I do the latter a bit, and wonder if in the end it is less effective...?

[@beelzebub2808]

I love to go for long 1-2h walk. I think the light movement really helps me, and it also keeps you fit for approaches or more mountaineering style climbing.

[@Weekend-Raver]

Hi Dave, great video. After the last few weeks of craging I've noticed one thing that's stressing me out is the development of a hereditary issue, Dupuytren's contracture (Viking's disease), in my right hand's ring finger. It's showing early signs, and at the age of 25, it's worrying, especially considering I am doing hangboarding and collagen supplementation. Any recommendations?

[@alexmondz3103]

Great advice Dave. Personally I like hot baths with epsom or magnesium salts. Cold plunge, usually after the hot bath as a contrast type therapy, mobility work/deep tissue massage and some zone 1 type cardio to promote blood flow. All the above essentially promote blood flow, and that removes waste products and brings in nutrients. Eat and sleep properly as you mentioned and your GTG !

[@mikekelly6603]

Thanks. I am taking a rest week(deload) because the weather is bad and I have been feeling a little beat up. What are your thoughts on deload weeks?

[@Nicoandthepage]

You enjoy your rest day as well my friend!

[@cliffedge546]

Do you not find that stretching can be a growth stimulus? I often get delayed onset muscle soreness if I’ve done focussed stretching. If this is the case would it not count as additional training load?

[@carrots1550]

Very interesting video. It didn't answer one of my big questions about rest days, though, which is whether I can "get away" with exercising on a rest day. Say I have 3 days a week on climbing training, and 4 days "rest". Can I run on a rest day? Can I do bench presses on a rest day?

[@EduardoMartinez-ys6fb]

I personally I can go weeks rotating 2 days outdoor climbing, 1 day biking. I am 62. Dani Andrada for example climbs virtually every day of the year. Training mode for me is rotating 1 day training, 1 day biking with a complete rest day once or twice a week. Training stresses my body more as I also include ab, shoulder and general conditioning work. For me, long term general fitness is as important to me as maximising my current climbing potential.

[@tjalfeholmquist]

Besides the great points about general life stressors, what is your take on active recovery between sessions, like e.g light jog/cycling? Let's say a person finds a personally renewing activity that also, potentially, has a physiological benefit on recovery. That might be interesting to experiment with on an individual level.

[@climbermacleod]

That's exactly what I'm doing in the video - light exercise. A gentle hill walk with similar CV response to a slow jog or easy cycling. Cortisol falls in light exercise, rises if you overcook it.

[@sam-ys9pc]

hey Dave, i understand how reducing your sympathetic activation would improve receovery for the CNS, but how would it affect the recovery of tissue stress? is it due to less catabolic hormones being produced?

[@moogod1185]

Great vid, thanks dave

[@garethhewer2579]

Super interesting as ever. Curious about how you feel about the concept of a de-load week in the context of rest and training? Is it an occasional essential to stave off injury or a sign that you're overdoing it in your regular training regime?

[@climbermacleod]

Depends on what you mean by de-load. De-training (de-loading) increases the risk of injury. There are many possible versions of a de-load. But a week of nothing is unlikely to be beneficial unless something has gone wrong (injury/illness/burnout/under-fuelling).

[@garethhewer2579]

@@climbermacleod I guess I'm thinking of a week programmed within a training bloc that ramps back on volume/intensity

[@isakkrogstad723]

Hi Dave, great input on rests days. Question: concerning the impact of stress (physical and psychological) on the body, what is your opinion on use of heart rate variability (HRV) as a reliable measurement of load? (and as an indicator of the balance between the sympathetic and the parasympathetic nervous system). Meaning; using HRV as a supplement (to the subjective feeling) to consider how I am coping with the current total stress in life (training etc.) I am especially thinking about wearable devices such as Garmin 255. I believe they use algorithms to measure HRV during the nighttime since daytime have too many confounding variables.

[@climbermacleod]

Yes HRV is useful for sure. The way it is used to adjust training intensity in the classic endurance sports might not map very well onto climbing, but as a general marker to guide recovery state, yes very useful.

[@isakkrogstad723]

@@climbermacleod Appreciate the response. That aligns with the research I´ve read so far about the topic. Thanks! Another question: any experience using the Emil Abrahamsson Sub-max Daily Fingerboard Routine on restdays? It suggests a 2/10 RPE. As I understand it is designed as an injury prevention and recruitment protocol. If you are training around four times a week (and accustomed to a high load, climbing around V9 (boulder) and 8A (sport)), do you think there is an additional benefit from doing this protocol on the rest days or do you think the total load becomes too much? I understand if it´s hard to answer because many variables are in play.

[@Navtyr]

What about the sessions itself? If you're climbing for about 6 months, having a 3 hour bouldering session (warming up + limit bouldering) requires almost a week of rest time. Should one optimally go for less time on wall and more frequently instead? Gym entry fees, long drives and hunger to test out as many boulders makes it hard not to have long sessions.

[@grantlittle456]

Ever since I started climbing 11 years ago, I have always had terrible DOMS. I usually have to take 2 days off after a single hard boulder session. Sport Climbing 2 days in a row is usually a killer. Even when I have been really fit at times. Is this a usual feeling? I suffer from bad Crohn’s disease, so dunno if that has some sort of an effect.

[@jakobcg]

Thanks for the video Dave. It seems the point of the video is that the purpose of rest days is to lower your cortisol, but what effect this has seems to be glossed over. I can understand that it's a good idea in general to not be overly stressed, but how does it specifically affect your gains? Do you have any recommended reading on this topic?

[@climbermacleod]

Not so much glossed over as skipped altogether - I didn't want to make a long technical video this time, but to keep it practical. The purpose of rest days is several fold - to allow recovery and adaptation of the stressed tissues to the load and to restore sensitivity to future loading. Cortisol is a marker of whether that's working or not. Hormonal stress mediators decide the priorities for growth for growth and repair. If overstressed, immediate protection from acute stress (energy provision, immune response etc) is prioritised over growth and adaptation. Laursen and Bucheit's textbook on high intensity interval training has a good few chapters exploring the mechanisms in more depth.

[@jakobcg]

Thanks for the thorough reply! @@climbermacleod

[@danabartlett9772]

The definition of a climbing day - quite a range of that as well, yes?

[@700leinad]

This video activated my parasympathicus.

[@meagherman1013]

Steve MacLeod's voice activates my parasympathetic nervous system.

[@artemkondratyev2805]

I noticed being moderately active on rest days helps to improve rest day quality, comparing to not moving at all. I even started using light jogging for better post-flu recovery. I struggle with recovery a lot, and I can’t simply imagine how people could train more than 4 days a week. Through last year, I tried to improve my energy levels by eating more, but that shot my triglycerides levels through the roof (I ate a lot of carbs and almost no fat). This year, in large part thanks to Dave, I started consuming much more fat and much less carbs. Now I seem to be needing much less food and be able to train somewhat more, and my lipid profile improved dramatically. I am trying to quantify it by making record of all the training sessions, and I would love to have a get another blood test to confirm the trend, but it all looks very promising.

[@corbindallas3220]

I was just on an 18day climbing trip out oft at I rested maybe 3 days. Now that I home I won’t climb for a week to give my skin, muscles and tendons a good rest. It’s al most moderately hard muntipitch and projecting two hard for me projects.

[@theflaggeddragon9472]

Sounds like a mega trip!

[@Mrperson662]

I wonder if the difference between pro climbers and mortals is how quickly they can recover and keep training

[@robertcreer8826]

Thank you

[@denislejeune9218]

Do you find that your energy levels are somewhat seasonal? My life is the same whether cold or warm out, but I seem to be more tired in the winter, and therefore need a bit more rest days.

[@climbermacleod]

Not really. I feel similar energy levels year round, I think.

[@denislejeune9218]

@@climbermacleod okido. Mind you, your feedback is skewed to the extent that there's only one season in Scotland...

[@climbermacleod]

@@denislejeune9218 Haha yes, although I plenty of others who really struggle with low energy and/or mood in winter. I always wonder about their vitamin D levels...

[@denislejeune9218]

@@climbermacleod aye, fair point.

[@danfletch7351]

Ima weekend warrior, roofer of 26 years ... 43 years old climbed fpr 15 years and I feel like I'm never rested lol ... yeah I'm old and ye I graft everyday but it effects my climbing and sucks .. 😂

[@TucAdventures]

Today I climbed and I felt like garbage...My brain doesn't feel great either... I watched a movie, stretched, ate some great food but I'm still frustrated and want to climb more... I think I'm going to sleep before I screw anything else up🤣

[@FeeblePenguin]

Are you going for a stroll in mountaineering boots??

[@phkit420]

I don’t have rest days I have chilled sessions 😂

[@leonardomalvezzi9422]

Has caffeine a role in this?

[@climbermacleod]

If taken in a manner that interferes with sleep, yes. Otherwise, drink tea.

[@leonardomalvezzi9422]

​@@climbermacleodThank you!

[@ds6914]

Bookend your rest days with a pot noodle and a wander about

[@johnwesely]

Your ability to speak extemporaneously while hiking might be more impressive than your climbing.

[@kutilkol]

Hey, Pennywise, speak english. Had to turn on the captions