For those of us just starting out and getting into a routine it seems so contrary that we have to follow a hurry-up and wait regimen for body toning. Nonetheless, this is exactly what we are instructed to do. So, we try to schedule upper body on Monday, Wednesday, Friday; lower body Tuesday and Thursday; and if we miss a day it tends to put a wrench in the whole process. The question of why we put ourselves through this scheduling maze all boils down to science-kinesiology to be exact.

Kinesiology is often defined as the study of human movement, but has evolved to be more than just that. According to the American Kinesiology Association, kinesiology is, “The academic discipline which involves the study of physical activity and its impact on health, society, and quality of life”, www.AmericanKinesiology.org. These are the people who’ve determined that we need to skip a day between working out.

Here’s what they’ve discovered:

Lifting weights creates a stress on your body. The act of repeatedly working your muscles, aka contracting them, causes several physiological changes and one very importing physical one – muscle tearing.

When we exercise we create mini-tears throughout our muscle tissue. Your body repairs the damaged muscle by fusing the muscle fibers together. These fused fibers are thicker and more numerous – think firmer and larger. This healed tissue is what makes our muscles stronger and larger.

The process of building muscle is one of healing – and healing takes time. In general, it takes between 24 and 48 hours. If you begin weight training before the muscle fibers have rebuilt themselves the amount of muscle building you are capable of is restricted.

Long story short – if you are looking to achieve body toning or body building then you need to pencil in some rest time in your planner. When it comes to your muscles, resting them is just as important has working them. Happy Toning!