rest day essentials

A while ago I wrote a blog on why you need rest days.

If you want to read that one first, go for it!

But today I'm diving into both my rest day essentials AND the things I enjoy doing for fun and for my mental wellbeing.

I think a lot of the time, we only talk about what we do for our bodies on rest and recovery days. So, I'm switching it up and talking about what you can do to feel fulfilled outside of the gym, too!

These have really helped me with my own recovery and make my rest days worthwhile!

My top 5 priorities on rest days:

These 5 things are ESSENTIAL on rest days for proper joint and muscle repair and recovery:

🥥 Healthy fats, which bring inflammation down and support the heart and joints.

💪 Foam rollers, which release muscle tightness and improve blood circulation.

💦 Water, which helps to avoid muscle cramps and soreness (and you're probably dehydrated...so drink up!)

💤 High-quality sleep, helping your body repair overnight.

⚡️ Active recovery: to keep your body moving, blood flowing, and help your muscles recover and rebuild from your more intense workouts.

My top 5 things I like to do on rest days for fun & mental wellness:

📒 Journaling, to catch up with myself and reflect on how I'm doing in all aspects of life.

🥙 Meal prepping, because I have a lot more time to cook on my days off from the gym and I love having my week as planned out as possible!

🪷 Mindfulness and meditation practices, to help re-regulate my nervous system and lower my stress levels (helps with physical recovery too)

🍷 Have a glass of wine because I CAN and I actually have time to enjoy a bevvy on rest days!

🛁 Self-care, because we all deserve a spa night

Treat the recovery process just as important as you treat your workouts!

Allowing yourself a couple of days off throughout the week to recover is a step toward setting yourself up for a sustainable fitness journey, rather than setting yourself up to burn out completely.