rest and recovery
I've just gotten back into the gym for the first time in years so I am doing the beginners workout. In this program I am working out the same muscle groups only two days apart. Is this adequate time for muscle recovery. I always thought that at least 4 days was recommended for muscle recovery after a workout.
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David
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Thanks Mike, I was actually wondering about this as well since I'm not in that good of shape and the routine seemed a little rough.
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Good question. When working out a certain or specific Muscle Group or any muscle group putting it through resistance training actually causes damage to muscle tissue. You are literally breaking up the miofibrils and muscle fibers of the muscle. In the post recovery your body recruits appropriate amounts of muscle fibers depending on the stress you put your body through. This recruitment usually takes about 48 hours. This is why you are more sore 48 hours later from the workout rather than just the next day. This is called DOMS or Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness. After this period it helps to "work out the soreness" however performing different exercises that emphasize the muscle in a specific muscle group should be different. That is why we have you perform different exercises even though you might be working the same muscle group again 48-72 hours later. By executing a "second bout" of training the muscles your body will adapt and actually recruit more muscles fibers as a result during the repairing or reinforcement period of rest, however you should note that teaching your body to train differently in a case like this is a tough task. Once you break through the plateau you will see significant gains.
