Why You Need to Put Aside the Guilt and Take a Rest Day
My Apple Watch has been buzzing each morning as soon as I put it on over the past few days. “You set a new Move streak yesterday, Kate. 15 days in a row! Keep it going today.”
But today is the day I’m going to disappoint it. I’m NOT going to complete my 30 minutes of Exercise and I’m NOT going to hit my Move goal of 600 calories. I might not even get all 12 hours of my Stand goal in.
This little device that goes on my wrist the minute I wake up in the morning has been ruling my world a bit too much lately.
Before bedtime, I’ve found myself in front of the bathroom mirror, briskly marching and swinging my arms in a last-ditch attempt to get those final 30 calories in before I call it a night and put the watch on the charger. (I don’t sleep with it on. I draw the line there. Just like experts advise you to keep your phone out of the bedroom to connect with your spouse on a deeper level, I believe you should keep your fitness out of the bedroom to disconnect from the world on a deeper level overnight.)
Tell me I’m not the only one who’s done this. There’s something addicting about closing those rings. And when you’re thisclose to hitting one of the daily goals, you don’t want to throw it all away in the 11th hour.
But like any addiction, it’s getting to be an unhealthy habit. Instead of listening to my body, I’ve been caught up in the game of more: one more workout, two more miles, five more reps, 10 more minutes, 30 more calories. More, more, more.
The thing is, more doesn’t always equal better. Is burning 600 calories in a day so superior to burning 590? Absolutely not. The only difference is I don’t get the validation of my watch congratulating me for 590 calories. I lose out on the chance to earn another Achievement badge. (And I do feel unreasonably accomplished whenever I earn a new Achievement.)
When I’m not obsessing over what my watch thinks I should be doing, I have the chance to really listen to my body instead. Determine what feels good and what doesn’t. Assess what’s working for me and what’s not.
Fifteen days of workouts in a row with no rest day is not what my body needs. I need at least one day per week to recover, allow my body to heal, build muscle and strengthen itself again for the next one. Without this rest day, I noticed this week, my endurance is lagging. My power is limited. My form gets worse with each workout. And I’m risking hurting myself all in the name of closing those three rings just once more.
So today I listened to my sore calves, my stiff quads, my achy ankles. I resisted the temptation to get outside for one quick run on a beautiful sunny 58-degree day. I put my feet up on the couch after the boys’ bedtime instead of fitting in a quick yoga video.
And when my watch tried to guilt-trip me with its quasi-motivational “You can still do it” reminder at 9 PM, I took it off.
“Totally worth it”? Not tonight, Apple Watch. You might know my heart rate and my pace and my mileage but you don’t define my values.
That comes from within.
Remember that you know what you need better than any smartphone or device ever will. Listen to your body and trust yourself to know when to push and when to rest. Don’t let guilt be your motivator. Exercise should be a celebration of what your body can do, not a punishment for what you ate.
Today, I choose rest. And tomorrow, I’ll fasten the Apple Watch back on my wrist as always – stronger and more ready than ever to take on the next workout because I granted myself the grace to rest.
“Keep it going today.” Don’t worry, Apple Watch. I’ll be back. That’s a promise.
