Taking a Week off of training

[Alphatier]

So I've been back to lifting seriously now for 10 months straight. Haven't missed a day since starting.

About 3 weeks ago I was playing squash with some friends. Now I didn't warm up (yeah I know - Retarded). Anyways, I pulled a muscle in my back, and it didn't completely heal yet.

So I thought I'd take this week off of working out, let my back heal good, and at the same time give my CNS and muscles some break to recover.

So the question is if it's ok to take a week off from lifting? Will I come back stronger next week?

Thanks for your responses

[dangerous dan]

yea its okay taking time out from time to time....what do you mean by come back stronger???

[Alphatier]

Stronger as in lifting more weight/reps.

I've herd it from a couple of people before, that when they took a week off training they came back stronger because they're body recovered completely.

[dangerous dan]

it is possible yes. i usually see gains coming through when i take a couple week out of the gym

[Critical Mass]

I am taking a week off this or next week. I may take a light week instead I dont know. I have been training pretty steady the last 2 years so a week here and there is only positive.

[MotoLifter]

definately cool to take a week off man. good for the body, CNS, and mind. going heavy for a long time can take a toll on everything. Just make sure you get your ass back in there.

also like omna said a light week is good too. (keeps me from feeling lazy when im not goin real hard)

good luck with the back. rest up

Moto

[thenextcutler]

I suscribe heavily to taking a week off. I never go more than ten weeks w/o a week break. It is mentally and physically refreshing, and if you have been working hard enough it gives your body much needed time to play catch up and fully recover. And yes, if you are training heavy you will be stronger when you come back. Everytime I came back from a break my strength jumped, which is due to being fully recovered and dissapears with overtraining.

And if you take one week off and don't do it too often your body won't stop growing for that one week off. Just keep moving, maybe light cardio, as 7days on the couch could make you stiff.

[thenextcutler]

And more to the point... you don't want a back injury antagonizing your motivation and intensity for the next month. If you were gonna lose progress taking time off it would be less than trying to heal while working out. Not to mention the risk of complicating the back injury further.

[eatrainrest]

when i am consistently lifting i usually liek to take at least a "primer" week or entire week off between segments of 8-12 weeks. i use it as my transition phase when i construct new workouts

[Alphatier]

Thanks to everybody for their useful input.

I'm enjoying my week off so far, but at the same time I miss lifting. I'm curious to see if I'll progress in this week.