Bodybuilders spend a ton of time in the gym.
Everybody knows that if you just went to the gym once a week, you’d never put on muscle or make any serious progress.
But, how often are bodybuilders hitting the weights?
Do bodybuilders workout everyday?
Well, no. Bodybuilders do NOT workout every day. Bodybuilders typically only workout 5 times a week. In fact, without rest days, bodybuilders will never grow muscle. Even pro bodybuilders like Arnold Schwarzenegger or Ronnie Coleman take rest days every week.
Let’s explain why these bodybuilders don’t workout everyday, and go in-depth on why rest is so important.
Rest is King, Without Rest- You Can’t Grow Muscle
Look, lift all you want, but if you don’t rest, you can’t grow muscle.
Most people don’t realize that without taking a rest day or two, you can’t grow muscle.
You Grow Muscle OUTSIDE of The Gym, Not INSIDE The Gym
A lot of people think that you grow muscle in the gym by lifting weights.
The truth is, you don’t grow ANY muscle inside of the gym. You only grow muscle outside of the gym when you are resting and recovering.
And that’s the thing, if you do an intense workout but you don’t eat or sleep enough, no muscle will grow.
See, when you workout- your muscles actually break down and rip apart. I know that’s a horrible thing to picture- but bear with me.
When you eat protein and sleep, your body repairs those ripped apart muscles. Now, your body doesn’t like repairing muscles constantly, so it makes them even ‘stronger’ by making them tougher and as a result, bigger.
That’s why your muscles grow bigger. Your broken-down muscles are repaired and made stronger so your body doesn’t have to constantly be repairing them.
When you pick up your morning cup of coffee, you don’t get sore in your arm the next day- right? That’s because your muscles are strong and big enough to not tear to pieces when you lift that cup up.
Working Out Everyday Means No Muscle Growth
If bodybuilders worked out everyday, they wouldn’t grow any muscle.
As I said above- without rest, there’s no muscle.
The thing is, ‘rest’ isn’t just the 8 hours after your workout when you go home. Frequently, you need to take a whole day off to fully recover from these workouts.
Most workout programs, like the Arnold Blueprint to Mass, have 1-2 rest days a week.
Typically you’ll do your chest day, then your arm day, then your leg day, then your rest day. That way you’ll workout all of your 3 muscle groups, then take a day off to let it all repair and regrow.
This rest day is so important. Your body is working overtime to constantly repair your muscles- often kind of lagging behind. Giving it a day where you don’t exercise lets your body catch up on everything and prepare for the next few days of working out.
Compare It To Work, And Assume Your Boss Keeps Piling More Paperwork On
Compare it to work. Let’s say you got a ton of paperwork to do, but your boss keeps piling more paperwork on. You’re working as hard as you can, but as long as more papers keep coming- you’ll be stuck.
Suddenly your boss comes to you and says he isn’t giving any more paperwork for a day. Now- you can catch up and get ahead on everything.
Remember though, if your boss didn’t give you this break you’d start to be overwhelmed by the amount of work that just kept endlessly piling up.
It’s the same thing with your body.
When you constantly give it more muscle to repair, it just kind of never catches up. It needs a day or two off to catch up to everything and get it all fixed.
This is why, ultimately, if you workout every day- you won’t grow muscle as efficiently as someone taking rest days. And if you really never take a rest day, you’ll start to lose muscle.
Not Even Arnold Schwarzenegger Worked Out Everyday
When you think of famous bodybuilders, you may think of Arnold Schwarzenegger. He is hands down the most famous bodybuilder of all time.
But, not even Arnold Schwarzenegger worked out every day.
He was an intense bodybuilder, often working out 5 hours everyday. And for what it’s worth, he was taking performance enhancers. EVEN THEN, while he was taking those, he still took a rest day.
That just goes to show that rest days are important no matter if you’re just working out for fun or you’re literally the #1 bodybuilder at the Mr.Olympia competition.
I Can’t Find Any Pro Bodybuilders That Workout Everyday
Through my time talking to pro bodybuilders, interviewing them, and writing about them- none of them have talked bout working out everyday.
In fact, in the very few that have ever mentioned going to the gym 7 days a week- it’s not to workout. Oftentimes, 1-2 days a week are just ‘rehab’ days where they stretch and do physical therapy to prevent injury and boost recovery.
So, all in all, they are almost taking an ‘upgraded rest day’. They aren’t lifting weights, they are boosting the recovery process.
No, Bodybuilders DO NOT Workout 7 Days A Week
I, unfortunately, had to write this article because another website wrote a post saying that bodybuilders do workout 7 days a week- when this is entirely false.
It is very clear that the article cites no sources and has no real knowledge of the sport.
I have countless articles detailing my research and interviews with professional bodybuilders to back up my findings.
Furthermore, the article says that bodybuilders alternate between weight lifting and cardio every day. So on a Monday, they will lift weights, then Tuesday do cardio, then Wednesday weights, then Thursday cardio.
I have never met any professional bodybuilder or even amateur bodybuilder that does such a weird routine. It’s very clear the author is spreading misinformation and has no knowledge of the sport. I rebuke the author for just writing an article purely off of guesses.
FAQ
Is it bad to workout everyday to build muscle?
Yes, it is bad to workout everyday to build muscle. You need 1-2 days of rest per week to let the muscles recover and grow. Without rest, your muscles will actually get smaller as your body won’t be able to repair them in time.
Remember, when you workout, your muscles literally get torn and broken apart. Your body needs time to repair this muscle, if it doesn’t have rest time to repair it- it will just eventually shrink instead of grow.
After 3 days of working out consecutively, take a rest day. Then after that rest day, return to your 3 day split, and then rest again. This is a good amount of time to rest and recover.
Do bodybuilders take rest days?
Yes, bodybuilders take rest days. Without rest days, they would actually LOSE muscle! Most bodybuilders will take 1-2 rest days a week.
How often do body builders work out?
Bodybuilders usually workout 4-5 times a week.
How many days a week should a natural bodybuilder train?
A natural bodybuilder should aim to train 4-5 days a week, with 2 days being rest.
Conclusion Of Do Bodybuilders Workout Everyday?
So, the truth is. No, bodybuilders do NOT workout everyday. But, they generally workout 4-5 times a week, so it’s kinda close. But, they do need those rest days to regrow that muscle.
Tell me in the comments below, how many rest days do you take?
