physical job

[ijustmegdu]

i now work a physical job, for at least the next 2 months. driving a truck and delivering kegs. lifting, loading, stairs, ramps, snow..... should i drop my workouts from 4-5 days a week to 2-3 just to give more rest time?

 

[billj]

i now work a physical job, for at least the next 2 months. driving a truck and delivering kegs. lifting, loading, stairs, ramps, snow..... should i drop my workouts from 4-5 days a week to 2-3 just to give more rest time?

Bro im in the same boat as you. I build commercial concrete forms(extremely physical). I suggest dropping the volume of your workouts as well as the frequency for a few weeks until you adjust to the new job.You definitely dont want to get hurt by doing too much. Get used to the bumps and bruises for a litlle while.Make sure your diet is solid at work as well, this usually affects me more than anything when I eat like crap at work, and my workouts suffer. My two cents.

 

[J DUB]

Excellent advice. Many variables can lead one to a state of overtraining, and a physical job is one of them. Just because you are not lifting in the gym doesn't mean these stresses will not add up on your body just like weightlifting will.

As you said, go 2-3x/wk, and decrease the volume and intensity to a maintenance level until you are adjusted and feel able to continue your normal program. I can't suggest a time frame for when this will happen nor can I say for sure it ever will, but listen to your body and be smart. You can easily make great gains working out 3x per week if you do it right.

As I have suggested to others, you might want to take a look at a book called Periodization Breakthrough by Fleck and Kraemer to get a good idea of how to effectively manipulate your volume, intensity, and frequency to create an efficient program.