Time for a break
Way Overdue:
Truth be told I haven’t been on any sort of real “vacation” in three years. I’m not complaining by any means, as I could have easily done so if I wanted to. However, soon that will change as I’ll be away from home all of next week! I won’t lie.. I am looking forward to getting away for a week and letting my mind and body rest, Mostly my body lol.
I’ve been training extremely hard as of late, harder than I ever have before. If you don’t already know, I regularly hit the gym seven days a week. If you do the math, that equals zero rest or “off” days. If you’re new to the site or haven’t been following me all that long I’ll briefly explain why. I love to train, simply put its my favorite thing to do in life (Outside of spending time with those I care about)
Training in the gym makes me feel a certain way that is honestly somewhat difficult to put into words. When I have weights in my hand, and I’m dripping sweat, gasping for air between sets, I’m at peace (As oddly as that sounds lol) So for me, having a “scheduled” off day never really made sense. I only allow myself a day off from weights if I feel my body absolutely needs it, and even then I still try to do something active outside of the gym.
It’s that time again:
Despite not having a set day off each week, I do still implement “Deload” weeks into my training about every 12-16 weeks. The concept of de-loading basically refers to decreasing the intensity/volume of your workouts. These weeks are highly beneficial and in my opinion everyone should definitely be implementing them. I like to use these to give my mind and body a break from all the intense training. There’s a couple different ways to go about these weeks but the way I go about implementing them is really quite simple..
I give myself a week where I skip out on any heavy compound exercises. Typically, I’ll stay away from free weights all together and work on machines and cables for the week. The other aspect to this is staying away from heavy weight in general. I’ll usually work between 12-20 reps during these weeks as well. My goal during these weeks is to simply get in the gym, break a sweat, get some blood flowing to the muscles and get out, THAT’S IT!
That being said, that is exactly what I’ll be doing next week lol. Being that I’ll already be away and be out of my normal routine, it’s the perfect time for me to cut myself a small break in my training and let my body recoup a bit. As much as I love training, I am looking forward to coming to the gym and not having to be so intense for a week. Being so intense all the time is as much mentally draining as physical. I like these weeks. They benefit me both physically and mentally and allow me to come back and train even harder. If you’re following me over on Instagram (@antconfessore) or snap chat (confessore_94) I will still be uploading my workouts to show you guys how I go about these weeks in more detail.
I also want to give a quick shout out to everyone who participated in this past Confessore Conditioning 30 day #LeanAndMean challenge. This season was undoubtedly better than the last with the top three winners losing a combined 32.6lbs all together! The next challenge will be set for next month and will be bigger and better than this one was. More details to come so stay tuned!!
Anthony Confessore
Owner: Confessore Conditioning
“Create The Best You”
