You look tired.
That's not the most flattering thing to say to someone, but I see you.
You're a hard worker.
You don't take rest days.
You don't need them.
After all, your gains might go away. Your muscles might shrink. You ate that piece of cake yesterday and already feel like you might have gained five pounds, so you need to do something about that.
I want to free you from this mentality right now. You need rest.
I know it's hard sometimes, to slow down. I have a tendency to overwork too - to take on as much as possible and pretend it's not too much. I've tried to work out every day too, chasing that elusive six-pack and the imaginary admiration of my peers.
But you can't do it.
No, I don't mean that you can't...I mean that you will not achieve your goals if you do. Not in the long run. Not in a healthy way. You need rest.
Think of the simple concept of weightlifting.
Does the act of lifting something heavy equal more strength? No. You actually did damage during that lifting session. Increased strength happens when your body adapts and repairs the damage that's been done. But if you don't allow for that recovery period, the work you put in will be injury, followed by forced recovery and likely decreased strength instead.
You need rest to be strong.
Take professional athletes.
I read this article that discussed the concept of linearity - defined as the failure to oscillate between energy expenditure and recovery. Professional athletes understand this.
The article discussed a study the authors ran on world-class tennis players. They discovered that the best of these players had precise recovery rituals even in the seconds (seconds!) between points. The rituals allowed them to actually change their physiology - their heart rates would drop as much as 15 to 20 percent and they would harness that critical ability to focus and prepare for the next point. Anyone who has watched or played tennis will understand how critical this ability is. That mental switch to recovery from point to point is the difference between champions and mere talent.
You need recovery to win.
Think about the concept of stress.
Physical exercise is, after all, stress on your body. Some stress is good - it forces your body to adapt, to change, to build itself better and stronger and faster.
But too much stress - i.e. too much exercise - will have the opposite effect. Your body will default to storing fat instead of burning it. Inflammation sets in, which in turn makes it difficult for your body to absorb nutrients properly. Your hormones get thrown out of whack. And you're left tired and wondering why all your hard work isn't paying off.
Easy, tiger. You need rest.
You might want to simply think about switching up your routine. Six days a week of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) is very stressful. Sure, it works for professionals who get paid to work out like that, but remember that they also have professional recovery routines built in, because science and experience has proved that we need it.
You need it, too. You'll see more gains in the long run. Instead of HIIT six days a week, why not two, with two or three sessions of something else you enjoy that's less intense, like yoga or lifting?
Instead of killing yourself in the gym every day, try every other day with supplemental work in between like working on your mobility or concentrating on one area that you want to work on, like core strength.
I'm not saying you shouldn't be working hard. Our bodies were made to move, and we were made to work hard.
Unfortunately for all of us, we aren't superheroes. We need rest and we need recovery. And in turn, we'll come back better than ever.
Articles to consider:
Why You Should Add Rest to Your Workout Routine
Why Rest Days are Just as Important as Working Out
The 6 best ways to recover from your Workout