REST

It’s amazing what a break from training can do.
Recently I was FORCED to rest. I was feeling very tired and my leg muscles seemed sore all the time. Laboring through short runs and exhausted after long runs, I wondered if there was something wrong with me. What should I do? I started to examine my eating habits and started to question some of my choices. Was I sleeping well? Enough? Maybe I wasn’t recovering properly. After all a few beers after a long run should always be accompanied with food, and water. Was I neglecting to do this (too often)?
Well it all came crashing down on October 8th. I felt so tired. My head felt like it was hollow. Every muscle in my back and legs ached. I would feel sharp pains in my abdomen occasionally.
I wondered if I had he flu. It sure felt like it. I could not walk very long let alone run. It took 10 days of rest to fully recover.
On the 17th of October I went out and ran 17 miles at Government Canyon. I felt so good. My leg muscles were strong and I had no difficulty running the climbs. Other than being a little sore, due to running 17, I felt great and have been running with rejuvenated muscles. We as runners are reluctant to take a break from training fearing we may lose some conditioning. We often hear it is good to take a break and let the body rest. IT’S TRUE! Do it sometimes.