Showing posts with label rest day. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rest day. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 2, 2019

Solving the run-rest equation



See this post on our new site
The three Rs, Running, Resting and Rowin'
When you think about it, a lot of running involves math. The standard measure of performance (pace) is supported by explanatory metrics such as cadence, stride length and heart rate. That data allows us to analyze trends and calculate indicators like V0² max. I'll admit to loving statistics, but I know many people don't.

Besides my increasing skepticism of my heart rate monitor and my frustration with a stagnant pace, I'm not going to write much about any of that stuff today. Right now I'm looking at statistical frequency. Now don't stop reading, this isn't really about math. It's more about finding an optimum balance between running and resting.

When I stopped my daily commute at the beginning of May, I committed to increasing the number of miles I'd run a month. Seven years ago, I was averaging close to 20 miles a week. I typically took one rest day and totaled more than 80 miles a month. I did shorter runs during the work week and longer distances on weekends. When I was training for a 10K or a half marathon, I would cover as much as 12 miles.

Last April I ran a pathetically low 27 miles. Since then, I've steadily climbed from 57 in May to 82 in September. Just like I was doing doing in 2012, I'm again running six days a week and reaching 80 miles a month. However, that's where the similarity ends. My pace has declined measurably and I've only run more than four miles twice this year.

I've decided to make a change in my run schedule to give me more recovery time and allow for longer runs. My average distance per run is about 3.1 miles and getting back to the 5+ range will hopefully boost my stamina. If that happens, I may be able to nudge my pace back into respectable territory.

So here's the math problem:
  1. There are seven days in a calendar week. I am currently running six days each week and taking a rest day every Wednesday.
  2. The ratio of run days to rest days is 6:1.
  3. Running six days in a row is fatiguing and it invites repetitive injuries, especially to the feet.
  4. The cumulative fatigue discourages longer runs.
Here (I think) is the solution. See chart at top:
  1. Instead of keeping a specific rest day every calendar week, I will run six days out of every seven, but will insert a rest day after every third run.
  2. The ratio of running to resting drops from 6:1 to 3:1.
  3. Rest days happen based on the sequence, not on a fixed day, so some calendar weeks can have two recovery days.

This change has many positives but it could have an effect on my monthly mileage. The fixed rest day method typically resulted in 26 run days a month while the 3-on, 1-off method will be closer to 24. It will be harder to reach 80 miles a month at my present distance-per-run average, but I'm hoping that more frequent rest days will encourage me to add more miles per run. Knowing I'm never more than three days to a recovery day (or cross-training on the rower) should be a motivator.

Friday, July 24, 2015

Nothin' doing

I don't know why, but I've been tired and dizzy over the last couple of days. It may be due to an inner-ear thing, or possibly caused by a sinus infection or allergic reaction. I haven't suffered from allergies in the past, but I think I may have recently developed some pollen sensitivities. Whatever the cause, this condition has sapped my energy this week.

I was looking forward to a good week of activity and had enough energy on Wednesday afternoon to do an elliptical session when I got home from work. I was a little dizzy before that workout but seemingly fine afterward. Thursday was rough because the dizziness came back and my schedule was filled with meetings and presentations. Somehow I got through it.

I got a full eight hours sleep last night and expected to go out for a run this morning before I started my work day. Unfortunately the dizzy feeling and fatigue returned and I elected to wait until later, hoping that I'd snap back. By late morning I resigned myself to making this a rest day. I'm hoping I feel better tomorrow. No matter what I do, at least I won't be leaping across and jumping from buildings like SIOR will be doing on Saturday.

Friday, October 4, 2013

Tough Thursday, restful Friday

A well timed break
Yesterday's run (street): 3.5 miles

I'm not sure if it's connected to the flu shot I received on Tuesday, but yesterday I went from feeling tired to feeling exhausted. On top of that, I developed a sore throat that grew worse as the day went on. Unfortunately, I needed to be in the city to kick off a project, and that involved a lot of talking. It wasn't an ideal situation, but I managed to get through the discussions.

Earlier in the day, I did an easy run around the neighborhood. I'd woken up lacking energy and modified my original plan to work on increasing my cadence. I got out a little earlier than usual when temperature was still pleasantly cool. The run felt great and I thought I was off to a good start for the day. By mid morning that had all changed.

I've decided to forgo my run this morning. This is starting to become a habit, with the last couple of Friday runs being substituted for walks at Bethpage with my wife. We both have busy schedules today, so there will be no opportunity to get there today. I'm hoping that getting some additional rest today will get me back to full strength. I need to increase my hill training as I prepare for my upcoming 5K.

Friday, August 30, 2013

Work versus run, guess which won.

Timed out
I needed to complete a big project this morning, so I couldn't go out for my early morning run as planned. I realized that finishing that work would interfere with my run, because I needed to leave the house before 10:00 for another obligation. I decided that I'd go for a late afternoon run instead. Well, that didn't happen, and I decided instead to give my legs a break from a week of fairly hard running.

Tomorrow I'm planning another base run that will include hills. I'm not sure about speed, but no matter what, I'll keep it more intense than normal for a run of this type. I have high expectations for this workout, so I'm hoping that taking the day off today will help make things go smoothly tomorrow.

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Workout pending...

Today started early and was spent in the city. Last night I'd considered pulling out my headlamp and reflective vest and doing a 4:00 AM run, just like old times. But reality prevailed when I got up and I decided to forgo my workout. While nostalgia has its place, so does sleep.

By the time I got home, it was a sunny 86 degrees (according to my car's display). That discouraged me from going outside for an afternoon run. I'm still considering a climate controlled workout on the treadmill later, but then again, it may be better to wait and resume tomorrow. With my friend Chris coming by for a Stillwell run tomorrow, I'm going to need to conserve some energy. His idea of an easy run differs greatly from mine.

Friday, June 14, 2013

Workout sidelined

My chest cold now includes a deep cough among its symptoms. This cough, along with a full morning of conference calls, prompted me to postpone my workout. I was optimistic about running later, but I think I'll call it a rest day and move on. I'm hoping that skipping today's run will help my recovery. My favorite workouts are typically the longer base runs I do on weekends, so I'm counting on getting outside tomorrow.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

How pounding headaches lead to base building

There's something about daylong meetings spent in airless conference rooms that causes me to experience pounding headaches. Tuesday's meeting was intense. I lead an industry group that focuses on some fairly technical subject matter. After the sixth hour of intense debates and discussions, it became exhausting. A different meeting followed on Wednesday, and by 10:00 AM I knew I'd be in for a rough day.

I went to bed last night hoping I'd wake up feeling better. I set my running clothes up for a morning workout,  but the need for additional rest and the slight presence of a headache dissuaded me from getting on the treadmill. I think it was a good decision. This is the second or third week in a row where I took Thursday as an additional rest day, but in every case I felt the rest was justified.

The difference between running five days a week versus six isn't great, but it does put me a little behind against my weekly mileage target. So far, I've managed to make up for the loss of weekday miles on weekends. In a way, it has motivated me to extend my weekend long runs a little further than normal. I've been looking to build my base back up and that's a way to do it. I just wish the process to get there this week wasn't so painful.

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Increasing fitness by not running


Building fitness can be relaxing
I believe it's okay to take an ad hoc rest day every once in a while. I did it today and I feel no guilt whatsoever. While I will probably never get up and say, "Hey, I feel great, I think I'll skip my run", I didn't rest this morning because I was feeling weak or ill. What I felt was under-rested and I concluded that I'd be better off taking it easy, rather pushing hard and inviting a problem.

When you think about it, a day of rest is often better for you than a single day's run, because recovery periods are when your body actually builds fitness. That's holds true for a day or even two, but then it starts to go the other way. I've been doing workouts six days a week for the past few years. That generally works for me. My average run  (accounting for shorter distances on weekdays and longer ones on weekends) is 3.3 miles. This seems like the right amount of exercise to keep me fit and (knock wood) to prevent me from sustaining injuries.

The reason I don't feel any guilt for skipping my today's run is that I know I'll be back at it tomorrow. However, my decision puts me three miles behind in terms of reaching my weekly target of 20, but I can probably make up some mileage on Saturday or Sunday. In the meantime, I'm happy knowing that taking a rest was the right thing to do this morning.
 

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