Hi,
I'm currently just "base building" at the moment, slowly building up my mileage, from a very poor aerobic base. Last week I did 23 miles. This week i've done 20 miles and plan another 5 miles tomorrow.
However, I'm then off on a long weekend break from Friday afternoon. This will involve boozing and eating badly probably, but no running. I arrive back late on Monday, and should probably be able to squeeze in a 4-5 mile run when I get in from work on Tuesday night.
Since starting running again 2 months ago, I've not had more than 2 consecutive rest days, so will the 3 (or perhaps 4 if I'm exhausted on Tuesday and don't run) day break do me good to recharge the batteries, or can i expect a regression during this short break? I suspect I shouldn't worry about it, and treat it as a recovery week, but how long do most of you give yourselves to rest? Do you ever drop running completely for a week or more? and how does that play into your overall conditioning?
Comments
Depends on the break - if I've had a long weekend with lots of beer and junk food then the first run back is hard, and my energy level feels low. If I've had a week off due to a cold or minor knock, I tend to run too fast on my first run due to the pent-up energy.
AG - have a beer for me while youre there
Here you go
The effect on aerobic fitness really depends on where you stand as a runner. If you have been running for 3 plus years and are a regular runner with good personal bests, your not going to lose much fast. If you have been running only a few weeks or months yes that fitness will be lost much faster. The better the runner the less you loose and the faster you get it back and visa versa.
makes sense Stephen, thanks for the link