Ease back in ? Y / N ?

fluffykitsune

I took an un-intentional 2 week break from running.
Before my break my longest run was 42mins (the day before). But this Saturday I was only able to run for 6 minutes and then I got winded.

I felt kind of defeated when I was only able to run 6 minutes. I'm very very eager to do at least 30 minutes on my next run day (Wednesday).. But I don't know if that is ok ? I do a lot better when I have a goal, so I can't just do what I think I feel like doing (I get mental blocks easily and will cut myself short). Should I ease my way back into it (Maybe try for 15 minutes, then 20, then 30?) or just try 30 and see what I feel like after ? Is 2 weeks long enough of a break to really even matter ? How long until the effects of not running / working out takes its toll?

VBnotbitter

I'm in a similar position, only with a 4 week break. Last night I ran for 10 min straight then a 3 minute walk and then another 10 min run. I was pretty tired but I figure by easing back in I should recover my earlier fitness without injuring myself. It will take less time to get that fitness back than the time I went not running.

rduhlir

Your fitness starts to suffer after 3 days of no activity. And it doesn't matter what type. It could be running, strength, or any other type of exercise.

That being said, however, 2 weeks shouldn't affect your so much that you can't run at all...unless you have just started running. If that is the case, I recommend dropping it down to 20 minutes and then add time each day until you are back up to 40 minutes.

likitisplit

What rdulir said. Except you probably need to try slowing down a lot for the next few days.

That's really the rule of thumb from now on: if running is hard, slow down.