Rest days - will my fitness suffer?
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That motto is most applicable if one is working out 20-30 or more hours a week and at maximal a few sessions in a week, but for the rest of us it depends. Vast recreationals and amateurs really don't train that hard. Most of us will crack mentality before hitting our physical limitations.
OP, listen to your body.
20-30 hours per week? Not true. It's applicable to those who are doing 7 - 15 hours per week as well. Especially those who are age 40 and above...
Don't forget intensity, periodized training, peaking, and tapering. I'm in the peak/taper portion of my training cycle and it is amazing what the build up of the past 22 weeks has led to in this cycle. Much fewer hours on tap for me this week, next and beyond compared to what I've been through. Nothing over 8 hours per week in this peak week...0 -
SingingSingleTracker wrote: »20-30 hours per week? Not true. It's applicable to those who are doing 7 - 15 hours per week as well. Especially those who are age 40 and above...
Don't forget intensity, periodized training, peaking, and tapering. I'm in the peak/taper portion of my training cycle and it is amazing what the build up of the past 22 weeks has led to in this cycle. Much fewer hours on tap for me this week, next and beyond compared to what I've been through. Nothing over 8 hours per week in this peak week...
15 hours a week over 6 day @ 80/20 is roughly 900 TSS or 150 TSS/day. Where "150-300 is medium work load (some residual fatigue may be present the next day, but gone by 2nd day)" A. Coggan. 7 hours is roughly 460 TSS @ 80/20, 77 TSS/day. 77 TSS is a 60 minutes ride with ~30 minutes at sweet spot ride (0% high) or ~15 minutes at 105%-120% of FTP. Good but not a very hard workout. A second rest day a week is nice but not necessarily. I do plan it every third week to make sure I'm not too fatigued (been lazy recently and more like every other since July).
At 48 and only riding for the last two years after 23 hiatus, I feel it on the 2nd day on a 250+ TSS/day but fine under 200 (depending on whether my AWC is in a depleted state for majority of ride). 15 hours a week is my upper limit with a 9-5 job and not crazy doing 80/20. 8 hours a week @ 80/20 is my sweet spot as I find it hard to hit the intensity riding outdoors (flatlander) and need the trainer.
Haven't used TRIMP since college but same idea.0 -
You guys are like scientists with your formulas and here I am struggling to work out how long my beach run is LOL3
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If you really are running that fast, I wouldn't be asking us anything. You're easily the fastest person on these forums and we should be asking you for advice.0
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shesthetype wrote: »Okay now I'm MEGA confused because I mapped a drive on the road alongside the beach and it is indeed 3.6kms one way. Aaaaargh.....
EDIT: Okay, worked it out properly now and it is indeed 7.2kms. I've been training for a long time so maybe I'm just fitter than the average person?
It's a little more than just more fit than the average person. You would be running a 5k on sand faster than the women who qualified for the US Olympic team running on a track.
At your lower end, you'd be winning a lot of local road races.
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3dogsrunning wrote: »shesthetype wrote: »Okay now I'm MEGA confused because I mapped a drive on the road alongside the beach and it is indeed 3.6kms one way. Aaaaargh.....
EDIT: Okay, worked it out properly now and it is indeed 7.2kms. I've been training for a long time so maybe I'm just fitter than the average person?
It's a little more than just more fit than the average person. You would be running a 5k on sand faster than the women who qualified for the US Olympic team running on a track.
At your lower end, you'd be winning a lot of local road races.
I FINALLY managed to crunch the numbers properly and the result is....it's 3.6km round trip, not one way. Now I feel like a complete drongoloid for telling people my best time because I look like a massive liar lol. So I'd say 3.6kms in 20 to 25 minutes is low to average in time. On the upside, I have new goals to set now
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shesthetype wrote: »3dogsrunning wrote: »shesthetype wrote: »Okay now I'm MEGA confused because I mapped a drive on the road alongside the beach and it is indeed 3.6kms one way. Aaaaargh.....
EDIT: Okay, worked it out properly now and it is indeed 7.2kms. I've been training for a long time so maybe I'm just fitter than the average person?
It's a little more than just more fit than the average person. You would be running a 5k on sand faster than the women who qualified for the US Olympic team running on a track.
At your lower end, you'd be winning a lot of local road races.
I FINALLY managed to crunch the numbers properly and the result is....it's 3.6km round trip, not one way. Now I feel like a complete drongoloid for telling people my best time because I look like a massive liar lol. So I'd say 3.6kms in 20 to 25 minutes is low to average in time. On the upside, I have new goals to set now
That's not shabby at all. The only reason people question the times before is that while running a 20 minute 5k is a pretty good goal for most fit people, each 30 seconds or so that you drop off of that takes an exponential amount of effort. Going from 22 minutes 20 minutes is really hard work. Getting from 20 down to 18 is more than double the effort of the previous goal.
No worries at all. If you're wanting to make tracking easier and you're interested in seeing times improved (some people don't care) then get a GPS watch or just run an app on your phone while you run. (Strava, RunKeeper, etc.)
That makes tracking pretty easy.2 -
shesthetype wrote: »3dogsrunning wrote: »shesthetype wrote: »Okay now I'm MEGA confused because I mapped a drive on the road alongside the beach and it is indeed 3.6kms one way. Aaaaargh.....
EDIT: Okay, worked it out properly now and it is indeed 7.2kms. I've been training for a long time so maybe I'm just fitter than the average person?
It's a little more than just more fit than the average person. You would be running a 5k on sand faster than the women who qualified for the US Olympic team running on a track.
At your lower end, you'd be winning a lot of local road races.
I FINALLY managed to crunch the numbers properly and the result is....it's 3.6km round trip, not one way. Now I feel like a complete drongoloid for telling people my best time because I look like a massive liar lol. So I'd say 3.6kms in 20 to 25 minutes is low to average in time. On the upside, I have new goals to set now
That's not shabby at all. The only reason people question the times before is that while running a 20 minute 5k is a pretty good goal for most fit people, each 30 seconds or so that you drop off of that takes an exponential amount of effort. Going from 22 minutes 20 minutes is really hard work. Getting from 20 down to 18 is more than double the effort of the previous goal.
No worries at all. If you're wanting to make tracking easier and you're interested in seeing times improved (some people don't care) then get a GPS watch or just run an app on your phone while you run. (Strava, RunKeeper, etc.)
That makes tracking pretty easy.
All of this.2 -
I take rest days when I feel I need one or when my schedule dictates. It's not necessarily every week. As long as there's some variety (i.e. not lifting or doing cardio every day), and you're not training for hours, you should be fine.1
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Your fitness and health will suffer if you do not prioritize recovery and rest days. You can actually cause a lot of harm to your body (and your fitness level will plateau) if you don't rest enough.
Trust me, I understand the psychological part of not wanting to rest and recover. However, if you educate yourself on it and realize you can actually make rest and recovery feel like training - then that part won't bother you. Since I sit at a desk most of the day my rest and recover usually involves walking, light aqua work, and lots of foam rolling. I make recovery a priority and see it as part of my training program.
If you are looking to take two days of rest instead of one, perhaps re-evaluate your entire training routine. You may need to switch some stuff up. If you don't follow a real training program, then you may want to look into one that fits your goals.1 -
I tip my hat to you. Or would, were I wearing one.
I've seen far too many posters make a mistake, then double down when that mistake was pointed out or questioned. You, on the other hand, posted where/how you got your numbers, looked to see if the others were right, and acknowledged an error.2 -
I tip my hat to you. Or would, were I wearing one.
I've seen far too many posters make a mistake, then double down when that mistake was pointed out or questioned. You, on the other hand, posted where/how you got your numbers, looked to see if the others were right, and acknowledged an error.
I shall fashion you a hat out of tinfoil lol. (Full on picturing the tinfoil hat in the movie Signs haha).0 -
no guilt. This is what keeps me from getting repetitive strain injuries. Those days off are important.1
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Your fitness and health will suffer if you do not prioritize recovery and rest days. You can actually cause a lot of harm to your body (and your fitness level will plateau) if you don't rest enough.
Trust me, I understand the psychological part of not wanting to rest and recover. However, if you educate yourself on it and realize you can actually make rest and recovery feel like training - then that part won't bother you. Since I sit at a desk most of the day my rest and recover usually involves walking, light aqua work, and lots of foam rolling. I make recovery a priority and see it as part of my training program.
If you are looking to take two days of rest instead of one, perhaps re-evaluate your entire training routine. You may need to switch some stuff up. If you don't follow a real training program, then you may want to look into one that fits your goals.
I haven't done any cardio/running for 3 days now (just weights) when usually I do it at least every second day. This morning I got back into it and I was very surprised to find that my usual results were all that little bit better! Burned more calories and made better time. Interesting how I assumed that results would go backwards if I rested and instead like everyone has said, if anything I've actually improved. You learn something new every day!1 -
My training volume is on the high end of normal and I KNOW the necessity of rest days and I still feel guilty when I take the day off. I always feel better the next day, however. If I do feel compelled to do something on a planned rest day, I make sure it's not stressing whatever I'm supposed to be resting. (Like swim or walk around.)
If you are really enjoying running, I'd encourage you to get a GPS watch. The Garmin 220 is nice and getting affordable as newer models come out. The GPS watch can free you from running the same place all the time.1 -
Vladimirnapkin wrote: »If you are really enjoying running, I'd encourage you to get a GPS watch. The Garmin 220 is nice and getting affordable as newer models come out. The GPS watch can free you from running the same place all the time.
It's going on my Christmas list! It will make things much easier to work out and calculate
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shesthetype wrote: »
I haven't done any cardio/running for 3 days now (just weights) when usually I do it at least every second day. This morning I got back into it and I was very surprised to find that my usual results were all that little bit better! Burned more calories and made better time. Interesting how I assumed that results would go backwards if I rested and instead like everyone has said, if anything I've actually improved. You learn something new every day!
Bingo! You finally made it to the yellow section (supercompensation) which I circled in the chart. That's how we prevent plateaus, and move our fitness forward to greater heights to reach our potential. It happens in short training blocks, as well as longer training blocks, as well as years.
Congrats! Now tear it down again with more training, use some recovery - and reach new heights for your next supercompensation period.
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