Knowing When To Call It Quits
Happy Monday morning! Canada finally delivered on a perfect weekend of sunshine and I soaked up everything I could!
I was fully expecting to do a long run on Saturday but I am not going to lie, my legs were toast. I have a conservative mileage plan at the moment but my coach is piling on the intensity to prep me for some of my fall races. To make matters worse, I do extra curricular sports like it is my job, which aligns perfectly with my goals of soaking up the summer, enjoying life and playing out there, but doesn’t work so well with hard training schedules.
Sometimes I forget that it all counts and even though it just feels like fun, it is still stress on my body. Every time I have a twinge somewhere in my legs, my coach gets a hypochondriac style text where he quickly reassures me nothing is wrong. Saturday, I was on the golf course with my brother-in-law and he received yet another one from me. I was noticing mild shin splints and felt terrified that I was headed for another stress fracture.
Perfect day for golf!
I was feeling a little bit tired.
I was sore and to be honest, I didn’t want to lace up my running shoes and get out there. If you have read my blog for any length of time, you know that I have a personal rule that I will not go on a run unless I want to. It doesn’t matter if it messes with my training plan, my body is a better indicator of training needs.
My coach quickly reassured me it was fine, but instructed me to get on my bike and get in a long ride instead. I struggled with changing my training plan. I tend to be very Type A and changing a plan, especially based on circumstances I can control is hard for me. I felt as if I was wimping out or as if I was cheating on my training. It sounds ludicrous when it is typed out but for me, it is growth. Even a year ago, I would have just went ahead and ran the full distance, even though I was feeling a little exhausted.
Instead, I went on an easy morning ride.
I went to the beach in the afternoon, laid in the sand, soaked up the sun and swam by the piers. And I was ok.
This was the biggest thing I continue to learn from training – it is OK to deviate from the plan if it means listening to your body. I am an injury-prone runner and I need to respect that. It is all a part of training smart.
Please tell me I am not the only one who hates adjusting training plans.. when was the last time you skipped a workout or long run and why?
Best thing you did this weekend?
I called it quits last week. I’ve had a stupid lingering injury on my left leg for a number of weeks – pretty sure tendonitis. I’ve had to alter things a bit and concentrate on figuring out how to prevent it from flaring up. Super frustrating 🙁
It is so frustrating but I think the sign of a strong athlete is not how much you work but when you know when to rest. Hang in there, buddy!
Oooh yes you are preaching to the choir here! Like you, I hate having to adjust my training plan and do anything less than what my coach has planned for me, but I’m learning to be better about it because in the end, we know our bodies best. Good for you for listening to your body. It’s that sort of thing that’s going to mean you don’t ever get stress fractures again, and I think it’s a sign of a smart, strong athlete (which you are BOTH!)
I’m a new runner, so naturally last summer, I spent the entire time mostly injured. Ankles, knees and shins barking. This year, I wanna run a 10k in Sept…the Laurier Loop. I doubled the Hal Higdon 10k plan to make it 16weeks instead of 8…and I’ve been doing well. Letting my body adjust slowly has been the key. Also, I’ve shed the fair weather runner ideals. That’s helped too.
Long runs for me are nothing compared to your miles, but I chintzed out last Sunday by running 6.5k on the treadmill, when I should’ve just done it in the rain. Beat myself up about it for a day or so…
This weekend was hot, but the 7k I ran last night with my BRF was wicked. Mostly because we were together, but it helped that the GU I tried didn’t make me vomit, ha!!
LOVE THIS!!
Sometimes you gotta just slow down and do what works for you and your body!
It’s definitely important to listen to your body. It’s better to miss a couple of runs and be safe, rather than injure yourself and miss a couple of months of training. And I’m sure the bike ride still helped with your training 🙂
I know. But I am sure you understand that it is totally easier said than done!!
I’m in the same boat; recovering from double tibial stress fractures (I blame iron deficiency, age, too quick transition to low drop shoe, too many speed and hill workouts in the same month) which sidelined me all last year and even though I had to stop running entirely for two months last summer and three this past winter, every time I feel a twinge I panic because it’s common for stress fractures to recur if they don’t heal properly (which is what happened to me last fall). I used to run 200k a month with about two days off a week and cross training and I’m building back up slowly but averaging 3 days off. I’ve only been able to run a 15k thus far. Plans to run my first Marathon in the fall are on hold because I think it’s just too soon. A half might be doable. Honestly, I’m just happy to be running at all even if my fitness level is not what it was prior to the fractures. Anyway, what I’m trying to say is I don’t blame you for being hyper-cautious. We’ve been through a lot,;)
I’m a cyclist and a spin instructor and between training, teaching and trying to fit in cross training (running, swimming) sometimes I just get to a point where the legs do not want to do it anymore. I always struggle with this as I know I need to get out and train, but I also believe in the sports law of diminishing returns and really try and make a smart decision about whether or not pushing myself to go out will make me better or hurt me in the long run. But I understand your struggle – last week was a very heavy volume week and this week my body was asking me to take it easy – so much so that I fell asleep before the start of my Wednesday group ride and missed it. Much like you I try to take these things as a sign from my body that it needs a break and try to enjoy them – but it’s hard. I’ve had a pretty low mileage week so I’m looking forward to a nice long ride on Saturday.