Due to fatigue,I took 2 full days off(almost,swam 1000yrd). When totally spent(still 10 weeks out from CDA).Is it a bad idea to take 3 days off. Should I push through some training (2hrs) tomorrow,or just wait till I am fresh. I just finished a huge 3 week build. (for me). Did 15-17 hrs per week. Always told that recovery is where you make your gains. If still wiped,should I wait another day? I NEVER take 2 days off. Wrestling with the obsesive compulsive and recover,relaxing. Thanks
I agree–REST.
It sounds as if your body is telling you to take it easy, (or you are in the early stages of some illness.)
Having said that. If you really want to do something, do a fairly easy weight workout (if that has been a part of your routine.) It can be refreshing.
But, if you are really bushed–Rest.
Thanks Mike. Need the encouragement. Have been fretting. Did a century,then the next day 1 1/2hr run, took a day off and felt fine. Then rode a 60 miler with 2 GIRLS…They kicked my ass…like a fool tried to keep up and it seemed to put me in the abyss!..Though your reply was one word,Thanks
Thanks also. You replied while I was typing…Itis so easy to get caught up. Thanks you all. I have just heard so much about blood volume dropping ect ect… I think you are right . Listen to the body…I think it might just be a matter of time till those liitle voices take over like Mr Tibbs.
you say GIRL like it’s a bad thing!
No not at all. But geez…I like a “little” ego. Actually,I should know better. The one gal I ride with is 44.Until a recent accident she is/was a sub 2:50 marathoner. Now she bikes. In my best dream I can not keep up with that engine. The other is 25 and hoping to qualify for her pro card at CDA… I am a 44 yr old hoping and working for 3 years to break 12hrs!! On the ride home of that 60 miler,I was pulling when the one gal got in front and said…No way we are going to let you get home and say you pulled us girls!..Now I am asking about days off…Enough said Bad thing .No Way They are great freinds
just teasing you.
when i was a kid, if i wrecked a car or something (and i wrecked a lot), my dad would say, “you’re driving like a girl; quit driving like a girl!”
so years ago when brooks did a campaign, “you run like a girl - good for you!” i cut the quote out of my shoebox and mailed it to him.
my mom framed it and sent it back and it sits on my desk giving me motivation to train on days when i don’t feel like it.
hope you feel better soon. i vote rest, too. and look forward to seeing you at CDA!
girl runner 
rest + stress = improved performance.
you can have too much stress and make some gains but if you don’t back off later or sooner then your going to crash. When in doubt, take a nap
You can see us there. Ther are 8 of us from Billings Montana. My wife and I have a place with a full kitchenette and a BBQ outside 1/2 mile from the start site. We plan on being there thurs and cooking for any that will show up every night. We would love to have you! When it comes closer to race time please keep in touch. Did you do CDA last year? I am hoping for a slowtwitch meal.
I am with you… I too am doing CDA Ironman… Also burnt from some long days… 120 mile bike ride, longer runs and 2 hour swims. I am spent… Getting junk food cravings… I am opting to take the next two days off… see how I feel and back with the build hopefully fresher and stronger.
Dan
Cool - I live in Boise but grew up in Bozeman - small world! I didn’t do it last year, but…due to the temps I wasn’t really sorry I missed it…this year I’m hoping will be much more moderate. I’m staying with some friends just outside CDA - would love to stop by and BBQ or at least say hello - probably Friday night…I will keep you posted. Thanks for the invite!
You would not happen to be doing the “Griz” tri in two weeks in Missoula? The reason I do this stuff is this, After all the training,all the sacrificing, its the enjoyment of not just the race but the sharing with others who understand. Danco3636 tou are welcome also. When it gets closer to race day we will post for the party. We have to meet before the race so we can share the race!
Nope…hadn’t even heard of the Grizzly one - would be fun though. You guys are making me feel like a big slacker - my longest ride so far was yesterday and just 60 miles. Yikes - I’d better get my rear in gear.
Looking forward to meeting y’all before the race. Happy training!
“Does three days off make a dif?”
Answer - No!
I think that I have seen it written that it takes almost two full weeks off to notice a decline in some of the key endurance fitness parameters.
Relax!
I think Fleck would argue that 3 years off (in his case), would not make a difference either. He’d likely pound you and I off zero training in a decade. The guy used to do 9 hour Ironman races on 9 hour of training per week. So you have the 13 hours in 13 weeks plan, the Fleck, 9 hour Ironman on 9 hours per training plan. I wonder if I train 8 hours per week if I could duke it out with the pros…unlikely. If I recall, Fleck even went sub 2:50 at IMC 1991 (albeit on a course that was 1 mile short).
Dev
Sorry for spoiling your nap, but I do think that 3 rest days can hurt you more than help you. If you really feel tired, you should do one workout a day, active recovery stuff, but get out there every day. Your recovery rate will be a lot better if you do active recovery.
Also the research is not on your side, since only after a week of total rest, several physiological drop down. One of the first is blood volume, which in turn is the first one to go up again.
My guess is that after your 3 days rest you’ll feel really bad when working out on the 4th day and feel that you haven’t recovered yet. That’s not the case, it was the 3 days that caused it.
Recovery is not rest. Rest might not be recovery.
Paulo
I think you should rest. I have observed a strange phenomenon since cranking up the training for the IM distance(Lake Placid), and it is this: The second I push past my limit for volume and intensity, my immune system shuts down. This has happened to me twice in the past couple of months, each time at the end of a Build cycle just before a rest week. I’ll be feeling fine, working hard, no worries. Then I will do one workout that is too long, or too hard, and the next morning I’ve got a sore throat, a couple of boils act up, and I’m just run down. I also get sick sometimes after a really hard race(like a 1/2).
I’m home sick today because I pushed too hard at the swim championships for my masters team on Sunday. By Sunday night I felt awful. But this is a rest week and rest is what I’m getting.
Usually, with a couple of days of resting, I feel 100% better, and am able to pick up the workload again with no trouble. In my case, I think this is related to having had mono about 15 years ago. Ever since then, I seem more prone to illness when I am rundown. And endurance training is all about balancing your workload.
Like the others have said, you have to get the miles in, but you also have to get enough rest to put out the effort next time.
Good Luck at IMCDA!
This seems to happen to me also. I was fine until the last workout. By 2hrs after my legs were toast. The next day,after swimming 60yrds,stopped and walked to the side of the pool.I could not beleive how tired I was. Yesterday,did nothing. This morning I woke up and felt muh better,thought,I must have really been an ass to my wife the past few days. Did not even realize how bad my mood was in the tank. …If I have time,I may swim today. Otherwise will pick up things tomorrow. Thanks for the reponse.
To smartass coach. Thank you for the advice. As said I will probably do a swim today. Two days off was defintly a good thing. (though I did some light hiking yesterday).
Its amazing on how you do not know how bad you feel until you start feeling better
From the amount of training you’re doing (15-17hr Max, 60mi long rides), I would say that a short swim on sunday, a light hike yesterday and another swim today are good active recovery activities, so it turns you are following my advice
.
Cool!!! Yeah I was fine after the century and run…It was that last 60 miler trying to keep up with those darn girls!