Title: Give it a rest
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Blog Entry: There are a few marathons this weekend. A few tris. And the final crits of the year are mostly over if you live in a four season climate. So now what? The big races you trained hard for are over. The days are getting shorter and temps are dropping. This is a great time of year to pull things back; to give yourself a mental and physical break before starting your base training for the next season. As Masters athletes, this rest is even more vital for us now. I do know folks who can train and stay in or close to race shape for 10 to 12 months of the year. But in truth, I think that comes with a price, both mentally and physically. Resting allows us to recharge the batteries of both mind and body. If we take the time we need now, we are less likely to suffer burnout and injury further into our process. For me, racing well is as much or perhaps more mental than physical. I have to be in a place in my head where I welcome the hard work; where I have a fire in my belly to compete. And while that obviously can't be absolutely constant throughout a long training process, it has to be accessible. It's what gets us out the door to do the work when we'd rather blow it off and stay home. It allows us to stay in touch with why we do this in the first place. And if we lose that, nothing is at stake anymore. And we can quit. A break allows us to get back to that place in our heads where we welcome the work and the results that work provides. And even if we have moderated our time goals in the world of competition, the recharging we get from a couple of months of pulling back, still allows us to enjoy the training again. We can appreciate more fully the various stages of the work if we take some time away from the routine. You can still easily maintain good fitness in this time period. But I think it's good to reduce the "have to" list as I call it with regard to training and implement the "want to" list. Keep activity in but vary it. Do stuff you really enjoy. Lift, ride the bike, swim, play a sport you leave out of your schedule during training. Shake things up. Use different muscles in the cross training and if you still want to do some of your primary sport, go ahead. But reduce your overall number of training days in that sport. The goal is to stay fit and in shape while still giving the body and brain a break from the usual workload and type of work. If time allows, try to take a vacation, too. This time off, when coupled with a break from life as well, can facilitate a fresh perspective and a rested body. Always remember that resting is as important to the process and the training itself.
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