I should point out that I have a fairly rigid personal rule I’ve adopted in recent years when it comes to racing. I only do one marathon every other year. I’ve done two in one year and learned that it just isn’t good for me. That’s not to say it’s not good for YOU, but I need time off to rediscover the joy in running and to let my body forget what I’ve put it through. In the alternating years I may do one or two half marathons but nothing more, distance wise.

What exactly is a running off-season?

Don’t freak out, a running off-season doesn’t mean you stop running. Oh gosh no, I wouldn’t be into that y’all. I’d need a doctors note and even then potentially someone to lock me in the house. Anywho…

A running off-season just means you’re not racing so you’re not doing race training and structured training level workouts. This period would normally only be a couple of months, but Covid’s not playing so we get a much longer period to reevaluate.

Why is an off-season a good idea?

A few reasons. Not the least of which is to prevent injury. Racing (yes all distances) is hard on our bodies. We often push ourselves to our limits and go at a level we just wouldn’t do out on a casual run. At some point, we need to take a break and recover, the length of time varying depending on how far and how often we race.

Mental burnout is also real. Just about every major race I’ve trained for has followed the same pattern. Sign up and get suuuuuper excited to start training. Start training and get suuuuuper excited for race day. Get about mid way through training and start to think about how good it’s going to feel to finish out training and get to that taper. Approach the final few long runs with dread and think OMG I’m so over this, I’m ready to be done with this stupid race! Finish the race and think OMG when can I do this again that was amazing! Ok that last part is a false high. A few days later and I’m glad to be sitting on the couch not thinking about a training schedule.

In some cases, you might also be coming off of a bad race. I’ve been there. (I’m looking at you Nashville Rock ‘n’ Roll marathon.) To be clear the race was not bad…MY race was bad. I’ll write about that more one day but back to my point. Coming off of a bad race leaves you feeling pretty poopy. You need time to re assess your running techniques and goals.

Conversely, you may be coming off an AMAZING race. Congratulations! Taking time to reflect on that and bask in the glow of victory never hurt anyone either.

What should you do in the off-season?

Whatever you want! Well, kind of. Depending on where you are in your activity level going into an off-season you may need more or less rest or “easy” days to get started. For instance if you did a ton of races in the last few months you might want to take it easy for longer than if you haven’t done many races lately. Don’t use this as an excuse to get squishy.

You can take this time to focus on cross training, focus on speed, form, really anything that makes you happy and benefits your future racing. Personally, I’m kind of in a hybrid off-season state where I have a goal race next year that I’m praying still happens but I’m not officially training yet, nor have I even registered. I’m focusing on getting faster and more consistent as a runner, so that when the race comes I have a better time of it.

Go for an unstructured run, maybe even, “gasp” without your watch! Just go out and remember how awesome it is that you get to do this. Remember WHY you do this. Remember you are a damn gazelle and ain’t nobody gonna tell you how to live your best life.

The post The running off-season (why 2020 will be ok) appeared first on Run Like a Kenyon.