Stop planning your rest days

Most runners would agree that rest days are a valuable part of the training process as they are allow you time to recover from the stress that running causes on your body and mind. The frequency that rest days are used will vary between runner’s ability and experience. Elite runners may rarely take a rest day whereas a beginner runner may need 2-3 each week.

How you structure your running can be beneficial to get the best out of the training. For that reason we recommend to stop planning rest days into your training schedule. For most runners rest days are needed but every runner’s life is different and things can happen that stop you running. When this happens, take a rest day.

Planning to run every day and resting when feel you need to is a better plan. If you have pressures from work or family life that get in the way of running then take a rest day. If you start to feel a niggling injury and feel you need a day off, take a rest day.

Advantages to not planning rest days

• More flexibility for when you run
• Less pressure to run when you can’t
• Less likely to run through pain
• You’ll run more miles and improve

Quite simply things can get in the way of running and when they do you can take a rest day. When rest days are unplanned you have more flexibility around when you get out the door to run.

When your rest days are unplanned you have the ability to look after yourself when a niggling injury happens. Take a rest day get the body right and run again the day after. For this reason you’ll be less likely to run through pain and do further injury to yourself.

What culminates from an unplanned approach is you are able to run with more regularity and when you run you are motivated to run. When rest days are planned your structure is rigid and you can’t afford to take a rest day when the need arises. Keep them unplanned and you’ll run more and be more motivated on the times you run. This will help you run more mileage in the long term and this will improve you as a runner.

The most effective way to structure your weekly training is to plan days for your three key sessions   – these being your long run, interval session and hill repeats. These should be planned for days that give you the best chance to complete them, if things get in the way then being flexible and changing them is fine. Try not to run these sessions on consecutive days though. The remainder of the week will be scheduled for aerobic or recovery running and when a rest day is needed take it and adjust the week accordingly.

An unplanned rest approach takes the pressure off you to get out the door when time constraints, life or injury gets in the way. After all it’s supposed to be fun. Enjoy your running