When I resumed training last weekend following a week off after the Yorkshire Marathon, I did so with a mix of thoughts and emotions. I was disappointed that I’d arrived at the start line heavier than for any of my other Marathons and eager to put behind me the injury niggles which had restricted my running during my preparations. Yet at the same time, I was quite encouraged both by how I felt and the time I ran, and was optimistic that with a few small changes, I can get back to somewhere near my best over the next few months.
The smallest but most important changes come in terms of my night time routine. I’d already made good improvements in that area over the past year, but I’ve subsequently bought myself a dehumidifier which I run in my bedroom for at least half an hour before I go to bed. I’m also limiting my phone use in the evenings and switching the TV off at about 9pm. I was already reading before I go to sleep which I’ve continued to do, and the quality of my sleep throughout the past week has been very good.
This is hugely important because every part of a training plan is linked to sleep. Take your diet for example. The biggest challenge I’ve always had is extra snacks – my meals tend to be fairly healthy and well balanced, but there are times when I will be tempted by an extra snack or two during the day, which won’t always be a healthy option. However, this week because I’ve slept well, my energy levels have been good, which means I haven’t been tempted by those extra snacks. Everything I’ve eaten has been exactly what I’d planned the previous evening, which makes it far easier to ensure a balanced diet.
Sleep obviously impacts how well you train too, as it is the biggest factor in terms of how quickly you recover. I’ve felt fresher on some days than others depending on what session I did the previous day, but by spreading out my harder sessions, I’ve been able to ensure that I’ve hit my goal for the session each time, whether that be a steady zone 2 effort, longer threshold efforts or short intervals.
Whilst sleep impacts training, it is also worth remembering that training also impacts sleep. I have started planning my yoga around specifically what I need to get a good night’s sleep, rather than any longer term fitness goals – this could be around stretching out certain muscle groups that I worked hard during my training, or it might be around aiding my digestion if I’ve had a slightly larger meal.
When you think you are following a good process, you want to see that there are some good results from that process. If the results come, it makes it easier to stick to the process as it feels worthwhile, it feels rewarding. If you don’t get those results, then it can be disheartening. Across the week, it was a slightly mixed bag. My training numbers were promising, but my weight seemed to be stubbornly staying where it was. It can however take a few days for your body to respond to changes in training and diet, and over the past couple of days my weight and body fat has started to drop slightly, which is a trend I’d like to see continue.
This morning’s parkrun was a different type of challenge. Having had a rest day yesterday, when I was warming up my legs felt really good. I haven’t done a full effort at parkrun for a couple of months, so the temptation to do one today was huge. However, I have the Cov Half tomorrow, and given I should have an opportunity next Saturday to have a crack at a fast parkrun, I avoided that temptation. Instead, I ran at something slightly slower than 10k pace, with the idea being to get an idea about what type of pace I might feel comfortable at tomorrow without going too deep. I think I executed that plan fairly well, though we’ll see how I feel tomorrow.
Scorpo Stories 