I took August off from the newsletter and blog as a mental break, and then got Covid last week. Although I’m physically feeling better, I’ve been struggling to get motivated to write again. It feels similar to coming back after taking a break from running or exercising, and I’ve been thinking about breaks. How do we know when a break is helpful? How do we know how long of a break we should take? What do we do on our break? And how do we get back into a routine after taking a break? To be clear, I am not talking about being sidelined by injury. If you are injured, please see a doctor or a PT. I’m talking about when you feel tired, over-trained, stressed, and generally burnt out. Each of these questions is actually a pretty big topic that probably deserves a separate blog post, but for today, let’s look at the topic broadly. And, full disclosure, I do not and have not followed all of my own advice in this area.
How do you know when you need a break?
When you’re feeling burnt out, a break may help. Mental or physical burnout can affect performance not only in athletic endeavors but also in work or social and family life. Research shows that burnout can occur if you feel obligated to continue training even when you’re not enjoying it anymore, or when you lack a sense of agency over your work or training. If you are feeling overtrained and stagnant, a break might be helpful. If you’re not at a point in training that a break feels possible, you can try removing your feelings from the equation and practicing discipline. That can get you through a slump when motivation is lacking.
How long of a break is helpful?
That depends. You don’t want to take too much time off that you lose fitness or rhythm. Coming back is always harder than continuing. I think what you do with the break is more important than how long it lasts. Which brings us to…
What do we do on our break?
Make sure you do something really restorative, like spending time with loved ones or getting a massage. Take care of your body in ways you might not have had time to during busier times. Read a book (26.2 Book Club is reading Good for a Girl by Lauren Fleshman this month and I highly recommend it). Meditate. Take a class in something that has nothing to do with work or training.
How do we get back into a routine after a break?
This is tough. As I mentioned earlier, it is generally harder to return to work or training after a break than it is to simply continue. That’s when you have to dig deep and rely on discipline. How you feel about running actually has nothing to do with it. You run because you want to achieve your goals or because you want to stay healthy, not necessarily because you feel like running in that moment. Remind yourself of that as you work on building your routine. Be intentional about carving out time in your day to train. Once you’re in the groove, it will be much easier to keep going.
Of course, preventing burnout is the best option. Keep your eyes out for a blog post on that. In the meantime, I’ll try to practice what I preach, and hopefully help you out along the way.