Playing safe

Playing it a bit safe tonight and having the afternoon off. The original plan had been to run tonight, but if I am honest I haven't pulled up super duper from my run last night and I would like to run in the morning, so I think running tonight might not be the best idea. In a normal week my program is to run Monday, Thursday, Friday, which will avoid the Wednesday, Thursday, Friday triple, but this week it just didn't work out. The triple run, combined with the fact that I am still building up training made me think that resting this afternoon might be the smarter option.

I am always talking to my athletes about listening to their bodies. I would say about half of my correspondence with the athletes I coach is about management of niggles, aches and pains and illnesses. Usually athletes know deep down what the need to be doing to manage their issue (ie rest), but they usually like a bit of coach reassurance before doing so, which I am happy to give. All part of the job.

Resting this afternoon is an example of what I mean when I tell the athletes to listen to their body. There is a fine line between taking the easy option and being silly. You don't want to be slack and always make excuses for not training, but if your body is genuinely giving you a message that something isn't 100%, then you would be an idiot not to listen to it. My body isn't telling me something is wrong, but it is giving me a strong indication that I am on my limit and that pushing too much harder would be courting disaster. I would prefer to rest today and train properly tomorrow and I would much prefer to rest today and not be injured on the weekend, therefore, I think the decision to rest is a bit of a no-brainer.

Knowing when resting is the sensible thing and then giving themselves permission to do so is probably one of the biggest challenges that I think athletes make for themselves (and yes it is self-inflicted). However, learning when to train and when to rest is a skill they need to develop if they want longevity in a sport. And it really is a skill that athletes need to develop for themselves. As a coach I can advise on what I think is best, but in the end only an athlete can feel what they feel, so only they know whether they need more training or rest. Luckily for athletes, in my experience, it is a skill that develops with time, so all they need to do is stick with it.