Enjoying My Rest Week

I wasn't originally planning on making this week a rest week but between all of the terrible runs I had last week and how tired I was at the beginning of the week I switched moved my rest week up a week. Now that the week is more than half way over I am sure I made the right decision. So far I have enjoyed two rest days and have slept in almost every morning. All runs have been easy and in general I have been more relaxed this week. I am taking advantage of my extra time to take care of tasks around the apartment that I have been putting off for weeks. I have also knocked out all of my homework and have gotten a head start on next week's work.

Tomorrow I am running 10 miles and for the first time in weeks I am not stressed or anxious about that number. I know I can run 10 miles and I am actually looking forward to the run. Last week's 14 mile long run gave me so much anxiety that the idea of running 16 this week completely overwhelmed me. After a few days of rest and relaxation, though, I am getting excited about tackling my long runs again.

I am also looking forward to a weekend without traveling anywhere. Every weekend since I started school at the end of August I have been going home to deal with random things. For the first time this semester I am just staying at my apartment and hanging out. I am going to finish cleaning up my apartment and do simple things like make pancakes for breakfast and watch a movie. I feel like I have been go-go-go for so long lately that all I want to do is sit on the couch with a chai tea latte and watch a good movie.

It can be really easy to get caught up in training and to get the mentality to always do more. I constantly feel like I am not running enough so the thought of taking a rest week daunted me a little bit but it is proving to be exactly what I need. What I am most surprised by is how much stress can affect training. I started the week so stressed I thought I was going to have a breakdown, especially after last week, but now I feel ready to tackle my three weeks of peak training.