Time to rest

God I love rest days. There is nothing to beat that feeling of going to bed knowing your alarm isn't set with a 6 in it; a whole day stretching ahead without the need to perform any major juggling acts...bliss!
Ok, you're thinking,  'she's hit week 4 and the novelty's wearing off'. Knew this would happen. Knew it!
No, it hasn't, I've still got my mojo intact. But rest days are a bit like holidays. You know that feeling when you reach the last work day before a holiday? Trouble is, you have to work to appreciate it. The same goes with training. If you take an extra day off because you're tired, injured or just too busy, it isn't nearly as satisfying as a chosen rest day. Just like being sick and taking a day off work isn't anything like a well-earned holiday.

So, to capitalise on that, I'm trying to take a rest day at the weekend. Normally, weekends are the holy grail of long distance work. So your long bike ride and your long run would usually be scheduled in to the two days when you have the most time. But, I try to squeeze my long run in after work on Friday. Until the runs top about 15 miles or two-hours plus, I reckon that's fine.
It's also sad, but true, that I quite enjoy shaking off the cobwebs and getting out for a run at the end of the working week. Last night, I even managed to get out in daylight after bidding my young charges a good weekend, it was a case of lock the classroom door, quick change, then running out of school, hot on their heels at 3.10pm! Back an hour later which still left a couple of hours to mark jotters before the cleaners were ready to lock up at 6.30pm. Train smart - use your time well. It left me with quite a smug feeling as I drove home.
Rest days are a pretty vital part of any programme though. The science behind them is simple and conclusive - your body breaks down during training, it suffers micro-damage, that's normal. With rest, it can rebuild and it rebuilds stronger. the International Triathlon Union recommends planning your rest periods first, then building your training around them. I'm not going to argue with that!

Being on week 4, also means that this has been a slightly easier week. Without getting too scientific, most balanced training programmes work on the principle of periodisation. Which basically means 3 weeks of gradual build, slightly longer or slightly more intensity, then the fourth week you drop back a fraction. In reality, this has meant some of my runs/bikes have been 15mins shorter this week. As I look ahead to the next 4 weeks, my total training time is building to 10-hours a week. I think of it as slapping down more concrete on the foundations.
As for today, time to catch up with housework, schoolwork and then a trip to watch the rugby, Glasgow Warriors v Toulon (chance to see Jonny Wilkinson in action!) with my son Sam...it's what weekends were made for.