The Language of Burn out

This kills my pride, but it’s time for an unplanned down week.  I’m feeling burned out.

Oh things were so good just a week and a half ago.

Actually the weather was lousy a week and a half ago.  One of those days where just looking out the window gets you depressed. It was 33-34 degrees and raining.  If you’re from New England you’ve experienced these rain drops.  They’re fat, and thick and one step away from being snow.  They’ll soak you to the bone in a minute and chill you to your bones the next.

So I ran on the treadmill that day.  I decided to push it.  I did 3 x 2 mile with 3 minutes rest.  I-CRUSHED-IT.  All of them were 10:20-10:40.  And it was effortless.

I was riding high.

Keep running like this then and just imagine what will happen April 17th.

This week was a sharp contrast.  I have been ravenously hungry every single day.

I graze through the pantry non stop.  I just want treat after treat.

I am seriously tired all the time.  8 pm comes and I’m asleep in my chair.

I try to meditate and Zzzzzzzzz….

I try to read a book or a long article and Zzzzzzzz….

I’ll sleep 9 hours and then I can’t get out of bed the next morning.

And now my back is sore.  There’s a shooting pain that radiates up into my neck if I turn to my left too quickly.

I probably slept on it wrong but it’s been bugging me for weeks.

My body is telling me something.  It is clear as day.  This is how the body communicates.

But I don’t want to listen.

I want to believe that my 3 x 2 mile workout was just the beginning, that I’m just going to keep getting faster and faster until April when I taper.

Yeah, I’ll just put off that proper rest until April.  I’ll take a two week taper, watch what I eat and everything will come in line.  I’ll be ready to go.

No.  I’m old.  I know better.

It’s time for a down week.

Or maybe two.

However long it takes to feel right.

Success is not a straight line.

No one gets better and better and better.

Imagine a movie where all that happens is the hero wins.  That’s a boring movie.

You win one round (3 x 2 miles) and then you get taught a lesson a round later (this week).  To train well, especially as you age and your body recovers slower (first thing to go for me), you have to learn the body’s language.  This scene from ’13 days’ is analogous.

This is part of how our body communicates.  Aches, pains, fatigue= language.  You have to treat it as information and let go of any emotional attachment to the kind of training you’re doing.

I’d love to continue crushing miles and workouts but I need to listen to what my body is saying.

Sore, achey, hungry, tired.  The message is clear.

But so many runners ignore the message and push through.  Why?

Running rewards pain.  The more you can suffer the faster and further you can go.  When that general fatigue, or achy shins and knees appear we often think of it as one more obstacle to push through on our way to the finish line.  Our austerity will be rewarded.

Not all pain is created equal.  We all know the difference between good pain and bad pain.  You have to look at the pain and discomfort analytically and figure out what it is trying to tell you.  Learn your language.

There’s also an emotional component to the answer.  My daily run is an affirmation of my fitness.  It’s a reminder of part of my identity.  It makes me feel confident and strong.  Hitting the goal miles, the goal times reaffirms a sense of self and gives you the satisfaction checking a goal off of your list.  Missing runs chips away at that emotional identity.

And then there’s a chemical component.  If I skip my run then I don’t get my endorphin rush for that day.  Missing your endorphin rush for the day isn’t like alcohol or drug withdrawal, but it’s there.  I call it runner’s guilt.  When you’re training a ton and you take a day off, planned or otherwise, it’s on your mind.  Somewhere deep in your psyche you’re thinking ‘Maybe I can cut out and get in a few miles.’  I think it’s the missing endorphins urging us to get out there so we can feel whole again.

If you identify with any of what I’ve described above I want you to remind you

SUCCESS IS NOT A STRAIGHT LINE.

There will be bumps along the road.  You have to roll with them.  Will power can get you through, but it can also run you into the ground.

Listen to your body.  It has great instincts.

You tear yourself down with tough workouts.  Literally.  You break down your muscle fibers.  You are weaker after a tough lift, a tough run… and then your body adapts to the demands placed on it.  It rebuilds to run far if you ask.

To lift heavy if you ask.

To be more flexible if you ask.

It Specifically Adapts to Imposed Demands.  SAID Principle.

If you let it.

If you listen.

If you rest (occasionally)