Day of Rest

Today is my "rest day" on my running plan. It's sort of funny, or ironic anyway, because Thursday is probably my busiest work day and today was especially busy. But as far as running goes, Thursday is rest day.

Since I'm on a five day a week plan (Higdon), I get two days off from running. My other day is Sunday, but I don't really even notice running or not running since it's just a busy day anyway.

But I do notice Thursdays. I get to sleep (at least as long as the kids do!), I get to hang out and have my coffee and read the paper without rushing too much. It's kind of nice.

But I feel like something's missing on Thursdays. I feel a little sluggish. It's harder to wake up when you're not running before the sunrise, and I don't have as much energy for the day. I'm hungrier, like my body's making up for lost time or something.

Aside from all this, I think, and I've read, that the day off is a vital part of training. Physically, your body can repair itself for the long run to come in a day or so. But mentally, you get to "miss" running, and to be ready for the next day. A running sabbath, which maybe is stretching a bit or maybe not, comes just when I need it, and not a minute before.