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Beat Down with Fatigue in the OS

Nate ParadyNate Parady
in General Training Discussions

Just a little rant as I am struggling here a bit.  So here I am in week 16 of the OS and I'm considering the "break glass in case of emergency" as described in the EN Outseason Recovery week document in the Wiki. 

I have had an awesome OS so far.  And if I count all the run work I did prior to the OS I guess technically I have more than 16 weeks of good consistent running in my legs than 16 weeks.  I've gone from Vdot of 44 to 51 and gone from FTP of 188 to 205.  Now, my body is throwing me little signs of new pains and I am just simply more tired than I should be. It has taken me a few days to realize the fatigue.  Mentally hard headed  so sometimes it really takes me a while to STOP and look in the mirror and say, "damn I'm freakin tired." Not Sick, but fookin tired and fatigued.  The past week I have had lack luster workouts to say the least and struggling to hit my bike workouts which almost NEVER happens to me.  Now for today, I'm looking at 3x12 at Z4 and thinking to myself, no freakin way, versus the usual, bring it on, it will be a fun challenge...

 

Causes:

1. Some "accidental" overachieving on some longer runs in prep for a 1/2 marathon coming up on 27 May.  Went from OS running on a treadmill to wanting to do a longer slower run but really just went hard outside for close to 8 miles.  Dumb.

2. last week work travel and putting my house under contract (selling our house and buying another) had me way behind on sleep. 

3. Stress from preparation for moving.  I don't feel that stressed b/c things are going very smoothly but I'm sure it's there.

4.  16 weeks of EN OS is just hard and I have seriously hit about 99% of all workouts.

5. Dropped from 153lbs to 149lbs...I think below 150lbs for me is a little bit of a risk for OS type effort...ramping up the calories a bit. 

 

I went for an easy 35 minute run yesterday (Tue) before pulling the plug because "easy" felt "hard" and I'm taking today OFF.  Probably taking Thur OFF or maybe an easy z1-2 bike Friday afternoon just to see where I'm at. 

 

I have 1/2 marathon on 27 May and I wanted to use this race to help set my pacing for IM Training. Olympic tri in August, and IMFL in Nov...

Cheers to some Rest and good food...

 

thanks...

 

Comments

  • Steve WestSteve West
    Nate,

    Taking an honest look in mirror is hard to do because we don't want to feel the 'ding' to our ego but it is MUCH easier to handle than an injury.

    Smart move to stand down. Lay low and absorb some of that fitness hiding in that deep pit of fatigue. You'll be stronger for it.
  • Joseph LombardiJoseph Lombardi

     Nate - good introspection...and don't fret....all that work is still inside you...

    I had similar situation about 3 weeks ago after doing the Hell of Hunterdon Ride and then not allowing myself to recover properly...and I pushed myself into a similar corner...tested lower...tired...dropped weight...fear of the workout (well ya know what I mean)

    I cut back and got the rest I needed and have bounced back even stronger....

    Catching yourself now...before plunging too deeply into the Frookin Hole....is key...

    Of course you know all this... Keep on Keepin On!

  • morpheusmorpheus
    It's a long year (after year, after year, after.....).

    Where do you want to peak?
  • mgraffeomgraffeo
    You're smart to recognize it. Now do the smart thing, get some rest, and go into the next phase of race prep strong!
  • Al TruscottAl Truscott

    Nate: +1 on Mike's comment - your analysis and prescription are right on. 2-3 days easy workouts or rest will get you back on the ball I bet.

  • Nate ParadyNate Parady
    Thanks for the comments all...Feeling better today, finally...I can feel some of that fatigue lifting from my legs and those little pains are gone. I'm giving it one more day (today) as OFF and then will slowly start up again on Saturday. Thinking back to last season, I started with the OCT OS. when I hit Thanksgiving I took a few extra days off and then did the same during X-mas. I'm realizing now that this "life getting in the way" was actually a much needed break for the mind and body.
    This season in the Jan OS, I haven't had those natural life getting in the way as much..

    @Chris, its all about IMFL for me...everything else comes a distant 2nd place. However, I was hoping to use the 1/2 marathon to help set up what my Vdot training paces should be when I load up the IM plan in the future. Right now I have a Vdot of 51 for 5K run test on a TM.
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