Since deciding to dedicate more effort to squeezing some performance out this quadragenerian vessel, I have set a slightly more demanding load in place. I increased the volume by about 10-15% on what I was doing before and on my more challenging workouts I am pushing small margins over the effort I was putting out before. So this really only means a couple of extra total miles a week and maybe a 5 second per mile increase in speed over numbers I have been holding consistently for the last year or so. I also have been setting my alarm 25 minutes earlier and doing a yoga regimen focused on core mobility and strength.
I am just shy of three weeks in on this increased regimen and I think I am already feeling a bit strained. It is hard to tell if it is the additional workload, however, because this lat month has also been very busy. With holiday parties, events, decorating, gifting, and general merriment . . . we have been pretty busy. That and a new role in my job has meant everything non-exercise related is extra busy as well. Needless to say, I am tired. This morning I got up early for my long run which I have been pretty excited about the past couple of months because of good progress I have been seeing on those. Despite a fine double espresso, I had that old familiar feeling/though that "I don't want to do this." Mostly just because I was tired and I kind of felt like I was dragging myself out the door.
Nonetheless, the run went well and I am glad I went and did it. But it was definitely noteworthy that this is the first time I have felt that way pre-workout in a long time. I have also been generally tired and although it is not making me non-functional, it is more tired than I want to be in my actual day to day life. I know it is early in the game with the increased workload and this month is much busier than others. So I am hopeful that the increase in tiredness and dip in motivation is not a sign that the additional training is too much for me to handle.
I think this level of drain is probably a bit beyond what I would prefer. So, if my energy levels don't normalize after the holiday craziness dies down and I have a couple of blocks on the new regimen, I may reconsider whether it is worth it. Since I want to make sure I have enough energy to engage in and enjoy my real life, it is not worth it to me to be overcooked form training all the time. I guess this is an element of the process I will just have to pay attention to.
No comments:
Post a Comment