A Week Off Running

Last week I took a whole week off from running, the first time I’ve done so in this calendar year. I wasn’t injured, I didn’t even feel like I was particularly unmotivated, I just did other things with my time and didn’t let myself be stressed about whether or not I was running. I went running last night and again this morning, and it felt great - I remembered why I enjoy running so much. Firstly, running at sunrise on a cold, crisp autumn morning is as life affirming an experience as experiences come. The world is still waking up so the streets and parks are quieter, the air feels fresher and cleaner in your lungs when it’s cold, and being outside for an hour at 7am is the only way I’m going to get any sunlight for the day, given it now gets dark at 4pm when I’ll still be in the office. Most importantly though, the feeling after a run is amazing. I feel less uncomfortable in my own body, and in my mind I feel like I’ve accomplished something meaningful, which is a great way to save an unproductive day or start a fresh one strong.

Overall I think it felt quite healthy to take a week off - it wasn’t the end of the world, I didn’t lose a tonne of fitness and it let me get back in touch with why I like running in the first place.