Feeling Exhausted

You're anemic. Get a blood test.

My only question against anemia is, if I'm anemic, why has it taken this long to become an issue?

could be allergies.

some people have an allergic reaction that is different than runny, nose, sneezing. their allergic reaction tends to be more fatigue, irritability and mild to moderate depression.

I would get a blood test. That could check for anemia as well as elevated elevated monocytes that would suggest mono.

I had a great cross season and was in the best shape of my life and suddenly found myself drained all the time, especially at the longer distances. My throat wasn't sore and it took a long time to find out I had mono, and 5 months later I am just now starting to feel recovered.

Hopefully, it's just a rough patch, but I would get tested before you beat yourself down any further

Subtle changes can exacerbate anemia. Is your training load increased? Have you had any small diet changes? Are you sweating more than you were previously because the weather has gotten warmer? All of these things could cause anemia. Just because you have a balanced diet does not mean you are not anemic; iron is very hard to absorb. Everything from greens to nuts to dairy inhibits absorption.

The fact that you are struggling in longer repeats but are fine in shorter repeats points toward anemia.

You don't lose a base.

you are struggling to recover from workouts. It is easy to hit some early season workouts pretty fast and feel great and later by adding more stress and training loads to feel run down.

Talk to your coach and see if he feels you are over training and he can back off the workouts for a few days.

Focus on quality warmups. Work into it with strides.

If I have to do a tough workout like repeat miles or 400s I do that pace during warmups. For repeat miles do one 400 at your pace then rest before starting the actual workout. 400s i do one 200 at my workout pace to get the feel.

Monoman wrote:

I would get a blood test. That could check for anemia as well as elevated elevated monocytes that would suggest mono.

...

Mono refers to mononucleosis, an increased number of single nucleus white blood cells called lymphocytes. Monocytes are a completely different type of white blood cell and are not elevated during Mono.

fatigue/stress/anxiety

rest. Cut your Sunday runs in half or skip them.

Unfortunately, I've already been skipping my Sunday runs. I used to go for easy 6 milers on Sundays but for 4 weeks now I haven't run them at all.

On our long recovery runs I feel tired from early in the run, but I manage to run the whole time without fluctuating in pace much.

I've never had super severe allergies, but I went through a phase where I got mild hayfever in the Spring. Would it require more than over the counter drugs like Claritin or Zyrtec to deal with this if it's allergies?

Just to make sure I'm understanding everyone's suggestions, the possible causes include anemia, mono, overtraining/exhaustion or allergies? And recommendations are to get blood drawn to check anemia, possibly get checked for mono, rest more and take allergy medication?

I take vitamins along with a healthy diet, but I'll try to incorporate regular use of allergy medication. Can I get blood drawn and checked for mono in the same visit to the doctor? While I won't say it's impossible, I feel that overtraining is an unlikely cause. Thank you all for the advice. I will look into a doctor's appointment for mono and anemia.

you're over training. You're probably feeling guilty over taking Sundays off, so you're pushing yourself the other 6 days. Back off & chill for a week or so.

I did the same thing as a Sr. in HS. Ruined my season. A thousand others have done it too. Recovery is every bit as important as anyone's magic workout..

Do you get massages, take ice baths, do active cool downs with strengthening exercises? Good stuff to try.