I've been doing some research on how much time someone should take off after a season. Back in High School, I used to take about 2-3 weeks off between XC and track and getting back into the groove of things usually felt easier after week 2. But how long does it really take someone to lose their "running shape" or endurance?
How Long Does It Take For You To Get OUT of Shape?
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Depends on the person, and depends your definition of out of shape. For me, if I take 3 days off I feel terrible on runs for about 5 days. If I take a week off it takes a couple weeks to get back to feeling like I could pop off a 5k within 30 seconds of my PR. A few months ago, after a race I'd trained for for 3 months, I ran an average of once every 2 days for a month, and during that time I ate like crap (gained almost 15 pounds) and was generally a lazy slob. It took a couple weeks of normal running (got back to normal weight) before I felt like I was "kinda in shape"--which to me means 2 weeks away from running a race and not being too embarrassed about it.
In general? A week can leave you feeling stale, but after a season it might be necessary. Someone doesn't "lose" their running shape or endurance, they just get farther away from being able to access it. -
I also agree that it depends on the person. I nevery take more than 14 days off and then I gradually get back into it and within 2 weeks I feel like my old self. I read somewhere that usually anywhere between 7-10 days you lose little to no endurance. So maybe a 17 flat 5k guy tthat does not run for a week might end up running maybe 17:30-17:40. Not great when you were running at 17 flat, but not terrible considering you did not train for a whole week.
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Well, as an anecdote:
I ran all through high school. When I got to college I almost joined the team, but opted not to so I could focus on studies.
I've had two six week periods of consistent mileage in there, but otherwise I have done nothing for two years. Result? I'm an inch taller and 5lbs heavier than high school. I did a 5k in November off of four weeks of base mileage ranging from 4-40mpw. The time was only about 30 seconds off my high school PR (16:57). -
` wrote:
Someone doesn't "lose" their running shape or endurance, they just get farther away from being able to access it.
QFT. I'm going to say this again and again. Lifetime miles baby. -
You never lose talent.
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Every person has a different baseline level of fitness. This is something David Epstein talks about. Having a high baseline level of fitness means after a period of no training, you will be closer to your best times than someone who has a lower baseline level of fitness.
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I can only offer a personal note.
After 3 days of not running when in competitive shape, I do lose a slight "edge" that keeps me running smoothly during faster intervals.
After a good week of no running I will need a couple of mileage days to get back in the swing of things.
After two to three weeks I will usually need to come up with an entire recovery program.
I have no gone a year without a prolonged running program and am now planning to try some running on the upcoming 1st of January. -
I missed a workout due to flu a while back. I actually had to read a couple Runner's World articles to figure out how to start running again.
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I went from teh shape of my life to a week off and just started up again - 10 days ago I would do every run at 720 pace - this morning I clogged through 6 at around 8:00 and it felt hard - actually breathing hard.
weird how fast it goes
I'm sure next week I'll be pretty much back to running with ease, but it's stunning how fast I lose fitness. -
When fit, time off or relative rest enhances fitness--tapering, by another name. I can hold a peak for a month, on reduced mileage. The closer I am to the razor's edge, the less I lose by cutting back. When I am really beaten up, 5 days off are the ticket. When I started that, once or twice a year, I didn't know that B annister took off 5 days before 3:59.4. I can run about a month on 45 minutes a day of easy maintenance without losing aerobic capacity if i precede this with a couple of months of big mileage. The only deficit is neuromuscular, esp in turnover.
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11 days off after my marathon, day 1 back, I did slow jogging and hill sprints to help my nephew, day 2, hilly 7.5M between 6 and 6:30 pace. Without the hill sprints, I could probably have gotten within 30-40 seconds of my 5k pr on day 2. But progress is usually slow after the first week and it takes two months to get much closer.
