CUTBACK WEEK

Here is an ARTICLE that Coach Moore found that does a very good job of explaining a cutback week, along with its benefits. If you read nothing else, here's the first paragraph;

"Running is a balance of stress and rest. The harder you work, the more rest you need. Rest allows your body to recover. When you recover, you can handle higher bouts of concentrated stress. As you adapt, you can handle faster paces, higher mileage, and bigger workouts – and get sustainably faster in the process. Without appropriate recovery, your body breaks down, leading to overtraining, performance plateaus, burnout, and overuse injuries."

You've been working hard, you've earned it - take advantage of your cutback week. Plan your week in advance with the goal of reducing your weekly mileage by 20%. For example, if you've built your weekly mileage up to 30 miles per week, multiply 30 x .8 for 24 miles this week. There are 2 ways you can accomplish this reductions 1) spread that reduction out a little each day, or 2) take an extra day completely off. Also reduce your workload slightly when it comes to the number of reps of  speed workouts, hills, strides and even strength and mobility work.

Trust us, overtraining, performance plateaus, burnout, and overuse injuries can happen to anyone. You are not the one athlete that is immune.

If you feel like you still need to train during the cutback week, here are some ideas;

Meditation - check out apps like Calm, Headspace, 10% Happier for guided meditations.

Yoga - there are tons of online videos of yoga. Be sure to look for restorative yoga, not intense sessions that will require more recovery.

Journal - If you don't already, start putting your thoughts on paper. Confidence Journals and Gratitude Journals are a great place to start.

Mental Skills - This is a great time to work on your Mental Toughness Exercises, which you've already done, right? You can work on developing mantras, practice visualization and imagery, start a progressive relaxation routine with cue words, come up with a superhero power pose to show off at your next race.

Read - You can pick one of the mental skills books listed below or choose from others like;

Good for a Girl: A Woman Running in a Man's World by Lauren Fleshman. A running memoir that includes tales of self-doubt, body image, transitioning from high school to college, and so much more. A must-read for anyone who is an athlete or deals with athletes, regardless of gender.

What Made Maddy Run: The Secret Struggles and Tragic Death of an All-American, by Kate Fagan. A heart-wrenching story of a highly successful teenage girl and her struggles with mental health as she transitions to college.

Never Finished: Unshackle Your Mind and Win the War Within by David Goggins. While it may be hard to relate to the former Navy SEAL and ultra-endurance athlete, he never fails to inspire his reader to put in hard work and work towards greatness. 

Girls Running: All You Need to Strive, Thrive, and Run Your Best by Fairchild and Carey. It contains lots of great info for girls.

How She Did It: Stories, Advice, and Secrets to Success from 50 Legendary Distance Runners by Molly Huddle and Sara Slattery. A great history of women's running with stories that showcase the various roads to success.

Bravey: Chasing Dreams, Befriending Pain and Other Big Ideas by Alexi Pappas. One of my new favorites - deals with the importance of mental health.

Brave Enough by Jessie Diggins. I'm guessing a lot of you have read this one. Jessie opens up about her eating disorder and how she overcame it.

The Animal Keepers: The Story of an Unlikely Hero and Unforgettable Season by Donn Dehnke. One of my favorites and a best-kept secret. This story should be on the big screen.

Once a Runner by John L. Parker Jr. There's a reason this is a cult classic - because it does a terrific job explaining what we all feel when we are pushing ourselves to the limit, but can't find a way to express it.

Or find a book that doesn't have to do with running.