No desire

[astrolin]

I finished my first Olympic distance tri 2 weeks ago and thought my fitness was going well. The only major race I have the rest of the season is the Army 10 Miler on October 4. Problem is even though I was running close to 7.5 miles a week in July, I am now having issues managing 5 miles without hitting a major wall.

I am wondering if one or all of the following are factors:
1) The heat, I live near DC and it has gotten hotter in the last few weeks
2) I have lost 8 pounds this summer and I am wondering if my body is bothered by that
3) I have pushed my body too hard

On top of all of this I have a friend wanting me to ride a metric century with her 3 weeks before the Army 10 miler and I am having issues deciding if I should. I am worried if my body is this tired now, if I do the metric century I will never be able to do the 10 miles.

Please help!

[pfunk12]

First, congrats on completing your first Olympic distance tri! That's a great accomplishment. I think it's tough for anyone to tell you what could be wrong because only you know your body and how it works. Only you know your running history and how you feel during and after your runs. Have you ever kept a training log? When I was a competitive runner, my coach had me keep a daily log and each week I had to send it to him via e-mail (he was in New Zealand). It didn't just focus on my running performance (mileage, speed, intensity, etc.) but it also focused on my energy level, hours of sleep, diet, etc. Based on my notes, I could usually pinpoint what was wrong with me or my training. However, there are always times when you're going to play the guessing game and you might never figure out what's wrong. So...are you eating well, getting enough sleep, stressed out, etc.? I do think that this heat and humidity that we are experiencing in the DC area may have something to do with how you are feeling. We had a wonderful spring and a great summer up until about 2 weeks ago and then the high heat and humidity hit. Your body probably isn't acclimated yet. I know that runners try to beat the heat by running early in the morning or later in the evening lately it's been really humid ALL day long so there is no break in the weather.

I think you have plenty of time to train for the Army 10 miler and I wouldn't think that doing a metric 3 weeks before will affect your performance. But only you know what you can do! I also think that if you are capable of completing an Olympic distance tri, you are capable of doing the metric and Army! What are your goals for the Army 10? Like I said, I would suggest keeping a log so you can keep track of how you are feeling each day and based on that, you can alter your training plans.

Good luck!

[Wahine]

It sounds like you've had enough for a bit. It's not unusual to have a low point after something like a first go at Oly tri. Here's my advice. Oct 4 is a way off. You already have enough fitness to finish it. What you need is some rest. I was at a low point like this once and the answer was 6 days off. No training. For every hour I would usually spend training... I would sleep instead. At the end of the 6th day I was raring to go again.

Keep us posted.

[astrolin]

Thanks! I do keep a training log, but rarely write anything other then the actual exercise in there, I think I will change that. I have also been under a lot of stress at work and usually that tends to help, but maybe it has gotten to be too much.

I really like Wahine's idea to sleep instead of exercise for a few days and let my body recover, I think I will try it.

As far as my goals for the Army 10 miler, I would just be happy finishing within the allowed time. I am actually a slow runner, but I think I can do it in about 2:15 or less.

[Cataboo]

I blame the heat & humidity - I know it's affecting my urge to do anything.

But give your body a rest too