Words by Taylor Thomas
Coach Taylor is the Founder of TEC and a lifetime endurance athlete. For more information on coaching services, or to schedule a free orientation call with an expert coach click HERE.
As an athlete it’s not a matter of if, but when a workout is missed. Most athletes manage a full-time job, family responsibilities, other hobbies, and a thousand other things in conjunction with their training schedule. Life happens and workouts will be missed. With that fact out of the way let’s look at how to best move past missed sessions, and set yourself up for success moving forward.
One Workout Doesn’t Create Fitness
So often athletes will put undue pressure on a singular session thinking that it will be the one that accelerates fitness. While certain sessions can be important for race prep and can be breakthrough performances, no single workout creates the final product. Optimal fitness is built through consistency and over time. By shifting to a mindset of long term growth and consistency the pressure that so often accompanies workouts can be alleviated. Don’t stress over one missed workout. That stress can manifest itself in negative ways that will ultimately impact the quality of the sessions to come. Put the workout out of your mind and set your sights on what’s to come. If a long day at work or a sick child is what caused you to miss what was on your schedule do what you can to set yourself up for success. Instead of squeezing in the missed workout late at night, or too close to the next scheduled session, focus on rest, quality sleep, nutrition, and hydration so that the next training session is a high-quality one. Give yourself some latitude when it comes to missing one workout every now and again. You’ll be better for it in the long run.
Refocus Your Energy
Athletes are naturally motivated and focused individuals. They have to be to set their sights on big goals and achieving their potential. However, that motivation and focus, if not harnessed properly, can be to an athlete’s detriment. It can cause athletes to put too much pressure on themselves, their workouts, and their performance. So often one missed workout can set off a chain reaction of negative thoughts and performances. As soon as it’s clear that a scheduled workout is going to be missed it’s critical that a mental shift occurs allowing athletes to look forward and not dwell on the missed session. Too many athletes get stuck in a downward spiral that can quickly lead to more missed workouts, eroded confidence, and dwindling motivation. Look forward and immediately begin working to set yourself up for success. More often than not missed workouts are more about how an athlete processes things mentally and emotionally and much less about any impact that the session has on their fitness. Do yourself a favor and move on!
How to Handle a Long Break
Sometimes things are out of our control. We get sick for an extended period of time, have a transition at work, have to move, travel, or any number of other scenarios that may cause extended pauses inconsistent training. These are the moments that, if not handled correctly, can derail an athlete’s training, goals, and season. How long is a “long time”? If the time away from the primary discipline has been 10-14 days or longer it’s more than likely going to require some restructuring to the training plan. Training is written to be progressive, so if 2 weeks are missed then jumping back into the training plan as it was originally written may be too challenging. Start with adjusting your expectations and goals. Realize that while you may have had a perfect plan laid out, things have now changed. It may take a few weeks to rebuild and get back to feeling as strong as you were before the time away. Near term goals may also need to be adjusted. If the break occurred close to a race then the impact of the lost fitness should be evaluated. Again, most of this boils down to expectations. Aligning expectations with reality is an important aspect of sustainable success in endurance sports. Give yourself time to rebuild. This will always be more productive both mentally and physically than diving back into workouts that are too challenging and negatively impact confidence and motivation. A long break doesn’t have to be the end of the season, but it should be approached with care and a critical eye to ensure success moving forward.
Training, just like life, is dynamic. Plans will change, workouts will be missed, and expectations will need to be adjusted. Most importantly you can control how these missed sessions impact your success in the future. How you view each workout, as well as your journey as an athlete is what’s most critical. Move forward whenever possible, and if you’ve been forced to take a longer break reassess and set yourself up for success. Missed workouts don’t have to be a defining moment if you handle it properly.
