A Day Off
With today being my only day off on a wekend during the month July, I decided to do something I rarely get to do…nothing. I am seriously thinking about not going outside, I am thinking about not going to the movies or to the mall. I am even seriously thinking about not working out! (although it will probably happen).
I am not a big believer in doing nothing. I feel that an object in motion tends to stay in motion and an object at rest tends to stay at rest. I do not want to stay at rest. However, in all do respects to the laws of physics, I think it is important to have a day of rest despite my fear of staying permanently at rest. The only reasons I would stay home is to either watch a big sporting event on TV, to clean my house and/or because I am sick. The latter has already happend. I had succomb to the pink eye about 2 weeks ago and I stayed home for 5 straight days. I will never scoff at anyone who has pink eye. I have never been so knockdown because of an illness in over 25 years. I literally visted the doctor everyday. I was simply miserable. However, Thanks be to God, I lived!
I feel compelled to say that as an athlete in training, it makes no sense to take a day off, simply because you feel the other athletes are not taking a day off. Why would you want to give them an edge? Why would you want to admitt that your getting old and slow? It is considered a sign of weakness to do nothing and take a day off from training.
However, nothing could be further from the truth. Rest is extremely important to an athlete. Yes, it is possible to over train, burnout and injure your body due to lack of rest. This would set you back on your training plan. It would lead you to lose whatever conditioning you have already established. Although I am not a big believer in it, I will take a day off from training on oassion and on certain days……….It’s just that today is not that day!
I have about 5 months until the Paralympic tryouts. Now is the time to put in cardio vascular training to create a solid foundation for activities held in the next 5 months. Today is not the day rest…besides isn’t that why God created Sunday. Stay active and use everything you got. Take Care & God Bless.