Rest

As an athlete it is so important to get enough rest. I know this might seem like an obvious thing to talk about but, I have a lot of friends who know this, yet they have injured themselves because they over work their bodies.

If you’re like me, you have a crammed schedule from the time you wake up to the time your head hits the pillow at night. I know it’s hard for me to find any time to rest in between school, homework, track practice, and being out and about. I learned though, that rest is more important than anything. Before and after a hard workout or a track meet it’s good to get at least eight hours of sleep. This means 8 hours of deep, sound sleep that leaves you refreshed in the morning.

Getting a good night’s sleep affects your mind as well as your body. I know that for me as a student, I can’t function when I don’t get enough sleep. I doze off in class, don’t do my homework, and dread track practice because I’m drained by the end of the day. I even get stressed more easily and have a lot less motivation, compared to when I feel rested.

Rest doesn’t have to only be sleeping. It can be a recovery work out, going on a light jog, maybe cross training, or simply a day off. As an athlete it is so important to not over work your body. If you leave your body no time to recover, you are at a much greater risk for injury. Listen to your body! If it’s telling you to stop, then you should stop. Giving yourself a day off is not the end of the world, and don’t be afraid to tell your coach (or yourself). It’s easier to prevent an injury than, to recover from one.

Here’s an example of what I mean when I say listen to your body. Last year my friend was doing really well in track. She was pushing herself extremely hard and at first was getting great results. Her times were dropping and it gave her a lot of motivation.  She continues practicing this way through the cross country summer miles and started doing two-a-day work outs. For a while it was working until she began getting shin splints. They kept getting worse and she finally had to stop what she was doing. This immediately halted her progress and affected the rest of the season. Because she didn’t take time to rest, she injured herself and was forced to rest longer she ever wanted.

Even though we as athletes want to perform our absolute best and train hard, we need to remember that a portion of that is resting and relaxing.

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