Episode 18: Don't Try To Maintain Peak Fitness On Vacation

One thing I've noticed over the years is that runners are often very aware of the training they might miss, but they're not nearly as aware of the training they've already done.

Think about that for a moment.

If you've been running consistently since January, you've probably accumulated hundreds of kilometers.

You've done easy runs when you didn't feel particularly motivated.

You've completed intervals on days when the weather wasn't exactly inviting.

You've squeezed training into a busy schedule.

You've built week upon week of work.

Yet the moment vacation approaches, many runners start acting as if all of that fitness is sitting on a shelf, ready to fall apart at the first sign of a missed workout.

But, but that's not how the body works.

Fitness is not something you borrow, it's something you build.

Every run leaves a small deposit.

Every week adds another layer.

Every month strengthens the foundation a little more.

And the stronger that foundation becomes, the harder it is to lose.

I sometimes think runners view fitness a bit like a phone battery.

If you're not constantly charging it, it immediately starts running down.

But fitness is much closer to building a house.

The work you've already done remains there.

The walls don't disappear because you stop building for a few days.

The foundation doesn't vanish because life becomes busy.

Of course, fitness isn't permanent.

If you stop training completely for a long period, things will begin to change.

But we're usually talking about vacation.

A week, two weeks, maybe a few weeks where training becomes less structured than normal.

That's very different from stopping altogether.