When a new athlete creates a training plan, his biggest challenge is faithfully following it. After all, how great is the temptation to skip class and devote time to work or his favorite activity?

It’s a different matter for an experienced athlete for whom training has become integral to everyday life. Any missed workout hurts physical fitness, and athletic performance will inevitably decrease.

In this article, let’s discuss whether this is true and in what cases it is still better to take a day off than to continue studying.

5 Reasons to Skip

1. Lack of sleep

Good, full sleep is the basis for a healthy body and, consequently, for training productivity. Imagine that, for some reason, you did not sleep all night or had to go to bed several hours later than usual – in this case, there is no point in going for a daily run in the early morning. It’s better to give your body a full rest and replenish energy, and only then go for a run.

2. Overeating

We all know it is necessary to exercise for at least an hour and a half after eating.

Especially if the food was heavy and in large quantities. But sometimes, there are overlaps, and the time of the approaching workout practically coincides with food temptation. If you have a complex workout planned, including long endurance running or strength training, it is better to postpone it for several hours or postpone it to the next day.

Otherwise, exercising on a full stomach guarantees heaviness, side pain, and nausea. Thus, the productivity of such training is out of the question. But if you are planning a light jog before going to bed or walking, such a workout can be beneficial, as it will help you “shape up” what you eat and fall asleep faster.

3. Overtraining and excessive load

Overtraining is a state of the body when working at the limit of capabilities, and lacking proper rest causes chronic depletion of strength and energy.

The primary signal of such exhaustion is a reasonably high pulse at rest and sleep disturbance, when you want to sleep but cannot fall asleep.

Such signals should never be ignored. Allow yourself to get a good night’s sleep, give your body a full rest, and only then start running.

4. Illness or injury

As a rule, during ARVI, we feel overwhelmed. The body is weakened and fights the disease with all its might. 

If we load it with active tinting in this state, we can only aggravate the course of the disease. Even if you do not have a fever, and the symptoms of the disease are only a runny nose and cough, it is better to refrain from training.

The same applies to a deceptive state with a low, unnoticeable temperature – even if you have no other signs of illness and your health seems quite normal, there is an inflammatory process in the body, and the best thing you can do is give your body rest.

A few days after the onset of the illness, when the condition begins to improve, you can return to training with brisk walking or light short running.

The same can be said about injuries. You should not ignore painful sensations and continue to train, explaining this with fortitude, perseverance of character in the fight against difficulties, and other heroic postulates about the will to win.

In this case, taking a break and undergoing the necessary treatment is better than aggravating the problem – a minor injury without proper treatment can soon develop into a serious illness, and the recovery time will take much longer.

5. Chatting with friends and traveling

Despite all the benefits of exercise and its importance for health, you should not put your life on pause. This applies to communicating with friends, meeting loved ones, traveling, and family holidays.

Of course, it is very important to stick to a training schedule, especially when achieving better athletic results and improving physical fitness is in front of your reach. 

But you must admit that nothing irreparable will happen to your physical fitness from missing one workout, but if you miss a child’s matinee, a family dinner in honor of a loved one’s anniversary, or a meeting with classmates 10 years later, you can lose much more.

Or imagine that you are on a business trip or traveling. A long move, a new environment, a possible change in time zones – all this represents, albeit small, stress for your body. You should not go for a morning run if you have sleepless nights or have been working on organizational issues all day; run a planned endurance cross-country race in the evening. The best option is to postpone your workout or the next day.

Also, when traveling, it will be very convenient to plan your training schedule based on the type of vacation you plan. For example, if your vacation involves relaxing on the beach or in a sanatorium, then leave the same number of workouts. 

But if you have an active holiday planned, we advise you to change the type of training, reduce the load, or even stop training for a while. You will always have time and energy for morning exercises, and the benefits will not be as small as they seem.

Conclusion

In conclusion to our article, everything we talked about above is purely advisory. After all, each person has their reserve of energy, endurance, and strength.

 Therefore, everyone decides whether it is worth taking a little break today or continuing to train as scheduled. If you decide to take a break and recover, you should not blame yourself for this and should not worry about losing sports results.

After all, we cannot always be at the height of our physical fitness, and if your body asks for a little rest, it is better to listen to it. But then you will feel an even greater surge of energy and strength, which means that new peaks in sports achievements will become even closer!