Keeping up what i have gained...?

Question

i am half way through my marathon training, i run 5 days a week with one long run(16k +) and hill training ( 3k warm-up, 6 hills 3k cool-down) and fartlek.

my question is this past week i haven't ran because i was in a wedding ( too busy) and then i got sick. i know i probably lost approx 10% of my aerobic ability that i have gained, but what is the longest amount of time i can go not running before it becomes detrimental to my training plan? was a week too long? will i get it back quickly?

thanks...

Answer 1

One week is not going to make a big difference. It takes about 2 weeks to lose an appreciable amount of training.

Missing one week is going to take you a little over one week to get back to where you were before.

Answer 2

Obviously, a lot of it depends on your current fitness and how long you've been running (many years or just these past few months for training). Don't get too discouraged though, because the last time I trained for a half marathon, I had to take 3 weeks off mid training! I hurt my foot and then got sick...I thought for sure I'd have to run a race at a later date or just skip it altogether, but I ended up catching up really fast and setting a new personal record. It only took me about a week to get back to where I was after taking so much time off. In fact, the week off might actually IMPROVE your running. Sometimes a little bit of rest is like recharging a battery. You come back stronger and better than before! Just go back into it easy the first couple of days.....don't start off right away doing speedwork, tempo runs, etc....and cut off a mile or two from your next scheduled long run....make it 8 miles instead of 10, or whatever.

Remember, A lot of it is in your head. So, make running a challenge that is fun and something to look forward to. Don't spend too much time worrying whether you've put in enough miles, eaten the right thing, have to stop and take a walk break once in a while. All of that stressing is counter productive to having a good time and a good pace on race day....Good luck with your training!