It is important for athletes to have a day off periodically and for most athletes, a scheduled day off every week is the best approach. It is well known that consistency in training combined with appropriate rest and recovery time, will result in an improvement in fitness and therefore, performance.
Most triathletes compete recreationally*, alongside work and other commitments, which also place a demand on an athletes time and energy. While allowing your body to heal from the physical stresses of endurance training, a scheduled weekly day off can allow time to attend to other commitments.
It also allows an "escape" from the sport - just one day per week. You may think that the last thing you want is an escape from the sport you love, but there are advantages to this weekly retreat. As a coach, I often refer to the day off as a "triathlon-free-day". Avoid triathlon magazines, watching Ironman videos, going to triathlon websites! Get the picture? This approach has great affects in avoiding burnout as the season progresses. Where this practice is maintained, I have rarely experienced an athlete lacking motivation or wishing the season would come to an end.
If I have a working athlete, with a family, who is planning on a summer Ironman, there are times of the year I would advise that a weekend day become his day off, knowing that when the training volume increases leading up to his big race and the weekends are going to be consumed with training, his time with family will be reduced. So, in cases like this, there are certain advantages in terms of having support at home, with regard to longevity in the sport, that can be effected by that day off and even where it's taken.
Basically, there are many advantages to having a weekly day off, that "highly motivated" athletes may never realize.
*It is accepted that most triathletes also take the "recreation" seriously!
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