High School/Jr. High track.
To be more detailed, in Kentucky.
My boyfriends little sister just decided she wanted to join the Track team at school, and their Mom is trying to figure out how long it will last.
3 Answers
You should definitely take a break. I would say 2 weeks or even longer if you could, but it really depends on how hard you’ve been pushing your body. The harder you’ve been running without any real break the longer you need to take a break now. When I was in high school our track coach would force those of us in CC to rest for 4 weeks after the State meet before we began to get into track shape. We put in a lot of miles for a few months and at that pace your body really does need time to rest and recover or you will more than likely begin to suffer from muscle fatigue which can get serious and possibly end a season for you as it did for a couple of the guys I used to run with. In my opinion, you should kick your feet up for the next 2-3 weeks at least. You can continue to do core workouts and stretch, but I wouldn’t even lace up the running shoes until you legs feel completely refreshed. The thing you really need to realize is that you have plenty of time to get into great shape before CC practices begin after you take this break. So many athletes try to overwork themselves the Summer before their Senior season and it ends up biting them as the season wears on them. The people who overwork themselves now are the people who end up riding the stationary bike during practice while everyone else is improving. It took me shin splints, a stress fracture, and a torn hamstring before I learned that lesson.
In the North West its 2 1/2 months for every season, and 2 more weeks for state.