How do you de-stress?

From work deadlines, to family commitments, or relationships dramas; life can be stressful. In the right doses we need stress, and it’s certainly something that we factor into training cycles in order to improve. Stressing the body to perform, then allowing it to repair and recover. But what happens when stress is coming from many angles and not just training?

“I go for a run”; an answer I often hear. And certainly one I have used myself. But what if you favour a hard track or tempo session over an easy run as your endorphin hit? When you crave the most stressful training sessions to put your other life stresses to rest for an hour or two, it is unlikely that you are giving your body what it really needs. Rest or recovery.

Stress on stress is not exactly recommended, and certainly not ideal for performance. Perhaps there is room to see if you can find an additional avenue that might bring joy, relaxation or happiness to your life without adding stress.