Recovery Week

I love participating in ultras. Really. I hate the week afterwards, however. Sometimes the week after a race is so difficult for me that I wonder why I put myself through it at all.

First there is the fact that I can barely run for a week. I kinda need to run to keep an even keel in my life. I get grumpy when I don't run. Ask my family. Ask my students. I just taught 3 three hour labs in the last day and a half and I was on edge the entire time.

Then there is the fact that I never get anything else done on the weekend of a race; no chores around the house, no grading or other work related responsibilities, nothing. This means I need to spend the following week catching up on all the stuff I should have gotten done over the weekend, in addition to keeping on top of all the new stuff life throws at me.

Making matters worse is that I seem to need at least twice as much sleep as usual during recovery week. I need a lot of sleep as it is. I can never seem to get enough after an ultra.

I also eat twice as much as usual during recovery week. Seriously, when I'm not sleeping, or thinking about sleep, I'm eating. I just can't ever seem to get satiated.

I know this all normal. Expected blowback from what I've put my body through.

Mostly though, I'm just a little irritated right now that it is going to be months before I get to do it again.