Originally Posted by stanette
First post, first question.
I noticed this after my time off during Christmas holidays. After 10 days doing absolutely nothing, my legs REFUSED to pedal. My usual endurance pace felt like a 30 min time trial! It took a week and a half to get back to my usual self.
Same thing when I take a day or two off. For instance, after 6 days of good work, I gave myself a break yesterday. Today, back on the bike. Guess what? NO LEGS! They were sore everywhere from the first minute to the very last (40 min total). As usual, I suppose tomorrow will be easier and I will be in good shape by the middle or the end of the week. Now I will not take these first rides easy, not at all. It seems that the harder I work, the more legs I have the day after.
So the question is... WHY??? And should I just take recovery rides instead of days totally off the bike?
Because you're probably overtraining.
Time off after christmas? What did you eat during the 10 days you were off over Christmas break (be honest)?
My thought is perhaps you're not as trained as you think you are- then you overdo it for your workouts, then by the time you get your day off, you've already pushed too hard. :-/
My 2 cents.
Koffee