This post needs to begin with the plan I was given, because I did not follow it.
I had received a vaccination on Friday. My doctor advised 48 hours without training. ChatGPT agreed and recommended cancelling Saturday’s tempo session. If I felt completely well after the full 48 hours, Sunday was supposed to be a very easy run of 45 to 60 minutes, roughly 7 to 9 kilometres.
Instead, I ran approximately 19 kilometres.
The data
| Metric | Result |
|---|---|
| Distance | Approximately 19.0 km |
| Time | 2:02:27 |
| Average pace | 6:26/km |
| Average heart rate | 134 bpm |
| Maximum heart rate | 148 bpm |
| Average power | 242 W |
| Elevation gain | 215 m |
| Temperature | 27°C |
| Perceived effort | 5 to 6/10 |
| How it felt | Enjoyable |
Much of the route was shaded and ran through the woods. I tried to keep the effort steady rather than the pace. I slowed down on climbs and exposed sections, then ran faster downhill or in the shade.
The run felt good and the numbers were strong.
What the coach saw
Compared with the previous long run, I ran around nine seconds per kilometre faster at slightly higher power. Average heart rate rose from 128 to 134 bpm, which was plausible given the quicker pace, the temperature and the recent vaccination.
| Metric | Previous long run | This run |
|---|---|---|
| Time | 2:03:52 | 2:02:27 |
| Average pace | 6:35/km | 6:26/km |
| Average heart rate | 128 bpm | 134 bpm |
| Average power | 236 W | 242 W |
| Elevation gain | 250 m | 215 m |
There was no obvious late collapse. My heart rate remained controlled, and I finished feeling positive.
A good run does not make the decision good
It would be easy to use the result as proof that running long was fine. That would be the wrong lesson.
The recommendation had been deliberately conservative because vaccine reactions can appear later, and because unusual symptoms during exercise should not be ignored. I asked for advice, received a clear answer and then exceeded the suggested distance by more than double.
The fact that nothing went wrong does not make that a sensible application of the coaching process.
This is exactly why I promised to document deviations rather than rewriting the story afterwards.
What came next
The following day was set aside for complete recovery. The next quality session would depend on normal resting values, no vaccine symptoms and fresh legs. If any of those conditions were missing, the intervals would be replaced by an easy run.
From a running perspective, this was the strongest long session so far. From a decision making perspective, it was the clearest failure of the experiment.
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