13. How Planned Breaks Prevent Burnout
In this episode, I’m diving into one of the most effective strategies for avoiding burnout: the planned break. Many runners fear taking a break, believing they’ll lose fitness or fall off track. But in reality, taking a break with purpose is essential for sustaining your passion and energy for the long haul. Without intentional breaks, you risk burnout, which can derail your progress and motivation.
I’ll walk you through three key questions to ask when planning a break so that you come back stronger, clearer, and ready to keep pushing toward your goals. Whether you’re recovering from a race, addressing life priorities, or simply needing some space, a planned break can be the reset you need to avoid burnout and continue training for the long term.
Taking time off isn’t quitting; it’s resetting with a purpose. Discover how you can incorporate these breaks into your training schedule, making them a powerful tool for long-term success.
If you’re loving the show, please take a moment to follow, rate, and review wherever you listen to podcasts today!
What You’ll Learn from this Episode:
The three essential questions that transform random time off into a strategic planned break.
Why setting a firm end date immediately relieves the fear of never returning to the sport.
How to define specific accomplishments for your break without turning it into a self-development project.
The reason forcing yourself through training when you're not motivated creates more problems than solutions.
Why knowing when to step back from ultra running is part of running well.
Listen to the Full Episode:
Featured on the Show:
If you’re loving the show, please take a moment to follow, rate, and review wherever you listen to podcasts today!
Episode 12: Burnout Isn’t What You Think: Recognize the Real Signs
Full Episode Transcript:
Welcome to Unstoppable Ultra Runner, the podcast for ultra runners who refuse to let anything hold them back. I’m your host, Susan Donnelly, veteran of over 150 100-mile races, and a coach who helps runners like you break through mental roadblocks, push past doubt, and run with confidence. Let’s go.
Hey you all. Welcome to episode 13. Last week we talked about burnout: what it is, what it's not, and why most runners are mislabeling the normal ups and downs of training as burnout.
So now that you know what burnout is and isn't, let's talk about one of the most powerful tools for actually avoiding the real thing: the planned break.
Here's the situation. Your big race is over, or maybe you just don't have another big race lined up right now, and you're feeling a little directionless. You don't have a goal to train for. Or honestly, you might just be tired, and you've got other things you set aside for training that need to come first for a while, like family, work, or something that's just been on the back burner too long.
But at the same time, a voice in your head says, "You're supposed to be training. You're supposed to be tough. You can't afford to get lazy." And the big fear that is really lurking behind all of this is that if you take time off, you'll lose your fitness and have to start over from zero, that you'll never get back to where you are now.
So the typical solution here is that you try and force it. You start browsing races and you just pick one that seems like it will do, thinking it's going to get you going. The race will get you motivated, but the truth is, you don't really care about it.
You're just going through the motions, telling yourself you need to do runs, and they're runs you don't really want to do. And you can't manage much of a long run. You bail out on yourself or you cut it short and you kind of feel stuck somewhere between guilt and rebellion.
And here's the reality: ultra running can take a lot of effort. It's not an easy thing, otherwise everybody would be doing it. But it can't take everything all the time from you. We have real lives. Most of us who are doing this sport have real lives, and pretending otherwise doesn't make you tougher, it just makes you more tired and stressed.
So, let's fix that. If you're here, take a break, and not just any break, a break with a plan. One that you choose and define, not one that you just kind of slip into without meaning to.
Here's how you can do it. And I'll walk clients through three questions when we do. They're three simple questions, but they work. So it's not asking the question, it's really asking the question and putting thought behind the answer.
So the first question is, what is your end date? And the reason I ask this first is because I don't want you to leave this open. I don't want you to leave this break open and just kind of let it go on until some vague time like "until I'm rested." That's just too vague to know when you actually get there. That's what makes runners afraid to take a break in the first place, actually, is fearing that they'll just keep going on break and they'll never come back.
So when I help clients design their own purposeful break, sometimes just picking the date, like three weeks from now, six weeks from now, whatever it is, a certain date, it's unexpectedly a huge relief for them. I can see it on their faces. It lifts that fear that, gosh, I might never come back if I go on break. It lifts that fear off their shoulders.
With a firm date, you're not wandering away so long from the sport that you lose your desire and never come back, and you're not quitting the sport. You're just taking time off from training and racing with intention. You know you're coming back, and you know when you're coming back.
So that's the first question: What is the end date?
The second question is, what do I want to accomplish with this break? And I want you guys to chill, everybody who is an overachiever, I want you all to chill. This doesn't have to be some kind of big self-development project. You just might want to rest, or to heal a lingering injury, or to drop down to maintenance mileage and get more sleep for a while. Or you might want to knock something off your plate that's been nagging at you, like finishing a work project, or help your kid do something, or clean up the house and get it ready to sell.
Whatever it is, define it. Use the break for something specific. So you use the time you're giving yourself in a way that is going to leave you feeling better at the end. That's what that question is intended to do. What do I want to accomplish with this break?
Third question: What do I want to feel at the end of it, and how am I going to make that happen? Do you want to feel recharged, organized, passionate for the sport, rested, strong again? And how are you going to do that? I want you to think about that and come up with an answer. And that's going to depend entirely on the feeling that you want to feel at the end of it.
And I really don't want you to breeze by this question because if you decide now how you want to feel at the end of it and you plan for how that's going to happen, that's going to make this break feel so worthwhile at the end.
So those are the three questions: What is the end date? What do I want to accomplish with this break? And what do I want to feel at the end of it, and how am I going to make that happen?
It's a simple set of three questions, but it works. I've had clients light up from going through these three steps because it doesn't just give them permission to take a break, it puts them back in charge of managing their running as a whole: deciding when, why, and how they will train and race, and also when, why, and how they're going to take breaks.
That shift to being back in charge and not feeling like you have to be racing all the time just because, because that's what a real ultra runner does or because, because, that changes everything. Being back in charge of your racing changes everything. And it's what lets my clients run on their own terms again and feel like they're in control of it rather than kind of being on this roller coaster and the roller coaster is taking them along this ride.
I've had clients use this intentional break right after their A race, where they've spent months of training hard for a goal, which is great. And instead of jumping straight into another race and a training plan that they don't really want, they give themselves time to play for a while and let that drive come back without the pressure to perform or to build towards anything, just to feel the drive and enjoy it.
And I've had clients use it when life needs to be the top priority for a while. There's weddings, graduations, surgeries, holidays, school, travel, summer with the kids, taking care of family, processing grief. These are real things in our lives that deserve space. And ultra running doesn't have to be the top priority all the time for you to be a real ultra runner or to do well.
In fact, knowing when to step back from ultra running and let it breathe is part of running well, especially when you're in this sport for the long haul. And often, both that need for a break after the A race and need to make life a top priority for a while, those things often happen at once. For example, a big race wraps up and now it's time for something else to come first for a while.
That's part of being a long-term ultra runner. You've got to be able to shift priorities and you've got to be able to take some breaks from it. Ultra running doesn't survive when it's forced to be everything all the time. And planned breaks are a way to balance it all in a way that feels comfortable and good to you because it's very defined and you know you're not going to just leave the sport and never come back.
In fact, I'm actually taking my own break right now. I needed to get over a lingering injury in plenty of time for my next hundred in two months. And I also wanted to finish a couple of projects I haven't been able to get to while I've been traveling and going to races.
So it's going to feel good to get these things off my plate and it's going to be easier for me to focus on the race when I get into it without these things kind of pulling me and distracting me and feeling like I should be giving my time to something else. It's actually going to work in my favor and give me a better race.
So, here's the takeaway. Planned breaks like this don't set you back. In fact, they actually make your ultra running healthier in the long run, for years to come. You don't have to stop running entirely, and you don't have to drop your identity as a runner. You're not quitting; you're resetting with a timeline and a purpose and a clear outcome.
Taking a break on purpose like this and coming back stronger actually teaches you that you can trust yourself. That's what keeps this sport sustainable for years. It's not grinding out nonstop month after month after month and not chasing every race, but pacing yourself like somebody who's in this sport for the long haul.
So, if you need a break, take one. But plan it and make it the break you need. And then come back on your own terms: stronger, clearer, and still in love with the sport.
Alright, that's it for this week. Share this episode with a friend and I will see you next week. Bye.
Thanks for listening to Unstoppable Ultra Runner. If you want more ultra talk, mindset tools, and strategies for running with confidence, visit www.susanidonnelly.com. This podcast receives production support from the team at Digital Freedom Productions. That’s it for today’s episode. See you next week.
Hey you all. Welcome to episode 13. Last week we talked about burnout: what it is, what it's not, and why most runners are mislabeling the normal ups and downs of training as burnout.
So now that you know what burnout is and isn't, let's talk about one of the most powerful tools for actually avoiding the real thing: the planned break.
Here's the situation. Your big race is over, or maybe you just don't have another big race lined up right now, and you're feeling a little directionless. You don't have a goal to train for. Or honestly, you might just be tired, and you've got other things you set aside for training that need to come first for a while, like family, work, or something that's just been on the back burner too long.
But at the same time, a voice in your head says, "You're supposed to be training. You're supposed to be tough. You can't afford to get lazy." And the big fear that is really lurking behind all of this is that if you take time off, you'll lose your fitness and have to start over from zero, that you'll never get back to where you are now.
So the typical solution here is that you try and force it. You start browsing races and you just pick one that seems like it will do, thinking it's going to get you going. The race will get you motivated, but the truth is, you don't really care about it.
You're just going through the motions, telling yourself you need to do runs, and they're runs you don't really want to do. And you can't manage much of a long run. You bail out on yourself or you cut it short and you kind of feel stuck somewhere between guilt and rebellion.
And here's the reality: ultra running can take a lot of effort. It's not an easy thing, otherwise everybody would be doing it. But it can't take everything all the time from you. We have real lives. Most of us who are doing this sport have real lives, and pretending otherwise doesn't make you tougher, it just makes you more tired and stressed.
So, let's fix that. If you're here, take a break, and not just any break, a break with a plan. One that you choose and define, not one that you just kind of slip into without meaning to.
Here's how you can do it. And I'll walk clients through three questions when we do. They're three simple questions, but they work. So it's not asking the question, it's really asking the question and putting thought behind the answer.
So the first question is, what is your end date? And the reason I ask this first is because I don't want you to leave this open. I don't want you to leave this break open and just kind of let it go on until some vague time like "until I'm rested." That's just too vague to know when you actually get there. That's what makes runners afraid to take a break in the first place, actually, is fearing that they'll just keep going on break and they'll never come back.
So when I help clients design their own purposeful break, sometimes just picking the date, like three weeks from now, six weeks from now, whatever it is, a certain date, it's unexpectedly a huge relief for them. I can see it on their faces. It lifts that fear that, gosh, I might never come back if I go on break. It lifts that fear off their shoulders.
With a firm date, you're not wandering away so long from the sport that you lose your desire and never come back, and you're not quitting the sport. You're just taking time off from training and racing with intention. You know you're coming back, and you know when you're coming back.
So that's the first question: What is the end date?
The second question is, what do I want to accomplish with this break? And I want you guys to chill, everybody who is an overachiever, I want you all to chill. This doesn't have to be some kind of big self-development project. You just might want to rest, or to heal a lingering injury, or to drop down to maintenance mileage and get more sleep for a while. Or you might want to knock something off your plate that's been nagging at you, like finishing a work project, or help your kid do something, or clean up the house and get it ready to sell.
Whatever it is, define it. Use the break for something specific. So you use the time you're giving yourself in a way that is going to leave you feeling better at the end. That's what that question is intended to do. What do I want to accomplish with this break?
Third question: What do I want to feel at the end of it, and how am I going to make that happen? Do you want to feel recharged, organized, passionate for the sport, rested, strong again? And how are you going to do that? I want you to think about that and come up with an answer. And that's going to depend entirely on the feeling that you want to feel at the end of it.
And I really don't want you to breeze by this question because if you decide now how you want to feel at the end of it and you plan for how that's going to happen, that's going to make this break feel so worthwhile at the end.
So those are the three questions: What is the end date? What do I want to accomplish with this break? And what do I want to feel at the end of it, and how am I going to make that happen?
It's a simple set of three questions, but it works. I've had clients light up from going through these three steps because it doesn't just give them permission to take a break, it puts them back in charge of managing their running as a whole: deciding when, why, and how they will train and race, and also when, why, and how they're going to take breaks.
That shift to being back in charge and not feeling like you have to be racing all the time just because, because that's what a real ultra runner does or because, because, that changes everything. Being back in charge of your racing changes everything. And it's what lets my clients run on their own terms again and feel like they're in control of it rather than kind of being on this roller coaster and the roller coaster is taking them along this ride.
I've had clients use this intentional break right after their A race, where they've spent months of training hard for a goal, which is great. And instead of jumping straight into another race and a training plan that they don't really want, they give themselves time to play for a while and let that drive come back without the pressure to perform or to build towards anything, just to feel the drive and enjoy it.
And I've had clients use it when life needs to be the top priority for a while. There's weddings, graduations, surgeries, holidays, school, travel, summer with the kids, taking care of family, processing grief. These are real things in our lives that deserve space. And ultra running doesn't have to be the top priority all the time for you to be a real ultra runner or to do well.
In fact, knowing when to step back from ultra running and let it breathe is part of running well, especially when you're in this sport for the long haul. And often, both that need for a break after the A race and need to make life a top priority for a while, those things often happen at once. For example, a big race wraps up and now it's time for something else to come first for a while.
That's part of being a long-term ultra runner. You've got to be able to shift priorities and you've got to be able to take some breaks from it. Ultra running doesn't survive when it's forced to be everything all the time. And planned breaks are a way to balance it all in a way that feels comfortable and good to you because it's very defined and you know you're not going to just leave the sport and never come back.
In fact, I'm actually taking my own break right now. I needed to get over a lingering injury in plenty of time for my next hundred in two months. And I also wanted to finish a couple of projects I haven't been able to get to while I've been traveling and going to races.
So it's going to feel good to get these things off my plate and it's going to be easier for me to focus on the race when I get into it without these things kind of pulling me and distracting me and feeling like I should be giving my time to something else. It's actually going to work in my favor and give me a better race.
So, here's the takeaway. Planned breaks like this don't set you back. In fact, they actually make your ultra running healthier in the long run, for years to come. You don't have to stop running entirely, and you don't have to drop your identity as a runner. You're not quitting; you're resetting with a timeline and a purpose and a clear outcome.
Taking a break on purpose like this and coming back stronger actually teaches you that you can trust yourself. That's what keeps this sport sustainable for years. It's not grinding out nonstop month after month after month and not chasing every race, but pacing yourself like somebody who's in this sport for the long haul.
So, if you need a break, take one. But plan it and make it the break you need. And then come back on your own terms: stronger, clearer, and still in love with the sport.
Alright, that's it for this week. Share this episode with a friend and I will see you next week. Bye.
Thanks for listening to Unstoppable Ultra Runner. If you want more ultra talk, mindset tools, and strategies for running with confidence, visit www.susanidonnelly.com. This podcast receives production support from the team at Digital Freedom Productions. That’s it for today’s episode. See you next week.
Enjoy the Show?
Don’t miss an episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, RSS, or wherever you listen to podcasts!