Everyone needs a break their training both in-season and in the off-season. The question of how long the break should be and what you should do during the break however, shows much confusion.
For example in the triathlon, most participants take one to two months off from their training. As a result it is common to find many articles dealing with how you should get back into training, especially running training.
Most coaches seem to favor a two-step approach. The first step is to allow the body to readapt to the stress of repetitive impact. To do this is necessary to run only for short distances at a slow speed, preferably on soft surfaces for at least three to four weeks.
This first step is not used to develop fitness; it is used only as a means of re-acclimating your body to running. The fitness running or more accurately running to develop the aerobic and anaerobic systems as well as muscle endurance, follow in step two.
On the surface this may seem as good advice but is it? If you are a serious runner or triathlete, you should be in training year-round. There should be no major breaks in the training. The overall objective for the serious runner should be to become a better runner from year to year.
You should not have any downtime in which you lose your already developed physical abilities. The reason for this is simple it takes too long to get you back up to where you are in the previous season which in turn, does not allow for much more additional improvement so that you can perform better in the upcoming season.
This is an important concept; one that is typically ignored by many athletes especially on the professional level. But if you wish to be better every year then they must not be any downtime in your training.
This does not mean that you do not take a break in your training. You do but it is used as a means of allowing your body to recover and adapt to the training that you have been doing. In addition, it allows your mind to take a break from the training. Keep in mind that all training is both a physical and mental activity.
From the research and from practical experiences it appears that a one-week break is most advantageous. You still however, maintain physical activity during the break, but it is not intense and usually consists of doing a different activity. In this way your mind gets off the training and hopefully, the activity you are involved in is a fun type activity that can bring you some pleasure.
It should also be noted that by not taking a long break in your training the chances of injury are decreased greatly. In essence, you will be able to see constant and progressive games in not only your levels of fitness, but in your performance. The bottom line, train year-round if you want to maximize your progress and performance.