Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Sunday vs. Saturday Long Runs

For my half marathon training in the winter/spring, I was a dedicated Saturday morning long runner.  It just worked with my schedule - plus my social and wedding planning schedule was a lot more flexible.  Although the mornings were often dark and cold, I enjoyed getting up, completing my run and having the rest of the weekend ahead of me.  But recently with my summer schedule, Saturday mornings have just not been possible.  Which got me thinking - which day do I like best for a long run?

Sunday Mornings


Pros:
  • You can sleep in on Saturday morning
  • You have all day Saturday to hydrate and fuel without the distractions of work
  • The traffic on the roads is even less on Sunday mornings
  • You potentially can have a social life on Friday night
Cons
  • Early wake up on the last day of the weekend
  • You can't have too much fun on Saturday night

Saturday mornings

Pros
  • You get your run done early and have the rest of the weekend to enjoy
  • Going out on Friday night? Who am I kidding - I can't keep my eyes open past 9pm on a Friday night
  • Sleeping in on Sunday!
Cons
  • I always eat way too much all weekend after a Saturday long run because I feel I "deserve it"
  • Waking up early on a Saturday after a long week of work is tough!

It is a tough choice but most weekends this summer, my long run has been predicated by other plans.  I think Saturdays are the best day for me because I love having the rest of the weekend free! Plus my running group meets (early) Saturday mornings so there is always someone to run with.  It may be tough to get up, but I think Saturdays are my favorite!

So the question remains:  Sunday or Saturday???

Isn't she cute?  This is my new buddy for the next few days 
since I am house/cat sitting!

17 comments:

Marlene said...

I almost always run Sundays since that's when my group meets, but on the odd time I am running solo (or have a race, etc.) on Saturday, I REALLY like getting it done early. Unfortunately, I also end up over-indulging for the remainder of the weekend. :S

MCM Mama said...

I'm lucky because my schedule allows me to run on Fridays. The con to that is I can't start until after everyone is at school, but the pro is that it doesn't affect our weekends.

Jess K said...

Right now, I run every other day to give my horrible knees time to recover, so I end up flip-flopping which weekend day I run on. Personally, I hate them both. As soon as I leave work Friday, my mind automatically goes into "stay up late and then sleep until noon" mode and that just doesn't work when you need to get a run in before the sun comes up.

Amber said...

I've done training plans with both Saturday and Sunday long runs and I'm still undecided about which I prefer. I do find it hard to wake up early on Saturdays after a long week of work BUT I also love having my weekend free after getting the run done!

Robin said...

I do my long runs on Saturday mornings. I too find that it just fits in better with the rest of my schedule/week. I like having Sunday with nothing to do and all the runs done for the week.

Elizabeth said...

Saturdays! I hate having it hang over my head all day on Saturday while I wait for Sunday. I like to get it done with and then enjoy the rest of the weekend feeling accomplished!

Anonymous said...

I am such a saturday runner! If I don't do it on Saturday it just doesn't get done. I'm usually so tired friday night from the work week, it helps me to take it easy and go to bed early. I agree it's a little hard to get up on sat morning, but it's SO much harder on sunday. So a saturday girl I will always be! :)

Lisa from Lisa's Yarns said...

I have always done my long runs on Sunday until this summer when I joined my run club. We do our runs on Sat mornings. The downside is that I can't do anything exciting on Friday night (not that i would most weeks anyways), and it's tough to get up early for the 6th day in a row each week. But it's relaly nice having all day Saturday and Sunday to relax and not have that long run 'hanging over you'.

Kim said...

Aww, whose cat is that? Too cute!

I like to get my long run done early so I don't have to think about it! I actually prefer Fridays (I have every other Friday off) then Saturdays, then Sundays. I have to do my 20 on Sunday this week. Meh.

Anonymous said...

This training cycle it hit my like a thunderbolt that I didn't HAVE to do the long run on a Saturday/Sunday, and I now do mine on a Friday - and amazingly the rest of the week just falls right into place to fit around that. I'm lucky though - I don't start work until 2.30 (have to leave the house at about 1.30 to get there), which gives from when I drop the kids off at 9.00 until 1ish to fit it in :) Total upside is that the Saturday which is sports craziness here with the kids, is my total rest day so I can just focus on the kids and family stuff.

Unknown said...

I totally forgot what I was going to say when I saw that gorgeous kitty picture!

Detroit Runner(Jeff) said...

For me, it's both. I crosstrain(typically) on Saturday morning on the bike and then do my long run on Sunday with rest on Monday. No sleeping in for me :(

Vanessa @ Gourmet Runner said...

I switch back and forth between both days, but I actually prefer Sundays. Then I can spend the rest of the day being lazy and splurging, but it's back to reality Monday morning.

Nicole said...

When i did marathon training, i didnt stick to a specific day as i was so busy i just ran when i could. Id rather get my run over with on saturday so i dont have to think about it all weekend but waking up on saturday mornings early is tough- especially when you work early all week. then again, my body seems to naturally wake up anyway. and as for friday night fun? HA i pass out at 10pm!

Rebecca said...

Saturday, all the way! I don't mind getting up early, and like you said, Friday nights are just not a great time for socializing because I'm usually tired.

Also - she is ADORABLE! And fat. My cat is fat, too, though.... who am I kidding?!

Suzy said...

I think it depends on what is going on. For the past couple years I was a Sunday morning runner. I loved it. Now the group I run with does long runs on Saturday mornings so I do it then. I miss my Sunday runs, but it is nice to have supported long runs.

Fruit Fly said...

I'm usually a Sunday long run person, but really Saturday does seem to make more sense. I think part of my issue is that I procrastinate, so then it just always ends up being Sunday!

I LOVE a cat sprawled on its back. They always look too darn cute!