Make the best of the rest

Rest replaces my usual schedule of drills, speed work and long runs on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Being the competitive type, the "R word" is generally not part of my vocabulary and I'm often tempted to do something extra.

But the experts advise that recovery, done right, is the key to getting in top condition.

"Recovery is about letting your body heal so you can be ready for your next session," says David Garrick, a physiotherapist from Physio Central in Central. He strongly encourages runners to take recovery seriously when undergoing intense training, such as interval, tempo or long runs. "Without adequate recovery, you will not reach peak performance and may be more prone to injury."

Building recovery into a training programme will help your body to adapt to training loads, get stronger and give you a mental break to keep up the zest for running.

Rest - otherwise known as "passive recovery" - is the most common recovery method allowing muscles to repair, rebuild and strengthen says Dr Lobo Louie, associate professor at the department of physical education at Baptist University.

"Active recovery refers to engaging in low-intensity exercise after workouts during both the cool-down phase immediately after a hard effort as well as during the days following the workout," he says. An example would be a short, easy "recovery run" in the 24 hours after a hard session.