What is fatigue?

STRENGTH 10 mins of abs. ouch.

I was going to swim today, but I woke up late then started out the day brainlessly sitting at the kitchen counter. I kept telling myself I'd go, then I'd just sit there. And sit. And sit.

What is fatigue? Having spend most of this week living it I have a lot of thoughts on it. Let's see if I'm coherent enough to explain it.

When I'm spent, it's a simultaneously wonderful and miserable experience. There's no drug that will replace the feeling of having set a goal for yourself that was hard to reach, attaining that goal, and having your body tell you that was the upper limit of capability at that time. It's often the case that the training surpasses that upper limit, as if you didn't know your own limits (TheCW!), and that imaginary line of Upper Limit moved up as the workout progressed. Really, there's no drug to replace that feeling--the feeling that you gave all you had and more.

But the downside is the aftereffects and recovery time. Often I'm so tired I can't sit up straight. The simplest tasks are difficult. Going upstairs to get something I forgot can be the hardest thing. The whole body takes a hit, not just the legs or lungs. My head, my muscles, my heart--all of them are in full need of recovery these days. I can't talk, focus, walk, find things. I'm so tired I want to sleep sleep sleep but I'm too tired to walk to the truck to drive home! Then when I get there I'm too tired to sleep! I just sit and stare off into space.

It doesn't help that I have a list of things I need to be doing and I'm too tired to be doing them. Like I said the simplest things are a chore. But every little thing I do get done feels great!