Do runners really need a rest day?

Rest over rated or essential ?
Why do so many coaching books — from Jack Daniels to Arthur Lydiard — barely mention it? Is it the mindset that a coach’s job is to fill every day with training? Or the old belief that a good night’s sleep is enough recovery to go again?

Suzie and Amy sit down after a weekend of racing — Amy taking the win at her local cross‑country (with the kids collecting medals too), and Suzie finishing 2nd at the local fell race that doubled up as the  Welsh Short Fell Race Championships. Amy also shares a surprising update on her back issues and a twist she didn’t see coming.
From there, they dive into the big conversation the running world avoids: rest.

They unpack the booming “recovery industry” of boots, guns, rollers and cold plunges, and contrast it with what the evidence actually supports: sleep, fuelling, mobility, meditation, and lowering cortisol in small, meaningful bursts throughout the day.

Suzie and Amy explore what training really does to the body — not just the legs, but the immune system, major organs (especially the heart), hormones, glycogen stores, and inflammation. They talk honestly about burnout, breakdown, and why the body can only repair through genuine rest.

They also open up about the psychological side of recovery: the guilt, the fear of losing fitness, the identity tied to “always training”, and the mental fatigue that builds when you never stop.

And in their most personal stories yet, Amy shares the reality of five stress fractures in five years, and Suzie reflects on the overuse hip injuries that ended her triathlon career — both rooted in not valuing rest when they needed it most.

They close with a bigger question:
Are we chasing short‑term PBs and race calendars at the expense of long‑term health — especially heart health? And what would it look like to take the cautious, sustainable, athlete‑for‑life approach instead?

This episode is a reminder that rest isn’t optional — it’s where the training actually works.