One bit of running advice that gets repeated a lot in the average running magazine is that runners should make sure to get rest, which comes in the form of taking days off and proper amounts of sleep. I don’t know who the people are that need to be told to rest, but I have never had a problem with resting and sleeping. While I understand why this particular advice is given, it feels more like being told I shouldn’t forget to wipe my butt, shower regularly, or not fart in a full elevator. As if I would ever do otherwise.

Let’s face it, you do not have to tell me twice, or even once, to take a day off from running. My body screams at me to go to bed, at 8pm. My sore, aching legs seem to have grown their own brain that overrides my real brain and I find myself walking to bed when I didn’t plan on it. God forbid I ever sit in a comfortable position on a couch or chair. Advice that I actually need to hear is how to stay awake even though I desperately want to crawl into bed and pass out because I just ran 30, 50 or 100 miles this week. Increasing coffee intake is not a sustainable solution.

But here’s the truth that I rarely hear, running and training hard will make you tired and want to rest. Yes, you will feel energized after your runs, and you might want to run when you shouldn’t, but you will definitely not have a hard time falling asleep at night. It will also be harder to wake up some mornings—your body is needing the extra sleep. The biggest blocker to resting, is not that I don’t know I need to rest, but keeping my life clear enough so that I can rest.