Your plan says tempo run. Your legs say sleep. Who wins?

Plans Are Guides

What Plans Can't Know

Your plan doesn't know:

• How much sleep you got
• Your stress level at work
• That you're fighting off a cold
• The weather conditions
• How yesterday's run actually felt

You know these things. Use that information.

What Plans Do Know

Good plans incorporate:

• Appropriate progression
• Balanced training stress
• Recovery timing
• Race-specific preparation

Respect this structure. Random deviation undermines it.

When to Modify

Legitimate Reasons to Deviate

Physical signals:

• Injury warning signs (sharp pain, worsening with running)
• Illness (especially with fever or systemic symptoms)
• Extreme fatigue that doesn't improve with warm-up
• Sleep deprivation (significantly less than normal)

Life circumstances:

• Family emergency
• Work crisis
• Travel complications
• Weather dangers (lightning, extreme heat, ice)

Training signals:

• Several bad workouts in a row
• Elevated resting heart rate
• Declining performance despite training

What Modification Looks Like

Good modifications:

• Convert quality session to easy run
• Shorten the workout
• Move workout to different day
• Take an extra rest day

Poor modifications:

• Skip entirely and do nothing
• Make up missed work by doubling up
• Push through injury warning signs

When to Stick

Push Through When

Normal training feelings:

• "I don't feel like it" (motivation, not physical)
• Mild fatigue (recoverable)
• Busy schedule (not emergency)
• Weather is annoying but not dangerous

Workout-specific resistance:

• Dreading intervals (they're supposed to be hard)
• Not in the mood for long run
• Want to sleep in

The Warm-Up Test

Before deciding:

1. Start the run with 10-15 minutes easy
2. Assess how you feel
3. If still terrible: modify
4. If improving: proceed with workout

Many "bad" days turn good after warm-up.

Patterns to Watch

Red flag if consistently avoiding:

• All speed work
• All long runs
• All hard efforts
• Running in general

This suggests:

• Training load too high
• Something wrong physically
• Mental burnout
• Plan doesn't fit

How to Modify Intelligently

Modify Down, Not Up

If modifying a workout:

• Make it easier/shorter
• Don't make it harder/longer
• Preserve the intent if possible

Example:

• Plan: 6 x 800m at 5K pace
• Modified: 4 x 800m at 5K pace
• Not: 8 x 800m because you felt good

Preserve Weekly Structure

Try to maintain:

• Similar total volume
• At least one quality session
• Long run (even if shortened)
• Rest/easy days

Shifting is better than skipping:

• Move tempo from Tuesday to Wednesday
• Do long run Saturday instead of Sunday

Don't Compound Changes

One deviation is fine:

• Missed Tuesday's workout
• Move forward normally

Don't create cascades:

• Missed Tuesday, so double Wednesday
• Now exhausted Thursday
• Miss Friday, try to make up Saturday...

Documentation

Why Track Deviations

Understanding yourself:

• What causes you to modify?
• Are there patterns?
• What modifications work best?

Future planning:

• Adjust plans to fit your reality
• Anticipate problem areas
• Build more appropriate schedules

Simple Documentation

For each deviation, note:

• What was planned
• What you did instead
• Why you made the change
• How it affected subsequent training

Looking for Patterns

Review monthly:

• Which workouts get skipped most?
• What causes most deviations?
• Are modifications helping or hurting?

Building Judgment

Experience Teaches

Over time you learn:

• What fatigue feels like vs. laziness
• Which modifications work for you
• When to push, when to back off
• Your personal warning signs

Start Conservative

When uncertain:

• Err on the side of caution
• Better to slightly undertrain than injure
• You can always do more tomorrow

Ask for Help

When to consult coach/community:

• Repeated need to modify
• Unsure if deviation is smart
• Pattern of issues
• Major plan changes needed

The best runners modify their plans intelligently. Track your training on your dashboard and learn what works for your body over time.