In the frantic world of the Championship there's hardly time for a breather, never mind a full-week on the training field.
But for the first time since the end of January, Aitor Karanka will be able to spend a full seven days preparing for the next match this week.
The boss will welcome the break with open arms.
Ever since the start of the season, when there seemed to be more international breaks than international fixtures, Karanka made it clear how much he enjoys the chance to get to work on the training field.
And after an inconsistent run of recent results, the manager and his coaching team will be keen to iron out a few minor issues ahead of the most crucial week in the season so far.
But what will be the priority for Karanka this week back in the familiar surroundings of Rockliffe?
We haven't had a sneak peak at AK's training notes but we have come up with five things Boro could be working on in training ahead of the visit of Ipswich on Saturday.
Care with the final pass and sticking the ball in the net
Keeping the ball isn't an issue, for Boro hogged 67% of possession against Forest on Saturday.
If only they could have made the most of their dominance with the ball.
Michael Mancienne's comments post-match were interesting. The Forest midfielder said the hosts were more than happy to let their visitors have the ball and had a ploy to cope with it, suggesting Boro's approach in the final third was all too predictable.
Yet Millwall couldn't cope with it four days earlier.
It was picking that defence splitting pass or finding that clinical touch in front of goal that was the issue at Forest.
An arm around Kike, no doubt deflated after his display at the City Ground, wouldn't go a miss. A week of hitting the net in training will hopefully pay dividends come Saturday.
Prepare to handle the Championship's top scorer
We've said it before but Daryl Murphy wouldn't have been the pick of too many football fans had they been asked who would top the goalscoring charts in the Championship before a ball was kicked.
The 31-year-old former Sunderland striker is limited but he's a handful and has already scored once against Boro so far this season.
Those bundling hard-to-handle unpredictable strikers have caused Boro a few problems this year. Atdhe Nuhiu must wish he can play against Karanka's side every week while Dexter Blackstock, who has hardly set the Championship alight this year, got on the scoresheet on Saturday.
Boro's reliable defence has creaked a little over recent weeks, only keeping two clean sheets since the end of January. That's hardly a disaster, of course, we were just spoilt by shut-outs on a weekly basis earlier in the campaign.
But Murphy will make his presence felt while Mick McCarthy has also hinted that David McGoldrick could return from injury against Boro.
He got a goal at the weekend but Murphy will hardly be brimming with confidence - not after THAT miss against Brentford. The Ipswich boss has backed his top marksman to bounce back and bag the winner against Boro.
Let's hope Boro tighten up, stand strong and keep the big man quiet.
Avoid a repeat of Saturday and tighten up down the right flank
Michail Antonio had the run of the show on Saturday.
The dangerous flanker let Ryan Fredericks know he was in for a game and then gave Emilio Nsue a headache when Boro's first choice right-back had to be replaced.
Whoever starts at right-back this weekend could be in for another busy afternoon, for Ipswich left-back Tyrone Mings doesn't need a second invite to get forward.
The 21-year-old is strong, powerful and direct and has created 47 chances this season and had 16 shots on goal. Not bad for a full-back.
If Fredericks doesn't recover in time for Saturday but Ayala does, Kalas could well nudge over to right-back.
There's no doubt Karanka the perfectionist will be preparing his full-backs for any danger posed down the left side.
Make sure the smallest man on the field is marked from set-pieces
I can't imagine Boro will have identified Jay Tabb as a danger in the air before these sides met earlier in the season.
The 5ft 6" midfielder rose highest to head Ipswich's second goal as the Tractor Boys strolled to a comfortable victory at Portman Road.
After conceding two soft goals at the City Ground on Saturday, Karanka will be keen to avoid a repeat this weekend - and that includes ensuring Tabb isn't afforded the opportunity to add another goal against Boro.
With a trio of testing fixtures to come, AK will be keen on cutting out any slight errors and making sure it's as difficult as possible for the three promotion rivals to break Boro down.
Keep doing what they're doing
Let's be honest, whatever Boro have done on the training ground so far this season has worked.
Pre-planned set-piece routines have been a common occurrence while the 4-2-3-1 system has been drilled into the players.
Boro have been rock solid at the back and, on the whole, carved out chances at the other end - even if they haven't been as clinical as they could have been at times.
One thing that sometimes let Tony Mowbray down during his time in charge at Boro was setting up his side to cope with the opposition as opposed to letting them worry about Boro.
Karanka doesn't often do that.
Ipswich came up against a below-par off-colour Boro in December. The boss and his players will be desperate to right the wrongs of that defeat and performance this weekend.
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