Embracing the Taper

This week officially marked the beginning of my taper for Baystate Marathon.

Most people fight it but I’m embracing the taper with open arms.

Two weeks ago, I hit my all time high weekly mileage – 54 miles. Never, ever did I think I could handle that amount of miles. I also never, ever thought I could get 10-12 miles in before most people’s alarms are going off to start the day. But I did. You make it work when it comes to marathon training!

Last week, threw my training off. The surprise Achilles pain and subsequent rest days meant I sort of started to taper a week early. If I would have run all my planned runs, I would have had over 200 miles for the month. Another milestone. My competitive self is a little bit mad about that. But my sensible self is happy just to be running. My Achilles got it’s extra TLC, it’s feeling OK and I’ve picked up where I was in my original marathon training plan.

I saw this sign heading into my massage appointment yesterday. Isn’t that the truth?

This week I’m cutting my mileage by 20%. Most of my runs will be at easy pace with a few miles at marathon pace. There’s no need to push the limits right now. All of my fitness gains have been made. I also won’t lose any fitness in 3 weeks of tapering.

According to Runner’s World, “levels of muscle glycogen, enzymes, antioxidants, and hormones–all depleted by high mileage–return to optimal ranges during a taper. The muscle damage that occurs during sustained training is also repaired. And if that isn’t enough, immune function and muscle strength improve, as well, which reduces the odds you’ll catch a cold or get injured just before the race. And get this: The average performance improvement by the subjects who tapered in these studies was 3 percent. That works out to 5 to 10 minutes in a marathon.””

That’s a good enough reason for me to taper!

There is another 5K that’s a part of the Dover Road Race Series this weekend. I was tempted to do it after learning that I was in 9th place in the overall women’s standings. That was my competitive self thinking. My sensible self spoke up louder.

4 races in the past 4 weeks = not good for Ang’s already injury prone body.

So I’m sitting out this 5K and instead following my plan like a good girl. I just have to remember what my focus is.

The marathon.

And blowing away my previous time.

I’m sure I’ll have oodles of phantom pains and twinges in the next 18 days.

All I can say is, bring it on! I’m ready for it!

What do you do to tame the taper crazies?

The post Embracing the Taper appeared first on Happy Fit Mama.