Smart Tapering

Taper madness hasn’t set in for you guys yet, but don’t worry, it’s coming!  Right now you are probably feeling a heady mixture of excitement and anxiety.  You are either feeling stronger and fleeter of foot than ever…or you are injured and worried you won’t make it to the starting line (like me). 

There are parts of taper madness that are unavoidable, but there are also parts that you can, and MUST, control.  There are two big errors you can make at this point:  either running too much and training too hard, or running too little and totally slacking off. 

It’s tough to cut back the mileage you have come to love and count on, especially if you are feeling really fit and really eager for race day.  But too bad!  You need to.  Running less reduces your risk of injury, gives you time to rest and recover, and allows your muscles to store carbohydrates in preparation for the big race.  There is no benefit at this point to working out super hard.  So don’t overdo it.  And don’t start doing new kinds of exercise that your body isn’t used to during the times you would have been running.  This can put new stress on your muscles and cause fatigue and soreness that will not help you on the big day.

Conversely, don’t under-do it.  Do the miles in the training log!  Maybe you are starting to max out on running, and you are looking forward to the taper as a break from running before the marathon.  It’s not a break!  You still need to keep up your fitness level.  If you cut too many miles from the schedule, you will feel deconditioned and sluggish come race day.  You have worked too hard to let it all go to pot now.

So taper smart, my Navy friends!  And don’t forget abotu the clinics this week on race preparation.