Week 15 – Taper Time ?

Week 15 – Taper Time ?

Monday – short run, 5.55k, 00:20:53, avg 03:45.
Tuesday – Warmup plus Intervals, 22.5km, 01:34:00, pyramid ranging from 03:32 to 03:16 avg kms.
Wednesday – Hill session, 21.91km, 01:41:08, avg 04:24 laps.
Thursday – Warmup plus intervals @ 270m, 17 km, 01:24,  individual intervals range from 03:24 to 03:01 km pace.
Friday – short run 5.67km , 24:08, avg 04:15 km pace.
Saturday – 5k run- 17:37. avg 03:33 pace.

Total 09:56:49, 78 km (48 miles)

At the start of the week I’m conscious that all the talk of fellow marathon runners is of taper.  I don’t feel ready to taper yet, I’ve still got some more fitness to wrangle out.  I’m also feeling that I’ve got great endurance but poor speed, so the focus of this week is to address that.

Monday is chaotic at work so I can only manage a fast 5k time.

Tuesday is pyramid intervals.  I describe these in an earlier blog, but essentially its 4 mins on, 2 mins off. 3 mins on, 1.5 mins off, 2 mins on, 1 min off. 1 min on, 30 sec off. 1 min on, 30 sec off, 2 min on, 1 min off. 3 mins on 1.5 min off, 4 mins on 2 min off.   The challenge is not to get to halfway and die, which is sort of expected.  I get to halfway pushing the pace and ahead of my usual pack.  My new found runners who I usually see in the distance comment that I’m running well, I reply that we’ve got to finish the session first.  I hold all the speed from the first half on the way back and stay in the new pack.  I’m very happy how the session went.

Wednesday the weather changes, it gets very hot (22 degrees) compared to the freezing conditions most of my training is done in.  I decide to just get out there and get used to it.  So I run my usual hill session, in the knowledge that a PB is not going to be possible.  I plod around in a respectable time and get back almost 5 minutes slower overall than the previous week.  This is all attributable to the weather!

Thursday is still hot, I head out to do a tempo run to see what sub 2:45 pace feels like.  I manage 1km at that pace and then have to back off for the rest of the warm up.  Instead of timed intervals we do distance intervals today, given the heat I suggest we run between two points (which works out as 270km according to garmin) then go back at the next whole minute.  Turns out the session works out as 45 seconds on , 1 min 15 off.  Just about all I can do in this heat.  I struggle to hold 5 minute k’s on the run back from the session.  Please don’t be hot on marathon day!!

Friday is still hot, so I give myself an easy session.  Run to Tesco’s to stock up on chocolate and then catch the train back.   I manage a good pace to the shop and buy an ice cream as a treat, it was amazing.  If its hot on marathon day that’s the one thing I want on the course or at least as soon as I finish..    I gave myself an easy session on Friday as its supposed to be taper time and I have two races at the weekend.

Friday night I don’t sleep well.  I absolutely have to bounce back from the previous weeks bad run at parkrun.  I dig out my go faster Nike Mayflys and drive to park run instead of running.  I get a bad start and have to accelerate like crazy to get away from the pack.  I’m holding a good speed (sub 3:30 km’s ) up to the hilly section.  I pass the hilly section and push on the downhill.  Legs are tiring on the final flat 2k so the guy infront pulls away.  I know I’m on for a pb so don’t dig any deeper (10k tomorrow).   I cross the line in 17:37, more than a minute faster than last week!  I’m happy that I do have some speed in me and quickly work out using the calculators that it equates to a low 2:50 marathon time..  As for the competitors that beat me last week, I think I’ve left them scratching their heads as to where my speed come from.  Maybe they will read this blog and work it out ?

This week is probably the average start of people’s taper, I generally don’t run well my legs are rested so I’m more aggressive than most when it comes to tapering.   So with one week to go to Marathon, I finish the week much happier than when I started and looking forward to my 10k I’m doing tomorrow…