The scriptures tell us there must be opposition in all things, for without it we could not discern the sweet from the bitter. Would the marathon runner feel the triumph of finishing the race had she not felt the pain of the hours of pushing against her limits?
President Uchtdorf

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Taper Time


I’m officially counting down the days until my first marathon.  13 days! Now, I’m in what is called the “Taper.”  You cut down your miles and do nothing new in hopes that your body is somehow magically fine tuning itself for the brutality of four and a half hours of running.  I only did 13 miles yesterday for my long run. I have to say that I’m actually sore from it.  I also did 5 miles the day before at marathon pace. MP is supposed to be 10:18 but I did the whole 5 at a 9:48 pace. That made me feel good that I could run that fast. I also think that I probably ran too fast giving way to my soreness today. 
The taper is hard because I finally have a little more time on my hands.  I really want to strength train and lose those nine pounds I’ve gained. But I need to just focus on eating healthy for the next two weeks. That is why, today, I had my last soda for a while. Tonight I will enjoy my last indulgence of peanut butter mousse brownie.  The people of Swirly Girls Bakery in Daybreak will miss me.  I feel better and run better when I’m putting only healthy foods into my body. 
On the run tomorrow…3 miles. I don’t remember that last time I got to run 3 miles during training. That’s an easy half hour.  Plus the cooler weather means I get to sleep in and I can run in the evening.  I love this stuff.

No comments: