from “Diary of a Rubbish Marathon Runner” I’m still trying to get to grips with this tapering business. I’m just not made for it. I’m a relatively high-mileage guy, and if I can’t run high mileage, something feels wrong.
Friday was a very unusual day for me because I did not go run a single mile in the morning. The weather forecast had been truly awful and I knew I would not be able to cycle into work. Niamh doesn’t mind giving me a lift in the morning because she has to do the school run anyway, but collecting me in the evening is a major hassle, so I tend to run home whenever I get a lift in the morning. Since running twice a day isn’t what you’re supposed to do when tapering I omitted the morning run entirely. I hoped for more sleep until the incredibly late point of 8am, but Maia woke at 4:30, and while she managed to get back to sleep after a bottle, I did not (maybe I should have had a bottle myself). After staring at the ceiling for far too long I got up, did some core-strengthening exercises which I had badly neglected over the last couple of weeks, and basically waited for the rest of the family to wake up eventually. The run in the evening was marked by pouring rain, but that didn’t bother me. I quite enjoyed it.
On Saturday morning I got very annoyed about something, and I was still angry by the time I laced up my shoes and headed out of the door. I took my frustration out on the asphalt and what was planned as an easy run ended up as 8 miles at 7:11 pace. But I felt much better afterwards!
Today, with 15 days to go, I ran around Caragh Lake for the last time before the marathon. I haven’t done that loop nearly as often as during previous training cycles, but I managed a fair number of loops all the same. It was freezing cold despite the sun being out, and the sky featured hardly a cloud. I got a fantastic view of the lake after about 9 miles, the rest of the fog lifting in the early morning sun, and the song “Smoke on the Water” popping into my head for obvious reasons. Of course I didn’t have a camera with me, it would have been a great photo. The song was still in my head over the last few miles where I increased the effort to marathon pace, and unlike previous attempt I did indeed manage to get down to 6:50 pace. The confidence I have found on the road to Cobh is truly making quite some difference. I’ll just have to find a way of not going bananas over the next fortnight.
10 Oct
5 miles, 37:48, 7:33 pace, HR 141
11 Oct
8 miles, 57:28, 7:11 pace, HR 153
12 Oct
15 miles, 1:53:29, 7:34 pace, HR 151
last 4 miles at 6:50 pace
Weekly Mileage: 65.6
