Marathon taper question

[Ryan Pearman]

Due to the wonders of race scheduling, here's my planned taper
calendar:

4wks out -- 60miles, 23mi long run 3wks out -- 42miles, Half-marathon 2wks out -- 55miles, 18mi
long run 1wk out -- 35miles, 10mi "long" run "race" week -- 16miles, mostly at marathon pace.
Monday, Boston.

Continue my trackwork on Tuesdays and tempo runs on Thursdays until race week.

So here are the questions
1) I've done my last half 4 wks before my marathon previously, popped a PR and felt OK. But what
about 3 weeks to go? While the rule of thumb of 1day/mile "rest" between races gives me some
grace period, what kind of effort would you all recommend? Try for the PR, run as a marathon
tempo run, or somewhere in-between?

2) The 18-miler two-weeks out also kind of scares me, since I've always done my last 18+ three
weeks out in the past. If I torch this run, I know I really run the risk of wasting the marathon
effort. Hint and tips to keep this effort slow?

Thanks!

--Ryan

[Ozzie Gontang]

I'd agree. I'd do the 18+ 3 weeks out. use the half as a tempo to lock in marathon pace and do 6
miles easy before or after the half marathon

13 miles at marathon pace 2 weeks out and the 10 miles one week out.

Ozzie

In article <loednUhzOs0itq3dRVn-uQ@comcast.com>, Ryan Pearman <rpearman@comcast.net> wrote:

> Due to the wonders of race scheduling, here's my planned taper calendar:
>
> 4wks out -- 60miles, 23mi long run 3wks out -- 42miles, Half-marathon 2wks out -- 55miles, 18mi
> long run 1wk out -- 35miles, 10mi "long" run "race" week -- 16miles, mostly at marathon pace.
> Monday, Boston.
>
> Continue my trackwork on Tuesdays and tempo runs on Thursdays until race week.
>
> So here are the questions
> 1) I've done my last half 4 wks before my marathon previously, popped a PR and felt OK. But what
> about 3 weeks to go? While the rule of thumb of 1day/mile "rest" between races gives me some
> grace period, what kind of effort would you all recommend? Try for the PR, run as a marathon
> tempo run, or somewhere in-between?
>
> 2) The 18-miler two-weeks out also kind of scares me, since I've always done my last 18+ three
> weeks out in the past. If I torch this run, I know I really run the risk of wasting the
> marathon effort. Hint and tips to keep this effort slow?
>
> Thanks!
>
> --Ryan

[Joe]

I run my last long run 2 weeks out. I have found that your body can adapt to workouts in as little
as 7 days. I don't really start tapering for the marathon until 10 days out. I keep my mileage high
until 14 days out, then I drop to 66% mileage the first week of taper, and then 40-50% of my highest
mileage during the week of the race. Instead of running every day leading up to the race, just take
extra days off. I will probably completely rest 4-5 days for those two weeks.

jOe

"Ryan Pearman" <rpearman@comcast.net> wrote in message news:loednUhzOs0itq3dRVn-uQ@comcast.com...
> Due to the wonders of race scheduling, here's my planned taper calendar:
>
> 4wks out -- 60miles, 23mi long run 3wks out -- 42miles, Half-marathon 2wks out -- 55miles, 18mi
> long run 1wk out -- 35miles, 10mi "long" run "race" week -- 16miles, mostly at marathon pace.
> Monday, Boston.
>
> Continue my trackwork on Tuesdays and tempo runs on Thursdays until race week.
>
> So here are the questions
> 1) I've done my last half 4 wks before my marathon previously, popped a PR and felt OK. But what
> about 3 weeks to go? While the rule of thumb of 1day/mile "rest" between races gives me some
> grace period, what kind of effort would you all recommend? Try for the PR, run as a marathon
> tempo run, or somewhere in-between?
>
> 2) The 18-miler two-weeks out also kind of scares me, since I've always done my last 18+ three
> weeks out in the past. If I torch this run, I know I really run the risk of wasting the
> marathon effort. Hint and tips to keep this effort slow?
>
> Thanks!
>
> --Ryan

[ahass]

Ryan Pearman <rpearman@comcast.net> wrote:
> Due to the wonders of race scheduling, here's my planned taper calendar:

> 4wks out -- 60miles, 23mi long run 3wks out -- 42miles, Half-marathon 2wks out -- 55miles, 18mi
> long run 1wk out -- 35miles, 10mi "long" run "race" week -- 16miles, mostly at marathon pace.
> Monday, Boston.

#1-ditch the 18-miler two weeks out. TOO CLOSE. 2-the half marathon is fine as long as you don't run
#it at full
effort. Give it a good go, but not all out. You want to be rested from this race in a matter of 2-4
days, not 1-2 weeks like a full effort would require. Think of it as a long tempo.
#3-Good idea to keep the fast work in until the last week as you've
planned. This preserves a lot of the training effects of mileage while allowing you to slack on the
miles. Andy Hass

[Sam]

Tapering research indicates that a more exponential decrease in volume is
warranted, but with a maintenance of intensity.
"Ryan Pearman" <rpearman@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:loednUhzOs0itq3dRVn-uQ@comcast.com...
> Due to the wonders of race scheduling, here's my planned taper calendar:
>
> 4wks out -- 60miles, 23mi long run 3wks out -- 42miles, Half-marathon 2wks out -- 55miles, 18mi
> long run 1wk out -- 35miles, 10mi "long" run "race" week -- 16miles, mostly at marathon pace.
> Monday, Boston.
>
> Continue my trackwork on Tuesdays and tempo runs on Thursdays until race week.
>
> So here are the questions
> 1) I've done my last half 4 wks before my marathon previously, popped a PR and felt OK. But what
> about 3 weeks to go? While the rule of thumb of 1day/mile "rest" between races gives me some
> grace period, what kind of effort would you all recommend? Try for the PR, run as a marathon
> tempo run, or somewhere in-between?
>
> 2) The 18-miler two-weeks out also kind of scares me, since I've always done my last 18+ three
> weeks out in the past. If I torch this run, I know I really run the risk of wasting the
> marathon effort. Hint and tips to keep this effort slow?
>
> Thanks!
>
> --Ryan