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Tapering for the Long Run

Tapering is the hardest thing to do for most runners. Usually, it's done one to two weeks before a major race and the runner is to decrease their mileage to a very low number and effort. This seems like a deal, but to runners, it can be excruciating. All those months of training have made it intuitive to run and run with purpose. To lay off, doesn't feel natural. It almost feels like giving up. In fact, most runners will be irrational and think that by tapering they will lose their ability to finish the race or lose some endurance they have worked so hard to build. You can equate it to cramming for a test the night before. Cramming never is effective. You are too tired the next day do grab the answers from your brain. The same goes for running. You have to trust that the training is working and that all your body has learned is still there to get you across the finish line. It will not be those last few days of pounding out unnecessary mileage and effort that helps you do it. In fact, cramming will only create tired legs that will have a harder time getting across the finish; instead of having a well-focused mind with fresh legs to do the job for you.

Why am I sharing all this with you? Because it is what I have to tell myself every time before a scheduled race. Yes, it never is  intuitive for me. It is always a deliberation.

But two weeks ago, I went for tapering even though I had no upcoming race. My right knee and leg were giving me problems and running was just not going well for me. I couldn't stretch it out. I couldn't rub it out. My knee, hip, and portion of my foot just kept feeling tight and crickety. The miles were feeling longer and impossible.

A long time ago,  I had promised myself not to be one of those runners who ran with pain but to listen to my body and give it time to rest and heal itself. So I did. Reluctantly. And yes, Runner's Guilt set in. So over two weeks, I ran a total of 12 miles. Far short from my 72 mile goal I had set pre-injury.
My leg was feeling stronger even if my mind was in conflict. After two weeks, my body felt ready to take on a long run, but feeling is not doing and so this past Saturday I would find out if my resting plan had worked.

While I have not signed up for a full marathon, I keep running with my peeps who have and I run their long run training plan. This Saturday they were running 18 miles, so this means I would run 18 miles with them.   Could I do it after a two week hiatus?

More on how I fared next post.

"Running is nothing more than a series of arguments between the part of your brain that wants to stop and the part of your brain that wants to keep going" Unknown

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