Less than 2 weeks to the Boston Marathon: Last week's training

With less than two weeks to go, the hay is mostly in the barn as the old saying goes. I will still do one more challenging workout this week, but the tapering has begun. I've managed three consecutive weeks at 140 miles since the Gate River Run, and while that does mean a shorter taper than I am used to, I had the few days of rest before and after the race. The last couple weeks of volume will be at a fairly steep descent, but that will be more attributed to cutting out secondary runs rather than substantially decreasing the primary run mileage.

I have almost always finished off the bulk of my marathon training with a 16 mile tempo at marathon effort toward the end of the highest training volume. This current attempt was not my fastest, but it was amid the toughest conditions I have faced for this particular workout. I had a headwind of about 15-20 mph steady with gusts for six straight miles (miles 6-12) which lead to three miles at 5:17, 5:14, and 5:11. Once I turned the corner and had only a side wind, I was able to average 4:50 for the last four miles and get the overall average under 5:00. I think the effort was worth quite a bit more than the watch showed, not only for the weather, but because it ended up being more of a Fartlek effort. There's nothing wrong with that though, as Boston will likely have an erratic pace and effort. It's always good to practice those mental ups and downs that will inevitably come with the Boston course and tactics.

It's now time to utilize the extra energy that comes with tapering to focus in on all the minute details. While I always place an emphasis on the little things, I have to find somewhere to send the nervous energy. Diet, rehab, obsessive use of anti-bacterial, sleep, and slowly visualizing a race plan are examples. It's dangerous to get too specific with a plan for this type of race as the key will be adaptability. All you can do is imagine several possible scenarios while still being ready for the unexpected. You have to be confident in your fitness and be willing to change everything on the fly. That's the beauty of Marathon Majors like NYC and Boston!

Thanks again for reading. Feel free to check out last week's training below.

Weekly Total: 140

	Monday	3/26/2018	3 mile warmup, 16 miles @ 4:59, 3 mile cooldown
	Tuesday	3/27/2018	AM: 14 PM: 6
	Wednesday	3/28/2018	AM: 14 PM: 6
	Thursday	3/29/2018	AM: Hilly paved Fartlek: (5, 4, 3)(4, 3, 2)(3, 2, 1) w/half recovery jog, 16 total PM: 5
	Friday	3/30/2018	AM: 14 PM: 6
	Saturday	3/31/2018	AM: 12.5 PM: 6 + drills and strides
	Sunday	4/1/2018	Long run: 18.5 miles, push 4 @ 4:56 from 14