Last week.
First up, if you haven’t begun training yet then I’d suggest you give this year’s
Trim 10 Mile the skip and do it next February.
If you have
managed to get out more times than you didn’t, then well done. Reward yourself
with what should be a taper of sorts this week. To those who don’t know, the
taper is not a South American jungle mammal often appearing on-screen alongside
David Attenborough but the period of time prior to a big race where you allow
the body to recover from all the training it’s been doing.
In marathon
training, the taper is usually a three-week period. For a ten-mile, a week is
plenty. The idea behind the taper is that you are as fresh as you can hope to
be, come race-day. And to ensure this, you reduce the distances you’re running,
keep a few short quick ones though not as intense to keep the body alert, and
concentrate on staying hydrated and rested. Easier said than done.
Last week I only
managed to get back on the road Thursday evening for a tempo session where I
ran a number of sections at race-pace with a few slow jogs in between. It was
tough. And I was hanging on at the end as the last remnants of that seasonal
flu left me. Thankfully a light 5-mile with a friend the following evening felt
a lot better. And so today I was able to take a spin over the course one last
time with three race-pace miles put in at the end. It was tough and something
that could only be done in the company of two other racing friends. We’ve set
ourselves high targets next Sunday and if one of us gets close we’ll be
delighted. To give us a chance ideal conditions like today would be great. With
the roads were quiet, the skies clear and the wind absent it was perfect and it
made me look forward to next week.
So, what to
do these next few days along with the training listed below? A few tips:
Hydration – Hydration should be done
throughout the week so carry a bottle around with you at all times. Don’t
bother drinking any more water on the morning of the race more than you would
usually. If you do, then you will be amongst all many others who will be
stopping at country gates from mile 1 to mile 4 taking a leak and cursing
themselves for the 30 seconds that it costs them. One thing I can guarantee
next week is that it will not be warm so dehydration is not going to be an issue.
Clothes – Get whatever clothes you are
going to wear on the day ready. You’ll only be out a couple more times between
now and race-day so grab a different pairs of socks, shorts and t-shirts. It
will allow your race clothes times to rest as well as ensuring you aren’t
searching the wash-basket for your damp pair of lucky running socks next Sunday
morning.
Food – Eat sensibly. Decent meals that
are not huge. They say eat smaller portions more often if you can. If you have
children, finishing off their left-overs before you have yours later works
well. On the day before, I’d suggest a nice lunch with a decent snack or
sandwich that evening. Don’t start trying home-made quinoa if you haven’t eaten
it before or stewed beetroot juice because you read it on a blog.
Relax – After that, just enjoy the
week. You’ve done the training so you’ve earned it. Well done. All you now have
to do is race.
I’ll give a
final word of encouragement Saturday and see you there Sunday. Good luck.
This
week’s training:
Slow run: 30 minutes.
Tough run: 30 min steady run with
4-6*50 metre strides.
Long run: Race Day!!!