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Aagh only 13 days to go before the Amsterdam marathon 😨🎽🏃 and it's taper time.
Up until a couple of weeks ago, I was feeling stressed. I had followed the Stryd training plan but somehow I didn't feel ready to run this beast. Long runs were very tiring, speed work exhausting and marathon pace felt more like my 10km pace. I had doubts all the time and that usual question of "how can I run THAT fast for THAT long"?
Then bingo, I decided to do a club run just to be sociable. I had avoided them the last month or so as it kind of just didn't fit in with my training. Plus they were always faster than I wanted them to be. This particular run was still fast, in fact even faster than usual, but somehow I felt good. In fact I felt like I was flying. Yes I was tired at the end of the hour but it was such a mental boost to hear people say that I had run really well and that I had improved a lot.
So the last couple of weeks, I have felt great and I was hitting the targets in training. Whether that was from the mental boost or whether I was running well, who knows.
That was until a couple of days ago when things went downhill again. 😔
My heart rate has been higher than usual when I wake up and somehow I just feel tired and sluggish. Mental doubts have started creeping in again. "Have I overdone the training?", "Is that calf pain an injury?", "I just can't hold this pace for more than an hour"
I'm not sure why I am back down to lack of confidence and I am frustrated as self doubt is always my downfall in a race.
Yesterday was my last long run. Total of 26km with 13km at marathon pace. I ended up doing 27km (running and maths don't go well together) but only did 11km at marathon pace as my calves started to cramp and I started getting dizzy. For hecks sake, I haven't got my nutrition sorted well enough and it's nearly D-Day! Mind you I did only eat a banana before heading out but I did have Tailwind in my hydration pack and I munched through 2 energy bars and a caffeine sweet in the second half of the run so theoretically I should have been OK.
Today, one of my calves still feels tender but thankfully it is a rest day so I'm cleaning the house , hahaha.
One of my biggest stresses at the moment is what pace to run the marathon at. Actually in my case, it is what POWER to run the marathon at. I will be running with a Stryd footpod (review from my website), so power will be the main factor. Using all the calculator tools and seeking advice from the gurus on their Facebook page, I have been told to run at a power of 147watts ( that might not mean anything to you!). If I ran that power throughout the marathon, it would bring me in at a time of 4:05 - 4:08. DISAPPOINTMENT! I want to break 4 hours!!
Now I am struggling to decided whether I should sneak in a few extra watts, but then my head is telling me that could well be a disaster. Apparently for every minute you go too fast in the first half, you loose 2 minutes in the second half.
If I put my rational hat on, I guess at the end of the day I just want to get to the starting line and to finish the marathon without any disasters. I've just written down and changed (for the umpteenth time) my plan/objectives. So here goes and in order of preference:
So I'm now going back to finish cleaning the house and I'm going to give myself a good talking to.
Speak again soon.
PS Someone please remind me to stick to my plan.
Up until a couple of weeks ago, I was feeling stressed. I had followed the Stryd training plan but somehow I didn't feel ready to run this beast. Long runs were very tiring, speed work exhausting and marathon pace felt more like my 10km pace. I had doubts all the time and that usual question of "how can I run THAT fast for THAT long"?
Then bingo, I decided to do a club run just to be sociable. I had avoided them the last month or so as it kind of just didn't fit in with my training. Plus they were always faster than I wanted them to be. This particular run was still fast, in fact even faster than usual, but somehow I felt good. In fact I felt like I was flying. Yes I was tired at the end of the hour but it was such a mental boost to hear people say that I had run really well and that I had improved a lot.
So the last couple of weeks, I have felt great and I was hitting the targets in training. Whether that was from the mental boost or whether I was running well, who knows.
That was until a couple of days ago when things went downhill again. 😔
My heart rate has been higher than usual when I wake up and somehow I just feel tired and sluggish. Mental doubts have started creeping in again. "Have I overdone the training?", "Is that calf pain an injury?", "I just can't hold this pace for more than an hour"
I'm not sure why I am back down to lack of confidence and I am frustrated as self doubt is always my downfall in a race.
Yesterday was my last long run. Total of 26km with 13km at marathon pace. I ended up doing 27km (running and maths don't go well together) but only did 11km at marathon pace as my calves started to cramp and I started getting dizzy. For hecks sake, I haven't got my nutrition sorted well enough and it's nearly D-Day! Mind you I did only eat a banana before heading out but I did have Tailwind in my hydration pack and I munched through 2 energy bars and a caffeine sweet in the second half of the run so theoretically I should have been OK.
Today, one of my calves still feels tender but thankfully it is a rest day so I'm cleaning the house , hahaha.
One of my biggest stresses at the moment is what pace to run the marathon at. Actually in my case, it is what POWER to run the marathon at. I will be running with a Stryd footpod (review from my website), so power will be the main factor. Using all the calculator tools and seeking advice from the gurus on their Facebook page, I have been told to run at a power of 147watts ( that might not mean anything to you!). If I ran that power throughout the marathon, it would bring me in at a time of 4:05 - 4:08. DISAPPOINTMENT! I want to break 4 hours!!
Now I am struggling to decided whether I should sneak in a few extra watts, but then my head is telling me that could well be a disaster. Apparently for every minute you go too fast in the first half, you loose 2 minutes in the second half.
If I put my rational hat on, I guess at the end of the day I just want to get to the starting line and to finish the marathon without any disasters. I've just written down and changed (for the umpteenth time) my plan/objectives. So here goes and in order of preference:
- Get to the starting line uninjured and not sick.
- Cross the finish line (preferably uninjured).
- Stick to my Stryd Power plan.
- Beat my disastrous marathon time in Nice 2018. My second marathon. 4:13:40
- Beat my PB in the Empuries marathon in 2015. It was my fist marathon :). 4:12
- Break 4 hours.
So I'm now going back to finish cleaning the house and I'm going to give myself a good talking to.
Speak again soon.
PS Someone please remind me to stick to my plan.
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