Grandma's Marathon Taper Recap & Goals

Disclaimer:  I am running Grandma's Marathon in June as a BibRave Pro, which means my entry fee was covered for me. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador) and check out BibRave.com to review, find, and write race reviews!  

SQUEEEEEE!!!

We leave for the marathon this afternoon.  I have one more 3-mile shake-out run to do tomorrow morning but for all purposes, the hay is in the barn.

I was happy with how the easy runs went this week - check out those average paces!  If anything, I have gotten more comfortable with making my easy runs truly easy.

My heart rate for each of these runs was split pretty evenly between zone 2 and zone 3.

Sunday, June 10
Plan Says: Easy 5 miles

What I Did: Easy 5 miles.  We were at the lake for the weekend and it rained all day Sunday.  I saw a break in the rain around noon so I went for it, and still ended up wet.  Oh well...good prep for race day, given the forecast (see below).

5 miles, 39:55 (7:55 avg pace)

Monday, June 11
Plan Says: Easy 5 miles

What I Did: Easy 5 miles, 42:32 (8:30 avg pace)

Tuesday, June 12
Plan Says: Off

What I Did:  REST DAY!

Wednesday, June 13
Plan Says: Easy 6 miles

What I Did: Easy 6 miles, 51:54 (8:38 avg pace)

Thursday, June 14
Plan Says: Easy 5 miles

What I Did: Easy 5 miles, 43:34 (8:43 avg pace)

So that's it.  Ok wait.  That's not it.  That's the culmination of 18 weeks of hard work resulting in 722.86 plan miles and 874.61 miles in 2018 to date.  That's a lot of hay in the barn!

I recently saw this cartoon posted on LinkedIn by Adam Grant and loved it.  Part of why I share so much about my running journey is to bring more light to what we don't see behind success, however success is defined.  Social media can definitely be problematic, but one of the things that I have really enjoyed about it is the getting to see the journey in so many runners that I admire.

Let's talk goals.

I am not feeling how I usually feel in the week leading up to a marathon.  Normally, it is all I can think about and I am nervous and anxiety ridden.  I am feeling more excited about this one and also can hardly believe that it is here.  The preparation was challenging, but not in the same way that it was the first time around (last year) when it felt down right impossible.  (That probably means I am ready to move from beginner to advanced Hanson plan.)  Because so much of it didn't feel out of control impossible, it is making me feel like I might not be ready.

I realize most of this is attributable to the taper mind f***.

Here is the forecast from weather.com:

It's going to be a wet one, which I am okay with.  The humidity makes me a little nervous, but what can you do.  I would rather have a wet marathon than a hot one.  Also, my last marathon PR was run in rain, so there is that!

My goal is to do the best that I can do on the day and leave it all out there.  I do not want to finish wondering if I could do more.  Of course I would love it if I checked my 2018 dream big goal off the list (to sub 3:00), but everything will have to go perfectly to achieve that.  Realistically, I think I can PR this course - run faster than a 3:11.  I put 3:05 into Athlinks as my finish time goal.  Truly, when I visualize the ending of this race, though, I am breaking 3. 

I want to run the first half by feel.  The miles should feel flowing.  If they are not, I will back off.  Provided that I get to the first half feeling good, I will evaluate and see if I can push the pace a bit and  finally really give it everything for the last two miles.  I have learned through tempo runs and strength workouts to run the mile I am in and not freak out about the coming miles.  I know I did a good job doing this at my last marathon (Cellcom Green Bay last spring). Finally, at the start line, I am going to take a page from my Birdmachine CHI teammate, Kristina, who did a badass power pose while waiting for her final leg to boost her confidence.  (This is also recommended in Lauren Fleshman's Compete Training Journal, p.88 based on Amy Cuddy's book Presence).

My other goal is to yell "Stay Sexy, Don't Get Murdered" when I run past the Glensheen Estate. (Fans of the podcast My Favorite Murder will get this.) Because another thing that we should all remember is to keep the joy in life :)

See you on the other side!