Thursday, March 20, 2008

Lonely Encounters

I guess I'm tapering now, though I still have to find that switch in my mind; I'm still thinking of miles, lots of them, and then have to scale down. I did 15 miles yesterday, just like I had planned, on an icy cold day. It was below 0C when I left and the ground was covered in frost (NO!! MY POTATOES!!!) but I quickly warmed up over the first miles, and especially on those wicked climbs that followed. I kept the effort reasonably easy, but accelerated over the last 5 miles, like I used to do. I didn't manage better than 38:16 (7:39 pace) for those 5, which initially pissed me off until I remembered that I had run 27.5 miles only 3 days previously. I have recovered amazingly quickly from that, there's no soreness in my legs at all, just in my right shoulder, but of course there's still some residue of fatigue in there.

I encountered a curious mix of lonely animals on the road; first a hare, then a cow (which ran away from me despite the fact that she could trample me to death), and young puppy dog that kept jumping right in front of me and a rabbit. All of them were on their own, which was a bit curious with the cow. I hate it when farmers can't keep their animals behind closed gates. Accidents happen rather easily that way.

There are probably as many ideas about the taper as there are runners. I intend to cut down on the mileage (70-ish this week, 50-ish next week, very little in the last week) but increase the intensity, so there will be a tempo run or two as well as an initial speed session. This will be unlikely to help me much for the ultra, but I also have an eye on the two races after that, and maybe, just maybe, doing a few faster sessions now will reap some rewards later on. In any case, the idea of increasing the intensity during the taper isn't just my own madness; several well-known coaches work that way (though you can find plenty who disagree, of course).

The weather has turned sour again, but I got away with it this morning; it was windy and the sky was covered in thick grey clouds, but luckily it didn't rain. I started at about 8:30 pace, added a few accelerations, ended up getting faster with each mile, got to 7:50 pace average, and it all felt really easy. I think I won't be quite in peak shape for the ultra, I simply did not have enough time after my pneumonia, and another 3 or 4 weeks would get me there, but I feel great nevertheless; and there's still hope that I will be in top condition for the Cork marathon, as long as I manage to recover in time.

19 Mar
15 miles, 2:01:03, 8:04 pace, HR 143
20 Mar
8.5 miles, 1:06:31, 7:49 pace, HR 142

4 comments:

  1. Cows, rabbits and dogs?? Better than dodging cars and trucks. Good to see how quickly you've recovered from the weekend. Happy taper!

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  2. Enjoy the taper Thomas! Although the way you're feeling now you probably won't want to slow down at all!

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  3. The taper looks good, just make sure you're recovering and aren't digging yourself a pit. Cork eh, interesting (I like it)!

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  4. I'm beginning to think diet and rest during the last few weeks are probably as important as planning and executing mileage declines and specific intensity. My only advice would be not to pick up too many additional chores during the time you won't be spending running.

    You seem quite fit, I'm looking forward to seeing how the ultra goes.

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