Final Marathon Preparation
You are now less than two months away from running the marathon. Your base work has been completed--your long runs are up to 18-20 miles every other week. You have done some anaerobic threshold training. Most importantly, you have started doing PMP (predicted marathon pace) runs to train your body to tolerate the pace you expect to run at the marathon. What is left for you to do?
I suggest that you do a practice run. Ideally, find a half marathon (the M.S. race in D.C. on Sept. 15 or the Philly Distance Classic on Sept. 22 are two possibilities) or a 10 Miler (the Army 10-Miler is Oct. 13-two weeks before Marine Corps). What you want to do is to practice race preparation and race strategy. Eat your pre-marathon meal the night before. Wear the same clothes you will be wearing in the marathon. Get up at the same time. Practice hydrating. Wear the shoes you will be wearing in the marathon (make sure they do not have more than 100-150 miles of wear). Use the first two miles of the race to practice going out slow (30- 45 seconds slower than PMP) and then pick up the pace to your marathon pace for the remaining miles. Remember that you risk blowing up in the marathon if you run the first few miles too fast. Practice taking a sports drink or water in the race. You can find out whether you can drink on the run or have to stop at each stop (some runners carry a straw and sip as they run-you might want to use the race to experiment). A successful race can boost your confidence for the marathon.
The other common mistake of marathoners is beginning their taper too late. A taper should start 3-4 weeks before the marathon. For Marine Corps, the last long run should be the weekend of October 5-6 (the Sugarloaf Mountain run is on October 6). Your body needs time to recover from the months of hard training and the long runs. It takes two weeks from the time you run to the time your body gets a benefit from a workout. This means you cannot get any faster regardless of the work you do the last two weeks, but you can enter the marathon as damaged goods if not rested.
The only speed work I recommend for most runners in the last two weeks is repeat miles at PMP pace (Veterans can run a 10K the week before). The week of Oct. 14-20, do two sessions of 4 x 1 mile at PMP with a 400 recovery between sets. The final week before the marathon, do 2 x 1 mile at PMP with a 400 recovery. Do this at least three days before the marathon. Total weekly mileage during the tapering period should be as follows. During the week of Oct. 7-13, run 75 percent of the average weekly mileage you ran during August and September. Run 50 percent the week of Oct. 14-20, and 25-30 percent the week of Oct. 21-27.
Finally, I strongly urge you to take an entire week off after the marathon, including no cross training. After a marathon, your legs contain thousands of microtears. The fastest way to recover is by not running. You might want to do some light walking and stretching in this first week. Rebuild your mileage in the same way you tapered. Run 25-30 percent of your average weekly mileage during August and September the second week, 50 percent the third week, and 75 percent the fourth week. If you follow this kind of recovery, you will be ready to resume training and less likely to find yourself being injured.
Coach West is a licensed coach, affiliated with MCRRC, and available to coach motivated adult runners. A portion of his coaching fees for MCRRC members is returned to MCRRC. For further information about personal coaching opportunities, contact Coach West at kirtwest@comcast.net.
