It’s that time of year again when thousands of runners who have been putting in great efforts during the previous 3-4 months are entering taper time. Each weekend there are countless marathons taking place across the world ranging from huge ones like New York City to smaller local races with less than 1,000 runners. Regardless of the race size, the distance remains the same. 26.2 miles deserves a proper taper.
What is it? Tapering is the training phase right before a long distance event, such as a marathon, when a runner starts to cut back on his or her mileage. This reduced training phase gives runners a chance to rest, recover, and mentally prepare for their race.
For some people, taper is a welcome break from high mileage weeks. For others, the extra rest brings anxiety, phantom pains, negative thoughts, and over eating. In order to help everyone with their upcoming taper, I reached out to a few of my favorite running coaches. These ladies have completed more than 150 marathons between them and are coaching and inspiring many other runners daily.
1. Respect the taper! I believe the biggest thing to remember is to respect them. We are given a taper for a reason. Our bodies need a little time to rebuild from the relentless pounding we have been inflicting for the past 12-16 weeks. – Mary Baum, Food and Fun on the Run
2. A proper taper is actually not nearly as complicated as many runners make it out to be! A proper marathon taper should last two weeks and cut back one third of the mileage – so if you run 21 miles on day 1, you would then run 14 miles on day 8, and then race on day 15. – Laura Skladzinski, 50by25
3. You cannot get enough sleep. Resting is the single most important thing you can do during taper. Even if it’s putting your feet up after work instead of going to Happy Hour, that rest will add up by race day morning. – Abby Bales, Run Stronger Every Day
4. This is not the time for catch up. Regardless of the reason, if you missed a few runs during your training or even were sick for your last 20 mile long run, this is not the period to squeeze in extra runs. Follow your training plan and do not try to make up for lost time. Your legs need this time to recover before the marathon. – Mary Baum, Food and Fun on the Run
5. Resist the urge to try something new – stay away from new to you foods and new workouts, including those you will encounter at the marathon expo. – Gia Alvarez Run Gia Run
6. Do not run any of your runs faster than marathon pace during taper. Every run should feel ridiculously easy. Believe it or not, muscles grow and get stronger with proper rest. -Abby Bales, Run Stronger Every Day
7. Planning your nutrition carefully is at least half the battle, and it pays to do it properly.
8. If you’re traveling to the marathon, especially long distance flights, ensure you use a hydration supplement, like NUUN, in your water. You will need the electrolyte balance and plain water may actually further dehydrate you. – Abby Bales, Run Stronger Every Day
9. Stretch/foam roll – Spend 10 minutes a day stretching your legs and upper body. I like to do this before bed, it helps me wind down and sleep better. -Gia Alvarez Run Gia Run
10. Carry your race essentials on the plane. Be sure to pack your race essentials (shoes, socks, clothing) … things that cannot be replaced in your carry on. In the event of lost luggage you don’t want to be stuck with brand new clothing or shoes. -Gia Alvarez Run Gia Run
11. Stay healthy with your eating. Add in one extra serving of protein on days 3-5 leading up to the race, add one extra serving of simple carbohydrate on days 1-3 before your race. -Gia Alvarez Run Gia Run
12. Try to minimize extra stress in your life where you can. Training for a marathon for 12+ weeks puts a lot of stress on your body and your mind. While you are allowing your body to repair itself physically, don’t forget about mentally. While you may be tempted to fill up the time you were spending training with other activities, be sure to allow yourself some time to rest mentally, too so your mind is as strong as your body on race day. After all, so much of the marathon is mental! – Theodora Blanchfield Losing Weight in the City (newly minted running coach)
13. My number one tip for taper is TRUST the plan. You put in the work. All those long runs. All those sweaty miles. All those pieces of toast before a morning workout. The training is done, now your job is to rest your legs. Don’t question it. Trust yourself. You got this! – Monica Olivas Run Eat Repeat
Hopefully these tips will help you have a successful taper and cross the starting line of your marathon in a positive mindset!
Great tips! Good luck to all runners in their upcoming races 🙂
Thanks for your great taper tips Monica! You will definitely be an inspiration on Saturday!
I like your graphic 🙂 One foot in front of the other should be another tip! Just keep following the schedule.
Thanks Theodora! 🙂 One foot in front of the other will be my mantra on Saturday!
Love the taper! The only hard part is scaling back the calories….I get so used to the double digit long runs that when I’m only running 6-8 miles I still want to eat like I’ve run 15-18 miles =) Thanks for the tips.
Also, this is off topic but yesterday morning I happened to see momsgottarun while I was running (I live on Staten Island too) and that reminded me that I only started reading your blog right after Sandy and it’s coming on a year and I just wanted to thank you again for setting up that lovely Target registry for her. I bought her pillows….and now a year later I enjoy reading her blog and seeing how she’s rebounded from the loss of her beautiful home. Good luck with your marathon!
Aww Sally thanks for reading! I’m so glad you ran into Jen! She’s so wonderful. I can’t believe it’s almost a year since Sandy! Food is so important – i’m guilty too!
Great tips to remember, thank you! I can especially appreciate the hydration tip!!
Em
Emily also make sure you check with your marathon to see how they will offer hydration on the course so you’re ready! Good luck!
This is exactly what I needed to read! I am training for my first full marathon and today kicks off day 1 of tapering. I keep hearing about the dreadful time of training, but after reading those comments, it doesn’t seem too scary! Thank you to all the bloggers!
Yay Sophie! I’m glad it helped! You will rock your first marathon!
Psychologically the taper can be tough. You focus on your mileage for
So long to suddenly drop it feels like under training. As per number 13 trust the taper. It’s not always easy.
I totally agree Gareth! Trust the taper and your training!
These are such great tips! I have a really hard time with the taper. I want to just keep running hard but know I shouldn’t. I can scale back the miles but the effort I still want to make really good time!
Thanks Lacy – aren’t these ladies great? You will still succeed, even more so, with a taper!
Number 1 is the law! I love how Mary put it. It is so tempting to be nervous about slowing down. But as Kara Goucher says, “Don’t try to rush progress. Remember — a step forward, no matter how small, is a step in the right direction. Keep believing.” Good luck on your race!
I agree Jason! I love that quote from Kara!
I know I’m not alone in this but I am AWFUL at tapering. These tips are actually really helpful. I try to balance lowering the miles and just being easy on my body…while listening to whatever cravings it is also asking for (within REASON).
Then I get all anxious and nervous that I should be doing more miles haha. Of course…
Aww Ashley hopefully this time around your taper improves! I’m guilty of eating too much! I am really trying to focus on that this week! GOOD LUCK!
I have Marine Corps in 19 days and I’m scared. I missed 3 long runs, one a 20 miler, and I was planning on doing it this weekend… I know I’m supposed to rest, but mentally I feel like I need it or I’m going to go crazy. I feel like I haven’t earned my taper.
I am not a coach but I would reach out to one of the ladies in the post and ask their opinion!! Good luck!