After a week of complete rest after the Tokyo Marathon, it’s time to look ahead, set my sights on the London Marathon and execute that reverse marathon taper. Or is it? Here’s how my week in workouts went.
Reverse Marathon Taper
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: Run 4 miles easy (tired)
Wednesday: Strength
Thursday: Run 5 miles with 3 at tempo pace (felt great)
Friday: Plyo Intervals
Saturday: Run 8 miles (cut it to 6 cuz tired)
Sunday: CrossFit
The weather was all over the place this week and so was my body. Thursday I had a great run in windy, 58 degree weather. I thought it was my body’s way of telling me it was ready to ramp up but nope. I was tired again by the weekend. I’m in that elusive place where I don’t wanna be a slacker and make excuses but I don’t wanna be stupid and push through if I’m not ready. Once upon a time I ran a 3 minute half marathon PR 6 days after a full marathon but things feel very different this time around. My body is going to dictate how this reverse taper goes and I’d rather coast into London undertrained than push too hard and injure myself.
Not Loving
When nature calls. Mr. Ozzypup decided he needs to get up to pee at 3am on the regular. While I’m glad he wakes me up vs going in the house, I couldn’t be less thrilled about walking him in the dark, wee hours. Especially since the coyotes are rampant lately, and he wants to chase them. Guess what Oz? That’s a battle you’re not going to win.
College Cheating Scandal. Wow. Having just gone through the college admission process these last few months, this one hit home hard. IMO this isn’t about parents wanting the best for their kids. It’s about parents massaging their own egos and building/maintaining a facade of success. I do hope though that this is a tipping point for universities because I can say firsthand, it’s all gotten so far out of hand. University tuition is INSANE and out of reach for so many. So many students can bust their tail all day long, get top scores and never be able to touch some of these schools.
Loving
Jaybird Tarah Pro Wireless Headphones. I was sent some to test and I was impressed. They stay in place and sound great. You’ll get an impressive 14 hours of playing time. They’re sweat and waterproof and charge up super fast: Just 5 minutes of charging gives you 2 hours of playtime. They’re light, comfy and can be worn over or under the ear. These are winners!
Gorgeous sunrises/sunsets. I think spring & fall sunrises/sets are the most colorful of all.
Birds! We may be back to winter-like weather around here but the fact that spring is imminent is undeniable. All the birds are back and busy getting their digs together. I am SO ready for spring!
How was your week? Ever execute a reverse taper? Has spring arrived where you are?
I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down. Join us!
Oh, Ozzy! At least he’s consistent (??). I have seen a few robins, but never had my phone handy to grab a pic of them. I’ll be doing some form of a reverse taper if all goes well with my two fall marathons….Thanks so much for joining us on the WRD link-up, Marcia 😉
I am very glad we can just let the dogs out in the backyard — and that neither of them are at a stage where they’re doing that. But Ozzy is young — do you think there’s something physical going on? Or do you just need to pick up water in the evening? Lola has a tendency to drink too much water, she’s always been that way, so sometimes when I can’t keep an eye on her for a bit I’ll just pick it up.
Of course they both have their own annoying quirks . . .
The whole college thing. Entitlement. That just seems to be rampant in everything these days. But yes, I can’t even imagine having to put kids through college. I certainly wouldn’t have stopped working if that had been the case.
Cannot have too many pairs of headphones or shoes (or can you? Asking for a friend?) Sounds like you have a great plan in place for ramping back up for London. What a fun few months for you! Thanks for linking up
Yes, the weather was crazy this week! I see that it is supposed to be nice next week for Shamrock Shuffle. I was planning to go to the expo Saturday morning but now am leaning towards Friday after work.
I was shocked with the whole cheating scandal. But at the same time, I am not surprised either.
Those headphones look awesome!! How can I get Jaybird to also send some to me to review? 🙂
Ozzy is so cute — I’m sure I’ve said that before. Less so at 3 AM no doubt
“Cuz tired” is just so so true
Am ~ decade removed from even grad school admissions but it was bonkers then and I can’t imagine how much more so now
Ran into a friend on the train to the Half this morning — she’s doing Boston and London. You two are warriors!
Marathons in close proximity are hard to handle. Know that you have a strong base from Tokyo and there’s still plenty of runway between now and London. The body remembers time on feet best, which you’ve got, so I think proceeding with caution is the best way to approach it.
I had a puking dog at 3 a.m. the other night. Why is it always in the middle of the night when in a dead sleep?!?! I heard birds chirping the other morning and did a happy dance. Spring is near!
Thank goodness Scooby can make it all night. I’m not sure he’d wake us, or I’d wake up hearing him flood our bedroom carpet. :-O There were a lot of stories on the admissions scandal in the Washington Post today, and most said it was just the tip of the iceberg. Even richer families get their kids in via endowments and such. (~cough~Kushner~cough~ << according to the article) I think you are being wise about your taper/reverse taper. I had weird injuries ping pong through my body — hopefully they have left the building.
I just had to wake up at 2am because my son was throwing up but I cannot imagine getting up near that time every morning and actually having to go outside. Oh the things we do for family 🙂
And I’m sure you were rightly pissed off about the college scandal. I agree it was about parent egos and almost nothing to do with the kids. There’s just SO much wrong with all of it but I do hope, as you do, that it’s a tipping point and something changes before I have to send two kids at the same time!
Good luck with your reverse taper and listen to your body – it’s been though a lot of time changes!
You had such hard conditions in Tokyo and really had to dig deep. I’m sure your body is in “hell no” mode still. Here’s to a better week for you! I can’t believe it’s now less than 6 weeks away. I’ve been getting some runs in, though short. At least it’s something.
I’m not surprised by the admissions cheating scandal but it does anger me. My kids all worked their bottoms off and did get in to a good school, but it’s ridiculous that so many people just buy their way in. And of course the kids, in some instances, don’t even want to be there. Like you said – it’s the parents’ egos that need to be stroked.
My legs are dead for a good 2-3 weeks post marathon before I feel like I have that normal pop again! Good for you for listening to your body and cutting it short when you need to.
I agree with you on the parents- that’s all about them, not their kids… what kid wants that much pressure and hands-on assistance from their parent anyway? Maybe the helicopter parenting has changed how kids react but I didn’t even want my parents involved in my college decision, other than bouncing ideas off them- and they were very low key about the whole thing which helped me make it my thing.
I was loving the weather on Thursday/Friday of last week but then it quickly disappeared, lol.
Totally 100% agree with you about the college cheating scandal. It’s all about these parents and their egos and they want to have ‘bragging rights’. It’s disgusting.
Cocoa gets up every morning about 3:30 and Mike lets her out. Then she wants to play. I guess that explains why he falls asleep on the couch at 7 pm every night!
I’m thinking you’ll be fine for London but just so relieved when it’s done! I can’t imagine running one marathon anymore, much less 2 back to back!
Ps it’s cold today in Florida…
Doggie potty breaks in the middle of the night are not good! I have those same Jaybird headphones and love them!
My best regards to Mr. Ozzy (is he the Black Sabbath’s singer?),
Spring is the best season for the runners, allergies apart…..
I’ve never done a reverse taper but I’m sure you’ve got it nailed down! I agree that it would be better to be undertrained than overtrained for London.
I am loving that spring is making its way back! Crocus are starting to bloom and I’m finally adjusting to Daylight Savings Time lol! And yes, the sunrises have been really pretty!
I couldn’t agree more about the college scandal! I worked very hard and suffered a major family loss in my senior year and was told that I would be only be helped with a tiny percentage of my tuition. I got in but I had to resort to taking out loans to pay for my schooling. It isn’t as much as others I know but it’s still a pretty penny to pay!
Take care of yourself and just see how your body continues to feel. You have a good mindset about London already so keep it up! Oh Ozzy! Pups are cute but that part sure isn’t. Hope he begins to sleep through the night soon. Maybe he’s like a newborn and will start sleeping through the night soon?
Oh Ozzy is so cute…but 3 am?! Hopefully, that habit won’t stick!
The whole college scandal really makes my blood boil! I’m a couple of years away from my son starting the college application process and I’m dreading it…parents all really need to check their egos!
Good luck with your reverse taper – a challenge for sure, but you’re smart in letting your body take the lead.
I can’t say I’ve ever done a reverse taper but maybe I should have? I once ran Cologne marathon and then three weeks later Lisbon. Neither one of those races were my “best” let’s say (but not my worst). Learning as I go. Is this the first time you do two so close together? At least in London the pressure of the sweeps is way, way less and hopefully you have much better weather!!
It’s spring here for sure. But not like what you are thinking. Rain rain rain rain. Finally let up on Sunday but only for a part of the day (5K runners had blue sky, 10K runners had hail, wind, rain, sun, Half Marathons had all 4 seasons in one go). Now the sun is shining but COLD. I won’t complain It gets us closer to how spring “should” be.
I keep saying I need Bluetooth headphones but I see the price and wait. Someone needs to ask me to review them.
I love the term reverse taper.
I get it.
Half in Feb. then injured. Half in March.
Coming soon – Half in April then a 15k. Half in May, 15k in June.
Why did I sign up for these?????
You will rock London. It cannot RAIN!!!!