As I stated before, the taper period before a big race can be a difficult time period. Not only are you feeling antsy about running the distance ahead of you, but now you have all of this newfound extra time to think about it (and obviously overthink and overanalyze your training plan and everything you’ve done over the past couple of months).
In theory, the taper before your big race should be a rewarding time. But more often than not, I’ve found it to be a challenging couple of weeks. After all, running isn’t just a means to an end for me — it’s how I cope with stress, help myself feel healthy, and it’s even how I socialize a lot of the time! So when taper time rolls around and I’m being told to ‘cool it’ with running, I get a little ansty. And anxious. And in the past, I’ve panicked.
It doesn’t matter that I’ve run 12 marathons and countless other races and triathlons in my life — the taper period is always a struggle for me! The good news is, there are a lot of things you can do not only make your taper period easier, but also to help make your actual race a success.
Since it’s taper time for those running the 2017 New York City Marathon, I decided to share some insight into how to survive (and win!) your taper period.
I registered for the 2017 Chicago Marathon on a post-race high following the 2016 Philadelphia Marathon. My summer spent ironman training more than prepared me to take on 26.2 miles in Philly, despite not doing a ton of training in between the October 1st triathlon and the November 20th race date. Nearly two months of squashing my sorrows in food and beer after a disappointing race experience (more about that here) had me weighing about 15 pounds heavier than my normal weight, and not in the “look how much muscle mass I gained”-way. Yet I surprised myself by running a 3:24:33 — my second-best marathon time (second to a 3:21:16 in the 2014 New York Marathon).
A few days after returning from Philly (or, more likely, the next day) a friend told me he planned to use his qualifying time in Philadelphia to enter the Chicago Marathon. I decided to join him, and, in my post-race stupor, was excited to work for an ambitious goal: a PR.
Unfortunately, a few weeks later — and most likely due to those 15 pounds — I found myself diagnosed with a stress fracture in my foot, and unable to run for more for than two months. I had to reevaluate my life, and later, my running goals. I decided not to run the Boston Marathon in April, and declared that my goal for Chicago would simply to be to finish pain-free.
The good news is, I succeeded! Here’s how it all went down:
THE TRIP
I’ve run 12 marathons, but the only other race I’ve had to get on an airplane for was my very first marathon, the Nashville Country Music Marathon in April of 2012. I remember that trip being full of anticipation — my friends and I were giggling nervously and filled with genuine excitement to explore Nashville. In retrospect, I should have been more excited than I was for my trip to Chicago. I honestly think that after a winter of injuries (my friends experienced their fair share of injuries as well), a summer spent focusing on a difficult calculus class, and the complexities of coordinating accommodations for eight people, I wasn’t feeling the ‘journey’ at all, but rather just wanted to arrive at my destination unscathed.
The good news: flying out of Newark was seamless and easy; NJ Transit got us to the airport for $13, we got through security in a breeze, there were delicious margaritas and beers at the terminal restaurant, and I got to sit with my friends for the duration of the flight.
Welcome to The Runner Diaries, where we’re sharing a behind-the-scenes look into a week of training with runners of varying ages, paces and GPS coordinates. Get The Runner Diaries delivered to your inbox, here.
THE RUNDOWN
Name: Cara Enright Location: New York, New York Age: 26 Training for: Chicago Marathon 2017 Training plan: Following Nikes Project Moonshot a 16-week training program with Nike. I incorporate 1-2 strength sessions a week (either boxing or HIIT). Part of any running communities/clubs? Nike’s Project Moonshot, Electric Flight Crew. How long you’ve been a “runner”? I started running in high school. I moved onto longer distance running when I moved to New York City in 2013, after I graduated from college. Weekly mileage: It ranges from 25-35 miles per week
RUNNER’S STATEMENT
I grew up running around tracks in North Carolina, and now I’m loving running through the streets of New York City. I was involved in many sports as a kid: cheerleading, dance, competitive jump rope, soccer, and basketball. I ran the 400m and 800m in high school, then the 400m hurdles in college. I didn’t fall in love with distance running until I relocated in NYC after graduation.
The fitness/running community has become everything to me. It made NYC feel smaller, more like home, and less lonely. I completed my first marathon in 2015, the New York City Marathon. I loved every second of it. The next day I told myself I’d never run another marathon ever again. And here I am! My ultimate goal is to break 3:35 for the marathon. I’m hoping to break 3:45 in Chicago, and I’m already lining up which other marathons I want to run after this!
Tuesday | Day 1
7:30am – Pick up my laundry next door. I moved to a new apartment building and can’t figure out how to work our machine in the building, so I did a wash-and-fold for $15. SO worth it.
7:50am – Coffee, two eggs with broccoli, spinach and peppers, avocado, and orange juice for breakfast.
8:30am – Just walked into the office. I fill up my water bottle to make sure I stay hydrated throughout the day — I have my workout tonight with Brooklyn Track Club x Nike Run Club!
10am – Trader Joe’s trail mix packet chocolate cashews, almonds, dried cherries and an apple.
12pm – I can’t wait any longer for lunch. I made chicken, and some veggies and sweet potatoes and add Sriracha. I drink another water.
1:50pm – I’m swamped at work today. I work for a Staffing Agency called Green Key Resources located in Midtown. We partner with Pharmaceutical companies and Clinical Research organizations all over the United States — I basically try to help these companies fill their open positions. It’s a fun job because I get to talk to smart and exciting people all day on the phone, and every day is something a little different. The only downside is that I sit all day. Luckily, I have the most incredible boss who is very supportive of my fitness goals. So if I need to come in a little later or leave a little earlier for a workout, it’s OK.
I decide to have a snack to keep my pushing through. I have Chia Almond protein cold brew shake from Whole Foods and a GO MACRO bar. It’s gluten-free (GF) and delicious. Chocolate chip Peanut butter protein pleasure!
4pm – Realize I ate my snack too early. And I’m out of food at my desk. I buy a Cliff Blueberry bar from the vending machine and a can of seltzer water.
6:30pm – Meet at Spreadhouse for Nike x Brooklyn Running Co track workout. The workout is part of Nike’s Project Moonshot schedule for the Chicago Marathon.
I joined Project Moonshot back in July. It’s a pretty cool program for people training for a fall marathon that I applied for earlier this summer. And I got in! They accepted around 100 people. The idea is that Nike wanted to bring the “Breaking Two” moonshot (of breaking two hours in the marathon) to your everyday street athletes. Those accepted into the program were set up with coaches, pacers, training plans, Nike gear and some discounts to resources for healthy prepared food (Kettlebell Kitchen), strength training (The Fhitting Room) and Massage/Recovery (Finish Line Physical Therapy). We meet twice a week formally (Thursdays for speed, and Sunday morning for a group-led long run) and are broken up by our goal marathon pace. People in the group range from Elite Athletes, to first time marathoners. We have people running 5-minute miles and people running 12-minute miles. We were set up with two phenomenal coaches, Coach Finley and Coach Holder, and have had some guest coaches along the way — including Coach Stowe, Coach Tim, Coach Jess and Kevin Hart even stopped by! It’s been a tremendous help to have a team to train with.
Project Moonshot Orientation
7pm – The workout begins! I’m co-leading the 8-min/mile pace group. We have three sets of intervals in a 1-2-3-2-1 format (the number represent minutes!), with 60-seconds of jogging/active recovery between each interval, and a two-minute recovery jog between each set. It’s dark out and there are a ton of puddles. But we still managed to cruise at a 7:45 min/mile pace. My watch shows 7 miles total of running!
9pm – I hang out with the crew afterwards at Spreadhouse, and grab a chocolate milk before I hop on the subway.
11:30pm – I’m finally home. I’m exhausted, but not hungry. I eat a banana with peanut butter, shower and pass out.
Inspired by Refinery29’s Money Diaries and The Cut’s Sex Diaries, welcome to The Runner Diaries, where we’re sharing a behind-the-scenes look into a week of training with runners of varying ages, paces and GPS coordinates. Get The Runner Diaries delivered to your inbox, here.
This week, we have 36-year-old Des Clarke — a full-time worker, mom and ultra runner who is training for her first 100-mile race.
The Run Down
Name: Deserae (Des) Clarke Location: Danville, PA Age: 36 Training For: Eastern States 100 Miler, the final race in the PA mountain running triple crown Occupation: Research and development manager for Geisinger Health System’s Institute for Advanced Application Goal race? Eastern States will be my first 100 mile race. Following a training plan? Yes. I’m an RRCA certified coach, so I reviewed some plans online and then tailored them to fit my goals Part of any running communities, clubs or training programs? Trail Sisters ambassador, RRCA Susquehanna Ridge runners How long you’ve been ‘a runner:’ Since 8th grade cross country way back in 1994. Goal weekly mileage: Varies, but during training 60-80 miles a week. I’d love to do more, but with family and work obligations it’s tough.
Runner’s Statement:
I’m a full-time worker, mom and ultra runner who constantly tries to find the balance in things. The week that I’m presenting here is a fairly typical weekday routine, with an additional running adventure on the weekend. Having a family makes those running adventures limited, but I wanted to be able to go and explore the course that I’ll be running in August for the Eastern States 100. It’s supposed to be a beast of a course, so I’m not sure if the preview will make me more or less nervous, but it will definitely make me more prepared. (Plus, going with a group helps to calm some of my husband’s fears about me getting lost in the woods alone.)
Day One
5:30am – Wake up and do some yoga. Usually I do strength training in the mornings, Monday through Thursday, but I’ve been having some plantar fasciitis issues in my left foot. After back-to-back long runs this weekend it’s feeling a little sore, so I decided to take today easy and focus on rehab. Continue reading “The Runner Diaries — Des Clarke”→
I feel like a lot of my athletes have asked me about “striders” before, and it doesn’t always occur to me that some people have never done them before! I think different people, coaches and runners have different interpretations of strides and/or striders, so I wanted to clarify what I mean when I assign them.
If you are signed up for the 2017 New York City Marathon, you probably know that you need to start training fairly soon, if you haven’t already started. If you don’t, well, here’s your heads up: it’s time to start running!
The marathon is an entirely different beast of a race than a local 5k or 10k — or even a half marathon. So when it comes to tackling the 26.2-mile distance, it’s not uncommon to question whether or not you need to hire a running coach to get yourself to the finish line.
I’ll be the first person to tell you that you probably don’t.
That’s right — Road Runners Club of America Certification and all, I’ll tell you right now that you don’t need a coach to get yourself to the end of a marathon course. In fact, if you’re in decent enough shape, you could probably walk or jog the course to completion right now.
However, having said that, if you did attempt to conquer the course right now, it would most likely be a horrible experience. It wouldn’t be enjoyable, and you’d probably suffer through it — maybe even injuring yourself along the way.
That’s why I’ll be the first person to tell you that you don’t need a coach to get yourself through a marathon … but it’s a pretty good idea.
Having a running coach or mentor to guide you through 18, or 16, or 12 weeks of marathon training is helpful for a number of reasons, whether you’re a novice runner or a seasoned athlete. While I didn’t hire a coach for my first marathon, I sought out the guidance of coach Chris Baker for my first ironman and am confident that my experience was infinitely better because of it.
How, exactly, can a run coach help get you to the finish line? Let me count the ways.
Inspired by Refinery29’s Money Diaries and The Cut’s Sex Diaries, welcome to The Runner Diaries, where we’re sharing a behind-the-scenes look into a week of training with runners of varying ages, paces and GPS coordinates.
This week, we have 42-year-old Joe O’Leary — a writer, musician, stage performer, and runner chasing PRs in every distance, from the marathon, to the 10k, in New York City.
The Run Down
Name: Joe O’Leary Location: New York City Age: 42 Training For: Summer speed stuff (Queens 10K, July 6th 5K) and fall distance (Bronx 10mi, Staten Island Half, NYC marathon) Occupation: Sales Ops Office Guy Goal race? relevant to this essay, Queens 10K Following a training plan? Coach prescribed Part of any running communities, clubs or training programs? CPTC How long you’ve been ‘a runner:’ 3.5 years Goal weekly mileage: 50 miles/week
Runner’s Statement
Things are going pretty good for me, running-wise, this last year. I had some big PRs in the mile (5:21), 5k (18:48) and 10 mile (1:05:05) leading up to my marathon debut at the New York Marathon. In February I hit another sub-1:30 half marathon on my way to a 10-minute PR at the New Jersey Marathon. Just last Monday, I went sub-40 in the 10K for the first time (39:30), something that’s been on my list for a year.
I talk to a coach here, read an article or internet forum there, talk shop with other runners, listen to advice, try new things, be consistent with form — to me it’s all part of keeping on top of it. In lieu of having the discipline or schedule flexibility to adhere to a strict plan, I’ve substituted the willingness to assume that something I’m doing isn’t working, and to implement self-corrective behavior. And it’s been working, for the most part.
Next week I’ll be running the Queens 10K and then only a handful of smaller races until the fall season starts. I’ll be doing the Bronx 10 mile, Staten Island Half, and the NYC full. This summer, though, the plan is to cut back the miles and work on speed and tempos mainly until the long runs begin again in earnest. We’ll see how that plan goes. For now, eyes are on the 10k on the 17th. Looking to get a hard week of work in before a mini taper next week. I did 50 miles last week, looking to do something similar this week.Continue reading “The Runner Diaries — Joe O’Leary”→
Inspired by Refinery29’s Money Diaries and The Cut’s Sex Diaries, welcome to The Runner Diaries, where we’re sharing a behind-the-scenes look into a week of training with runners of varying ages, paces and GPS coordinates.
This week, we have 23-year-old Paulina Pascual — a Janji Corps ambassador, dedicated member of November Project Boston, and Somerville resident. Below, she shares how she balances early workouts, a 9-to-5 office job, and a family vacation to Canada with training for two 10ks — one being a trail run with a fair amount of elevation.
By day I work a desk job at a bank, but by morning I run around Boston, turning the city into my playground. I started running almost by accident when I began working out with November Project, and it’s been the best accident to happen to me. At the time, I just finished an undergraduate program at one of Boston’s many colleges, and the regular challenge November Project brought to my weekly routine was a welcome. It held me accountable and allowed me to set goals in my new post-grad world.
Since I’m still new to running, I’ve never had any formal training. I’ve relied mostly on the Internet and my running clubs to source and review training plans. While I still have a lot to learn—send your recovery and nutrition tips to me!—I’m tickled to have four 5ks, two marathon relays, and one half marathon in the books. And a full marathon on the horizon!
This week is a bit atypical from my usual routine, as I went on a to Montréal with my family who live in upstate New York. But I’ve noted what’s different as those changes occur.Continue reading “The Runner Diaries — Paulina Pascual”→
Inspired by Refinery29’s Money Diaries and The Cut’s Sex Diaries, welcome to The Runner Diaries, where we’re sharing a behind-the-scenes look into a week of training with runners of varying ages, paces and GPS coordinates.
This week, we have 24-year-old Katelynn Wagner of Ithaca, New York — a plant-based trail and ultra runner who is training for the Finger Lakes Fifties 50 miler.
The Rundown:
Name: Katelynn Wagner Location: Ithaca, NY Age: 24 years old Occupation: Molecular Biology & Genetics at Cornell University Goal Race: Finger Lakes Fifties 50 Miler on July 1, & Cat’s Tail Trail Marathon (also pacing a friend at the Leadville 100 mile race) Training Plan: Very loosely following a schedule of long runs that I made, and letting my body determine the mid-week miles. Running communities & clubs: I am a member of Janji Corps and an ambassador for Trail Sisters How long have you been a runner? I ran XC in high school but a 10k was as far as it went, until I had my daughter in 2013. I signed up for my first half marathon to try to shake the “baby weight.” Then signed up for a trail 30k and couldn’t get enough! Why do you eat a plant based diet? I chose a vegetarian diet shortly after having my daughter in 2013. I chose this equally for both health and ethical reasons. I had always thought of making the next step to a vegan diet but had never been able to make it stick. Then after reading Eat & Run by Scott Jurek and Thrive by Brendan Brazier I decided to make the transition. It is certainly more work, but well worth it. My performance has increased significantly and my recovery time has plummeted. I can’t say that I am super strict. Eating out (which we don’t do often) can be a challenge. And the thought of sending someone a list of ingredients they can and can’t cook with when they’ve invited me over for dinner always seemed too rude to even think of. So in those circumstances, as long as it is vegetarian I am happy to eat it. But when I cook for myself it is vegan, and I can tell the difference in my health and performance.Continue reading “The Runner Diaries — Katelynn Wagner”→
Run From Your Problems 