Marathon update - 3 weeks to go

My training has now entered what is known as the taper. These are the weeks in the run up to a marathon where training starts to drop off. The bulk of the hard work is done, now is the time for the legs to recover and nearer the race for levels of things like glycogen storage to be maximised.

The main focus for this last week was my final long run. As you will have read last week this was going to be the third 20 miler with the option of going up to 21, and running the last five miles at marathon pace - depending on how I felt. Well, I felt rubbish! There was no way this was going to be pushed to 21 and there was no question of doing the last five miles anywhere close to marathon pace. 

Although not ideal I'm not too worried by this because there are reasons / excuses: 

1) First of all I had quite a bad cold and I guess that has to have an effect. 

2) Then I started too fast. I've mentioned before that all my training is recorded and logged using my GPS watch - this means I can look back over different runs and compare. This run the first half was done much quicker than it should have been so although the overall average pace was good I was ready to collapse at about 18 miles rather than getting quicker and able to carry on beyond 20 miles. This is a reminder of the importance on the day of not going off too quickly - which is easier said than done in all the excitement.

3) The day before there was a 10 mile run that was done slightly quicker than marathon pace - which obviously won't be the case on the big day. This was also the end of a record 47 mile week and a record 181 mile month. My legs might have been a bit tired.

4) I had eaten too much chocolate, cake and crisps in the previous few days. This won't be happening again between now and after the race!

This final long run was also a chance to finalise 'fuelling strategies' - what to have for breakfast, how long before the start of the run, what to eat along the way, what to drink...This side of the run went well with no adverse effects!

The other runs this week went well and to plan. Five runs and 47.55 miles.

This coming week will still see five runs and the shorter faster runs stay in place, but the length of all runs begins to drop off. The long run this week is only 12 miles and total mileage of about 30 miles. The risk over these next few weeks is not to have confidence in the training that has already taken place and run either faster or longer than the schedule dictates.

Sponsorship is coming along with less than £300 to go now to reach the target of £2000. Thank you to everyone who has sponsored me so far. I'm raising money for Christian Aid and you can sponsor me at www.virginmoneygiving.com/keithtarring