You Know it's Taper Week When...

The taper madness has definitely hit. The legs are anxious, the mind is jumping around like a little frog. I've experienced the following things in the last two days thanks to the taper. Welcome to my world.

You know it's taper week when...

- You walk to the grocery store near work at 3 pm because you can't get your mind off of a piece of dark chocolate. Chocolate emergency must be remedied! You come back with dark chocolate and dried mangos. #ilovesugar

- You have to tell yourself NOT to go to the gym.

- You take an extra walk with the dog because you're not supposed to run today.

- You feel exhausted and hungry and yet you haven't run yesterday or today.

- One moment you see yourself smashing your A goal out of the water, and the next you just hope to cross the finish line without a limp.

I'm currently working on 'trusting my training' like everyone says we marathoners should do. In the next five days, I plan to get my head to a place where I believe "I AM GOING TO REACH MY A GOAL" because I have trained hard and my body and my running are probably the best they have ever been. Period.

In my marathon panic mode, I came across this Runner's World article on Marathon Smarts. It's worth a read. 

Comments

Mrs. C. said…
I totally feel your pain! I'm tapering for my 1st marathon and it's awful! I am sooo hungry and feel chunky and lethargic because I'm not running as much! It's so hard!! And you're right... the thoughts in my head are so sporadic... one minute I'm excited and the next I'm petrified and filled with self-doubt! It's crazy. Good luck on your race!
Tasha Malcolm said…
I cant totally relate to you right now. I am seriously going taper crazy right now. I hate the fact that I want to eat everything in sight. Oye!
Gracie said…
Good article. I'll keep that in mind next time. Good luck and keep on tapering :)
You can do it! I believe in you! :) I'll be cheering from you from afar!!

I remember the anxious feelings of taper week! Kind of love/hate taper time. I liked the decrease in mileage because I was exhausted leading up to the marathon, but at the same time, I hate how tired and out of sorts I felt!
Amber said…
I'm really enjoying using taper as an excuse to be lazy. HA! But I definitely know what you mean, random bouts of exhaustion and food cravings are not fun all the time!
"Trust your training" - say that over and over and over. You absolutely have to, and should. :)

For whatever it's worth, I've learned I do best when I'm nervous. I was an anxious mess before MCM last Fall - but in a 'good' way (most days). The goal was ambitious, but I knew in my head that I could do it. It was just a matter of DOING IT.

Taper madness continues... ;)
Unknown said…
Hi Lauren! I have been dealing with my taper week too! I will also be running Eugene this weekend! I am excited and hoping that my training will give me an 11 minute PR. Good Luck!
Raquelita said…
I am double tapering for the half I'm running next weekend because I took a week off from running after oral surgery. It is doubling my normal taper anxiety. I'm trying to tell myself that this is old hat and that my only goal this time is to finish.

Good luck this weekend!

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