Before I started running seriously back in 1999 I didn't even know what the word taper meant. Now as a seasoned veteran of the sport it is a word I use quite often. Sometimes tapering is highly anticipated, "I can't wait to have a long run less than 20 miles!" And sometimes tapering is dreaded, "My body just wants to GO but my training schedule says to rest." or "How can I run 26.2 miles if I'm resting and not putting in miles?!"
I am now on my 18th week of marathon training, with my 2nd marathon just 4 short days away. This is my third week of tapering. And just today I started to panic. See, I've been sick. And I can't seem to fight whatever it is I have. So that's part of my panic. The other part is simply the mind games that tapering gives us runners. Gotta love that. Going to try some visualization tonight. Have to get my mind where it needs to be. Calm. Confident. Secure in the fact that I have trained much harder this year than last and am better prepared. Last year I only ran 20 miles one time. This year I've run 22 once and 20 twice. I'm more than ready.
Remember my taper post last year? I'm super nostalgic about my journey once again. Last year it was about me. Could I do it alone....as I trained alone. This year it's different. This year it's about friendship...as I trained with many girlfriends. And a very best friend. I blogged last year about how she and I both ran our first marathons alone, even though we wanted (and needed) the other by our side. This year the stars aligned (and our husbands reluctantly gave us the go-ahead) and we are going to be running the same marathon this year. Together.
Jaime and I have made a pact to stay together no matter what. Time isn't a goal. We're not trying to qualify for anything. When I expressed my nerves to Jaim this afternoon she said this, "We’ll do it. Promise. We just have to pace ourselves. We are not competing to win. We are competing for a prize for ourselves to show off how strong our bodies are. Whether we run it in 3 hours or 13 hours, we’re still running a marathon. I don’t care who you are, you can’t just go out and take on 26.2 without some serious training." And that, my friends, is the best thing anyone could have said to me in this taper madness I'm knee deep in right now.
I have a ton of other friends running it, too: Bac.k On My Feet buddies, Perfect Stranger buddies, and Ragnar Relay buddies. It's a local race and I'm excited to see familiar faces along the course (I've commissioned every person I know in a 20 mile radius to come out and cheer us on, nudge nudge).
This will most likely be my last marathon for a while. The training takes up a very large chunk of time and I'm realizing I need to shift my energy and focus on my family. My girls will only be 4 and 2 for a short time. My husband has been great; he's put up with me to going to bed at 9pm only to wake at 4:30am to get in a long run, taking the girls to and from school every day, making smoothies for the girls every Saturday morning when I'm out running, the list goes on. I couldn't train for a marathon without his support. However, it's time for me to find better balance.
Trust me, this is not the end of my running. I will still race. All year long. Just not 26.2 miles. Half marathons are still fun and challenging...so maybe I'll just stick with those. Running is a part of me and always will be. It's where I relax, where I sort my thoughts, where I belong.
In the meantime, I'll be focusing on kicking this marathon's butt on Saturday.
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