There's only one thing that comes to mind when I hear the words "final countdown:"
But on to the meat of this post...
In less the seven days I will be crossing the finish line at the Philadelphia Marathon. 25 weeks of training has come to an end. I haven't had a as traditional a taper as I should have, but I'm determined to make this last week count! And here's how I'm going to do it:
Hydration: My Klean Kanteen will be glued to me this week as I make sure to drink lots and lots of water everyday.
Stretching: This is one (of the many) thing I'm really bad about, but I want to feel nice and limber next Sunday so I better get to it!
Short Runs: Just three of them. Three miles Tuesday and Wednesday and a two mile shakeout on Saturday, the day before the race.
Carbo Loading: Everyone's favorite part of marathon training right? I won't lie. I'm a sucker for the bread basket at restaurants (Who needs an entree?). Starting Wednesday I'm going to start adding at least one more serving of carbs to my daily diet. For the record that's whole, unprocessed, good carbs.
Veggie Loading: I'm a big believer in veggies. Broccoli can save the world didn't you know? It's triple portions of brussel sprouts this week!
Race Course Research: I already know the course pretty well, considering I've run about 95% of it at one point or another. Still, I'm going to examine it extra closely this week, paying specific attention to mile markers and elevation changes.
Toenail Clipping: In an effort to hang on to as many as possible on race day.
Race Day Checklist: I need to write up absolutely everything I'll need race morning including what I'm wearing, wear to apply Body Glide, when to set my alarm for, etc. I also need to do some race day shopping for breakfast and race fuel.
Core Strength: A strong core = strong running. Mandatory ab work every night this week.
Goals: At the end of this week I'll be writing out my goals for race day and work on visualizing them into the weekend.
Music: I'm still debating about whether or not to bring my ipod touch, which is kind of large and cumbersome. I may buy a shuffle next weekend for race day in which case I will definitely load up on some songs.
Ice, Ice, Baby: I'm going to keep icing my shins every night to ensure they are in tip top form come Sunday.
Sleep: Getting to bed on time this week is a must. Fortunately I've been hitting the hay around 9:30 pm the last few weeks like clockwork so I don't think I'll have much of a problem in that department.
Got any tips for race week prep? Is there anything I'm missing?
If you haven't ever seen an episode of the brilliant Arrested Development then I order you to lock yourself in your home and watch all three seasons immediately. You will thank me. Trust me.
But on to the meat of this post...
In less the seven days I will be crossing the finish line at the Philadelphia Marathon. 25 weeks of training has come to an end. I haven't had a as traditional a taper as I should have, but I'm determined to make this last week count! And here's how I'm going to do it:
Hydration: My Klean Kanteen will be glued to me this week as I make sure to drink lots and lots of water everyday.
Stretching: This is one (of the many) thing I'm really bad about, but I want to feel nice and limber next Sunday so I better get to it!
Short Runs: Just three of them. Three miles Tuesday and Wednesday and a two mile shakeout on Saturday, the day before the race.
Carbo Loading: Everyone's favorite part of marathon training right? I won't lie. I'm a sucker for the bread basket at restaurants (Who needs an entree?). Starting Wednesday I'm going to start adding at least one more serving of carbs to my daily diet. For the record that's whole, unprocessed, good carbs.
Veggie Loading: I'm a big believer in veggies. Broccoli can save the world didn't you know? It's triple portions of brussel sprouts this week!
Race Course Research: I already know the course pretty well, considering I've run about 95% of it at one point or another. Still, I'm going to examine it extra closely this week, paying specific attention to mile markers and elevation changes.
Toenail Clipping: In an effort to hang on to as many as possible on race day.
Race Day Checklist: I need to write up absolutely everything I'll need race morning including what I'm wearing, wear to apply Body Glide, when to set my alarm for, etc. I also need to do some race day shopping for breakfast and race fuel.
Core Strength: A strong core = strong running. Mandatory ab work every night this week.
Goals: At the end of this week I'll be writing out my goals for race day and work on visualizing them into the weekend.
Music: I'm still debating about whether or not to bring my ipod touch, which is kind of large and cumbersome. I may buy a shuffle next weekend for race day in which case I will definitely load up on some songs.
Ice, Ice, Baby: I'm going to keep icing my shins every night to ensure they are in tip top form come Sunday.
Sleep: Getting to bed on time this week is a must. Fortunately I've been hitting the hay around 9:30 pm the last few weeks like clockwork so I don't think I'll have much of a problem in that department.
Got any tips for race week prep? Is there anything I'm missing?
don't bring music! I will entertain you!
ReplyDeleteI love arrested development and I love Gob! Good luck in the final countdown- and good luck!
ReplyDeleteI've been reading for a while but have decided to stop lurking- I think your blog is fantastic! Keep up the good writing and running!
Oops, meant to say good luck in the final countdown AND in the race... Duh.
ReplyDelete