Friday, September 27, 2013

Taper of Terror

Posted by CheapRunnerMike

Getting ready for the taper this weekend as Chicago is just over two weeks away now.  I'm debating how far to run this weekend…I'm going back and forth between a 15 mile run as a final long run or some Yasso 800's to try and get an idea of how I might do for the marathon.  I think I'm leaning towards the Yasso's…if you don't know what they are it is basically 10 800 metre intervals run as fast as your legs will let you, with 400m breaks in between.  When you are done you take the average of your 10 800m intervals (say 3:22) and that is a very good indicator of what your marathon time will be, only in hours and minutes instead of minutes and seconds, so a 3 hour 22 minute marathon time in this example.  I don't have a track to run on this weekend, but I'll be up at the cottage where there are some nice long roads that will do just fine.  This marathon stuff is all new to me, so if you have any advice on what I should do heading into my taper feel free to share in the comments below.

I have another job on my list while at the cottage this weekend…Kennedy is going to bring up her sewing machine and my Mum we will make up my costume for next weekend's Disney Tower of Terror 10-Miler run.  I'm going to roll with a do-it-yourself superhero of my own creation, that way no one will be able to judge how good/bad my costume is.  Pictures will follow, don't worry…I know you'll be jealous.

Speaking of the race next weekend, all three of us CheapRunners are getting really excited for it.  Michelle and I both love Disney and I have been checking out all kinds of stuff for us to do while we are down there.  I found a great site with all kinds of tips, reviews and suggestions and I highly recommend checking it out if you have a trip coming up to the 'Happiest Place on Earth'.  Tom Bricker blogs over at Disneytouristblog.com and he really knows his stuff.  He's isn't a runner, but he does have a review of his experience at last year's inaugural Tower of Terror 10-Miler (his first…and maybe last… race ever).

For any of you that love race bling, here's what we'll get after next weekend's race…pretty cool I think.

medal

I'm excited because the race finishes up at Hollywood Studios, and you get to run through the park.  Once the race is done, the park remains open for runners until 4am (the race starts at 10pm).  I'm also going to take the race pretty easy…no sense risking injury a week before my goal race, at a Disney race no less.  I'm going to run with my phone so I should be able to get plenty of good pics during a race for once!  Here are the routes we get to take through Hollywood Studios as well as ESPN's Wide World of Sports Complex, which I've never been to.  We get to run the baseball diamond there which is the Spring Training home of the Atlanta Braves.

ToTmapHS
ToTmapWWS

It's nice to have a fun run to look forward to and distract myself from going stir-crazy during my taper.  The travel will actually force me to relax and take things easy…another margarita poolside?  Why yes please :)

The weather this week started out nice and cool, but has warmed up a bit the last couple days making the runs a bit more sweaty.  Still feeling really good out there though and enjoying my time on the paths.  Here's a selfie before Declan complains that my post was incomplete without one…

photo

And I will leave y'all with a little picture Michelle found that made all three of us laugh…it seems like all bloggers these days are fixin' to get more pumpkin in their lives these days, so here's some food for thought.

pumpkin

Pumpkin pie used to be one of my favourites too…

Any taper tips to share?  Yasso's or 15 miles?

Hands up if you're a Disney lover!

I never went as a kid, but I'm hooked…so much fun with the kids there, and looking forward to our first runDisney event!

7 comments:

  1. Hooray for duck lips! Now if only your marathon photo turns out that good!


    No wonder pumpkin pies are so good! they are full of surprises!
    No taper tips here, newb myself. Just don't hurt yourself

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  2. As for the taper...less is more. Trust that. You've got this and you have already put in training. You are going to rock it!!

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  3. HaHa - love the pumpkin picture!!
    I think the Yassos would be a "fun" test for you and a nice mental boost.

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  4. "Don't hurt yourself" is the best tip for sure.

    I just hope to be upright in my marathon photos :)

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  5. Ya I think that's what I need to get my head around...no sense forcing anything these last two weeks.

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  6. That's how I feel about the Yasso's too...I've been meaning to try it out this whole summer but never got around to it. Would be neat to try it out and this weekend is my last chance.

    I managed to get a y'all and a fixin' in there for you Kim, hope I used them properly!

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  7. So funny - I had to come back and re-read the post to find both words!!! Nice use!!! (I think I missed them the first time because I was just reading and not thinking - those words are 2nd nature to me!!!)
    Thanks for pointing it out - love it!!

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