As fit as I’m gonna be (2 weeks to go)
I have been told that an athlete cannot improve his fitness in two weeks time. Actually, some have suggested that it takes three or four weeks for someone to improve their fitness.
I don’t know… it sounds like those people know what they’re talking about.
As a result of this information, I did my last long run of the Pocono Mountain Marathon cycle today. With just two weeks to go I figured it was a good idea to pile it on one last time.
Though one cannot gain fitness in just two weeks, they sure as hell can lose it. So even though I’m finished with the long runs and the hard work is pretty much done, I can’t just let myself go and go into a full-blown taper. Oh no. Instead, most of the next two weeks will be filled with easy, medium-length runs, fewer doubles and more strides.
Hell, I might even jump into a race to see how fast I can go.
But the main goals for the next two weeks is to not get hurt, maintain my strength and fitness, and to rest up.
Easy, huh?
Monday, April 14
1st run – 18 miles in 1:52:49
2nd run – 5 miles in 34:06
Last 7 days – 132
Tuesday, April 15
1st run – 19 miles in 2:03:01
2nd run – 4 miles in 26:53
Last 7 days – 132
Wednesday, April 16
17 miles in 1:50:51
Last 7 days – 126
Thursday, April 17
1st run – 18 miles in 1:55:39
2nd run – 5 miles in 33:15
Last 7 days – 127
Friday, April 18
18 miles in 1:57:44
Last 7 days – 129
Saturday, April 19
15 miles in 1:39:08
Last 7 days – 126
Sunday, April 20
21 miles in 2:14:05
Last 7 days: 140
140 breaks my all-time record for miles in a week.
Mileage weeks for 2008: 93, 94, 90, 114, 120, 100, 109, 125, 103, 106, 126, 124, 125, 133, 131, 140
April 26, 2008 at 5:09 pm
Good god man, look at the length of those singles! That’s not even mentioning your second runs and your total of 140 miles. You’re as ready as you’re going to get, so follow your own advice at the end of the post and get yourself rested before go time. I think a 20 minute P.R. could be possible given the training.
Best of luck.
April 26, 2008 at 6:15 pm
Yeah, don’t tell anyone, but I think I may have overdone it a bit. I wanted to push myself and I think I succeeded. Either way, the taper is going to be pretty important… already I can feel some snap come back to my legs and I’ve only cut 30 to 35 percent. At this rate I might be too rested.