Countdown

So my taper/lead up to the Marine Corp Marathon is going to be a bit unorthodox. Thanks to the combination of nagging injuries and minimal motivation, I’m flirting with being right on the cusp of hitting that 3:10 goal or bonking and DNFing the entire race. Sooooooo, it should be interesting either way.

That said, here’s a breakdown of my next 3 weeks. My hope is that if I put it up on the blog, I’ll be forced to actually to do it because some of you people might guilt me if you find out I didn’t. The daily mileage and speed focus comes from a bunch of random insight over the last year and a half, mixed with what I know works for me and my body. I’m sacrificing those staple long runs because I’m not-so-secretly hoping that my Ironman legs are still with me.

Intensity levels for reference:

5 = Fast (sub 6:45 miles)
4 = Just under race pace (7:00 miles)
3 = Race pace (7:15 miles)
2 = Just above race pace (7:30 miles)
1 = Long distance/recovery pace (8:00+ miles)

October 13 – 5 mile (5)
October 14 – 10 mile (3)
October 15 – 5 mile (2)
October 16 – 13 mile (2) + 2 mile swim
October 17 – 6 mile FAST (4) + soccer game + optional 40 mile bike ride
October 18 – 14 mile (2)
October 19 – 5 mile (1)
October 20 – 10 mile (4)
October 21 – 5 mile (5)
October 22 – 10 mile (3)
October 23 – 10 mile (3)
October 24 – 5 mile (5) + soccer game + 1 mile fast swim
October 25 – 10 mile (3)
October 26 – REST
October 27 – 6 mile (5)
October 28 – 5 mile (5)
October 29 – REST
October 30 – 1 mile (6:00 min pace)
October 31 – RACE DAY + second half of soccer game

I might improvise during the final race week depending on how I’m feeling and if those injuries are still lingering but let’s hope I hit most of these targets for the next 19 days.