How to manage your training load before a marathon: the only guide you need to tapering (from one week to three weeks before your race)
You’ve put in six months of hard training and now your marathon is coming into view like a rising sun. You can almost feel the burning heat of the first twenty miles in your legs. You can almost sense the sweat forming on your face. You can almost…
OK, enough with the metaphors. Bottom line: you’ve put a huge training load into your legs and you’re wondering how to manage the last few weeks before the race.
You can read our post on pre-race fueling here, which covers the timing, quantity and types of food you should be eating—and the good news is you get to indulge those carbs like no other time in your life!
As for the training load, it’s time to taper. And in this post we’re going to cover a few basic ideas.
Tapering for a race
What is tapering? It’s an obvious answer perhaps, but tapering entails a progressive reduction in training load before the race.
But you might wonder, exactly how much do I have to reduce my training load? And for how long?
Well, the truth is, there’s no hard and fast rule. And any answer we give requires a little discussion of what is sometimes known as ‘the fitness vs. freshness ratio’.
Basically, a longer and more aggressive taper will mean that by race day you feel fresher, but you’ll have lost a little fitness.
Conversely, a shorter taper will mean you feel fitter, but you’ll have lost a little freshness.
So—it all comes down to balance.
There is no magic formula and no one system that works for everyone. But thankfully there are some basic guidelines which, when followed, result in the best possible outcome for you.
Here is Kaizen’s simple guide to tapering for a marathon or half marathon:
21 Days before The Race
It’s not necessary to reduce your training load this week, but it’s worth remembering that your race is coming up when planning your runs. Therefore:
Don’t do anything too unusual which will take a very long time to recover from. It’s probably best to avoid racing during this week.
This should be the week with your longest long run.
14 Days before The Race
The training load for this week should be roughly the same as the previous week, or a little lower.
Your long run should be a bit shorter than the previous week.
Break up difficult runs. Do not do any one run which is too hard and therefore requires too much recovery time.
7 Days before The Race: Race Week
Now it’s time to reign it in a little.
For marathon runners, don’t run more than 4 miles.
For half-marathon runners, make that 5 miles.
Keep all your running at an easy pace.
Take an extra rest day or two.
Take it super easy the day before the race. If you feel you need to burn off a little nervous energy then a short, slow jog is ok but don’t overdo it.
Again, remember to carb load and to keep hydrated!
These aren’t hard and fast rules. They are guidelines which you should adapt to your specific training.
The main thing is to not stress too much about getting the taper exactly right. It’s tricky to perform the perfect taper, but by sticking to the basics above you can arrive at the start line feeling both fit and fresh.
By then, the sun will be fully up. Hopefully you’ll have a smile on your face while basking in that glorious marathon light.
So that’s it for our handy guide to tapering. Remember our app Kaizen can help you manage your training load, and our accurate race prediction can revolutionise your marathon performance and give you clarity come race day.
We have a free trial for Kaizen on the app store.
And remember an accurate race prediction is only one half of the Kaizen magic—follow us on Instagram for our upcoming posts on how it can improve your training too.
