Tip Tapering Away

I'm supposed to be tapering.

Yes, this could mean many interesting things, but there is a specific context. It's one week until I'm running/jogging/staggering my first ever half marathon (13.1 miles). According to conventional training wisdom, the week (or even two) before the big race you should cut back on how much you exercise. The goal is to give your body a chance to rest up and recover from all your previous training madness, and give you more energy for the big event.

Tapering also reduces your chances of injuring yourself in a training run. Makes sense, but that still leaves me with the danger of tripping over Oscar, who no longer has any sense of personal space, or one of the cats, who love sleeping at the top of the stairs. (Apparently Olive is our only pet not trying to kill us by such stealth.)

So tapering sounds simple, right? But how much tapering is too much? Dig a little deeper, and the advice on tapering gets a little conflicted and complicated. Probably the most surprising thing I've learned about running is how involved it is. There are many things to learn and consider. For example, it turns out carbo-loading isn't just eating at the Old Spaghetti Factory until you pass out in a bowl of pasta. 

My inspiration for the week?
(With soy meatballs of course)

Part of me loves learning about all this stuff and getting obsessed and geeking out. And the world of running gives Chad and I something to talk about. Another part of me gets confused and overwhelmed and throws my napkin over my head and eats with my hands ("WKRP in Cinncinnati" reference). "This is way too technical!" this Amy-part whines.

Honestly, this tends to be how I approach most of my endeavors, including theatre and music. Once I pass the point where beginner's luck and enthusiasm gets me through, I want to ignore the rest. Or to be even more honest, I ignore the things that are hard or that I'm afraid I'll be really bad at or I just don't want to do (strength training).

Which brings me back to tapering. Without going into my neuroses too much, cutting back on running this week is going to be challenging for me. Luckily I'll be able to compensate with some long walks and using the exercise bike. Even more challenging might be getting the recommended amount of rest. All the helpful exhortations to get 8 hours of good sleep every night just mocks me.

But I am going to try and be a wise and successful runner, so I'm going to give tapering a go. (I may even taper my red wine consumption...a bit...which is probably also good for race day). So here's to a week of more rest, more water, more carbohydrates, less running, less red wine, and being really, really vigilant about sleeping cats. (Less red wine should make sleeping cat obstacles less lethal).