Forums >Racing>Help an old hag with a taper-after-injury issue
New here but not at all new to running. I'm in my 50s and have been running for 40 years, 17 marathons, countless other races. Have been training for #18, which is on the 18th, no time goal but sub-4 BQ would be nice. Training was going great—I had completed two 20s, a 19, a super hilly 12 mile trail run, maxed out at 55 mpw—when I strained my calf on a 10-miler 3.5 weeks out. I was unable to run for 12 days, but did PT and a ton of cross training, including bike, some elliptical, and hot yoga. I missed my final 20 due to the injury, but substituted three hours of cardio in the gym (thank goodness for podcasts.) PT cleared me to run Sunday—two weeks pre-race—so I ran 5 Sunday, 5 Monday, and then yesterday (Tuesday) was the important test —13. Here's where it got weird.
My calf hardly bothered me at all. Rather, I started to feel oddly fatigued. My pace didn't fall off too much but it just felt much harder than it ought to have considering my base. The rest of the day I felt that level of depletion you get from a tough workout. And this morning I am... SORE???!!! Especially my back and my inner thighs. This run was not the confidence-builder I hoped for, but for a completely different reason. My last 20 was 3.5 weeks ago, and the hilly 12 was 2.5 weeks ago. I didn't think I would lose that much fitness from 12 days off running, especially with the cross training. The only thing I can add is that it was warm and dry here yesterday (high 60s, don't hate me) and a good portion of the run was into a headwind. My pace (9:20s) was about the same as my last 20 miler, so I would not have thought it was too fast.
Trying desperately to decide if I should bag this race and choose one a little further out so I can recover more and get another 20 miler in. I feel like a flake doing that, and I wonder if the rough 13 miler was just a fluke. Besides, there's nothing else local I'm excited about, and I don't want to travel. But I also have no interest in starting a race I can't finish. Any thoughts?
I strongly suspect that it was an anomaly. Sleep, nutrition, general motivation, stress, etc can all impact individual workouts. I would continue your taper per your original schedule. The only change I would make is to throw in some strides to get some leg turnover. Trust in your training and believe that your marathon will go well.
Pace Prophet
I'm another old hag, and I think it is just that you took a chunk of time off running and maybe ramped up a little too quickly. Cross-training's great for the aerobic system but it doesn't stress the body the same way as running I wouldn't worry. Massage that calf and ice after your runs.
But if you're running your training runs at 9:20 pace and running 55mpw, I would hope you're reasonably aiming at something a lot faster than just sub-4. If not, you might consider slowing down your training runs to work your aerobic endurance.
Good luck on #18!
SMART Approach
Do the race, I see nothing wrong with how you felt considering a 12 day layoff. Think of that 13 mile run as getting you back in the flow.
Run Coach. Recovery Coach. Founder of SMART Approach Training, Coaching & Recovery
Structured Marathon Adaptive Recovery Training
Safe Muscle Activation Recovery Technique
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Old hag back to report that I did the race, exceeded my goal, and had one of my most enjoyable race experiences ever. Go figure.
Congratulations! Glad it all went so well. Your story is also an encouragement for others (like me) to learn from.
- Joe
We are fragile creatures on collision with our judgment day.
Yay, congratulations!
Congratulations! What was your final time?
3:55 and change, hopefully enough below BQ to get in.