Tip Tap Taper

I hate the taper.

It leaves me feeling weak and slow. It's purpose is to rest your body before the big race. The big race may be a 5k or a 100k. For me, it's my second ultramarathon. My second 50k. My second time running the Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail race. I ran it last year and finished. Last. But I finished. My pacing was way off. My training was way off. My respect for the distance was completely missing.

So this year I took things more seriously. I hired a personal trainer. Twice. I trained with higher mileage. Both longer runs and more miles per week. I've done well so far but I fear I've over-trained a bit. My left calf has been bugging me for weeks now and I'm starting to get nervous. I have roughly 3 weeks left to prep for my race and I've bitten the bullet to begin my taper.

And I hate it.

But I'm hoping the extra rest will heal my calf and heal my mind a bit. I'll continue to run during my taper but will ease off my LSD (Long Slow Distance) runs and ease off my overall mileage. Right now it sucks. I hate it. I want to go run. I have trails I want to explore, I have routes I want to test, I have fuel and fluids that need to be worked out. Instead I'm stuffed inside. At least I'm missing a lot of the heat.

Meanwhile, I'll continue to prep for my 50k. Mapping out the route. Planning my drop bag. Doling out my fuel and fluid needs. We'll see how it goes.