Please help a newbie figure out how to taper for a half marathon

VanderTuig1976

Hi,

I am running my first half on 8/15 - yay!!!

I plan to do a 2 week taper beginning 8/1. I've researched how to taper and have arranged my taper weeks accordingly but I'm a little confused as to how the decrease in mileage should be allocated based upon the different elements of the taper (I'll explain this in detail below).

Please review and provide any feedback on my plan:

8/1: 13-15 miles (last longest training run)
8/3 - 8/7 (20.5 miles (60% of peak mileage)
8/8: 10 miles (last long run)
8/9 - 8/11: 13.5 (40% of peak mileage)
8/15: 13.1 (half marathon)

For my first week, I'm can't figure out if my last long run should be calculated into the 60% of my peak mileage. The plan I was looking at said my weekly runs during the first week should pretty much be the same as what I usually do - I don't see how that's possible if I include the last long run as part of the 60% of my mileage for that week.

Also, on the second week, the plan I was looking at said to run up to four days out from the race - is this correct? If I do that, I'll either have to start this week on what would normally be a rest day (Sunday) to finish the 40% of my mileage 4 days before the race. Or, I could just do two bigger runs (6 and 7 miles). What do you recommend?

Thanks in advance for reading and for any suggestions you may have!!!

Crystal

litsy3

I think you are over-thinking it. It doesn't need to be an exact percentage and it doesn't matter much (in terms of benefit from training adaptation) what you do the week before the race. It's just to keep you ticking over and not feeling sluggish. So it's probably preferable to end up doing slightly less if that feels comfortable and fits into your week, rather than doing longer runs that might make you more tired just to try and hit an exact number of miles.

5512bf

I've found that tapering for a half marathon is more about getting in a few extra days of rest the week before. Running easy miles in your lower aerobic zones (z2&z3) will most likely have little effect one way or the other up to 2-3 days out. I'd avoid any threshold or hard runs the week before but would do a few runs with some strides mixed in to keep your mind at ease you can still run fast. Eat good those last 2-3 days and do a short jog the day before, again nice and easy, maybe a mile or 2. Typically when doing a percentage it would include all weekly miles including your long run, so if you ran 30 miles with the long run, you'd run 18@60% or 12@40% for those weeks. How you break those runs up at this point really wont matter.

kristinegift

This seems way too confusing for a taper plan, and difficult to comment on as we don't know what the rest of the plan looked like.

Normally my full marathon taper doesn't even include mileage quite that high (looking at you, 10 miler the week before the race). My advice is just to make sure all the runs are an easy effort: no speedwork, tempo runs, etc. so you aren't straining yourself during your taper. Also: four days out with no running seems like a good way to be super tight the day of the race. I would recommend running two days before, just 2 or 3 miles, or even 1-2 miles the day before, to keep things limber so you aren't stiff and tripping over yourself on race morning.

MeanderingMammal

I've got a half tomorrow morning.

I did a 12 miler last Saturday. It was supposed to be Friday on my plan but that just wasn't achievable. I did 8.5Km on Monday and 7Km on Wednesday, both pretty easy paced. In the previous week I did one 10km tempo and one 10km easy, so nothing overcomplicated.

The rest of the plan was broadly 4 sessions per week giving me generally 50-60 km per week.

Actually the biggest observation I'd make, is not to start a new job the week of a race. I'm shattered as a result of that, rather than anything else.

wtgrey

I would probably cut the run on 8/8 to 5 miles. For the week of the actual race, I would not run more than 5 miles on any day, and run only short easy runs the two days before the race. For a full marathon, my last long run (20) is three weeks out, and I do a 10 miler two weeks out. For the last two weeks before the race, I never break 5 miles.

lporter229

I agree that this taper plan is a bit complicated. Provided that you have done the rest of your training, the most important thing you can do right now is ensure adequate rest. The point of the taper is to rest and repair and reap the benefits of your training, but still run enough so that you are loose and limber for your race. When it comes to tapering, I always error on the side of less is more.

First of all, 13-15 miles two weeks before your half? That might be about what I would do for a full. And I would definitely cut that last long run back to 8 miles or less. Do not underestimate the value of being fresh for your race. Also, I agree that 4 days before the race is too long to cut out all running. Maybe do 2-3 miles each of those days, just to stay loose. Of course, all of this depends on what you have done for training thus far. What has been your longest run and your max weekly mileage?

loratliff

Tapering for a half isn't nearly as necessary as it is for a full... I just ran a half this past weekend (as part of a training plan for a full) and my plan was this, just for reference.

Saturday, last long run (1 week before): 11 miles
Sunday: easy 4 miles
Monday: off
Tuesday: 6.5 miles, intervals
Wednesday: easy 8 miles
Thursday: off
Friday: off
Saturday: Half-marathon

(I PRed by ~10 minutes so it obviously worked.)

Obviously none of us know what your training volume has been, but I definitely think you're overthinking it a bit.

Carrieendar

Cut volume and not intensity; that has always been what my coaches and most books seem to go with. Most taper plans are based on the volume you have been running in your peak week. You cut back 20% 2 weeks out and 30% the week of, keeping up intensity, for example. What those exact percentages are depends on who you ask!