What to Know about Marathon Pace Before Your Race
April 10, 2024
This week was so busy that it’s hard to believe I was running in Bend, Oregon only a week ago! My training this week didn’t go completely as planned, but balancing rest and training took priority. I would rather be undertrained than overtrained, especially this close to race day. I ended up doing only one hard workout this week, but at this point the hard workout is already done – it’s time to taper and sharpen up for race day this Saturday!
Despite the ice from the previous day’s snow, we couldn’t resist another run along the Deschutes River Trail. We ran along the same route as the day before. Ice definitely isn’t easy to run on, but with trail shoes it was manageable and even fun. Most of all, Ryan and I just loved running along the Deschutes River.
I always try to heed my body’s signals, especially with a race quickly approaching. I decided to move my first hard workout of the week (effectively making it the only hard run of the week) and do an easy run instead.
The workout:
1.5 mile warm up
5 x 2K (1.25 mile) at half marathon to 10K pace with 3 minute recovery jog
~0.9 mile cool down
It’s interesting to repeat the same workout in different training cycles and see progress. I did this exact same workout during training for last year’s Lake Sammamish Half Marathon and I was pleased to see how my splits differed. Last year, I ran 9:07, 9:10, 9:07, 9:06, and 9:00 for the 2K repeats; this year, I ran 9:12, 9:01, 8:59, 8:56, 8:49. I was really happy to see three of those repeats in under 9 minutes!
I neglected strength training last week and I wanted to squeeze in some quality sessions before the race. I did 2 circuits of this medicine ball workout and then did some much-needed foam rolling.
When I finished my run on Wednesday, I knew I needed a rest day. I know I need a rest day when I don’t even miss running that day. By the end of the day, I wanted to do a bit of exercise so I did a quick resistance band routine that focused on the hips, glutes, and core. I did 2 sets of 20 lateral band walks, 20 banded squats, 20 banded clamshells, 20 banded bridges, and 30 seconds of side planks with knee-ins per side.
This was my last long run of training! I always find the last long run and the final tune up workout to be so rewarding – there’s a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction with hard work, even before the race. I kept this run comfortable and averaged an 8:18/mile – the same pace I averaged on my final long run during my last half marathon training cycle, except this was on a hilly course rather than a flat course.
Ryan, Ollie, and I started out the morning with an easy run together. My mom was in town, so after our run and breakfast, the three of us plus the dogs went to Deception Pass State Park. We spent about an hour and a half walking around the beach and enjoying the smell of sea salt air.
We went to downtown Seattle with my mom to take a tour of Theo Chocolate. Theo Chocolate is one of my favorite brands, both because their chocolate tastes so good and because of their emphasis on fair trade. They are a bean to bar chocolate factory, so we got to see how the chocolate was made, learn about fair trade, and sample lots of chocolate. Definitely with visiting if you are ever in Seattle!
I don’t have a firm time goal in mind for this race. I want to run a PR (sub-1:38) but more importantly, I want to run a strong and enjoyable race with smart pacing. Enjoyable for me includes pushing hard and giving my best for that day. Last year, focusing on pacing gave me a 5 minutes PR (1:43 down to 1:38) and a very enjoyable race experience. Ultimately, that’s the main goal – I’m nowhere near fast enough to win or place in a race like this, so why not enjoy it and focus on doing my best for that day?
[Tweet “Balancing tapering and training for the #lakesammamishhalf via @thisrunrecipes #running #halfmarathon #runwithrainier”]
How do you track your progress in training?
How was your week of running?
14 Responses
Looks like you had a great week and are ready for this race! I am always comparing certain workouts to other training cycles. It can be such a confidence booster to see progress between similar workouts!
Thank you! It is fun to compare similar workouts – it can be hard to see progress without a race otherwise.
I can’t believe your race is already here! You definitely have improved so much as a runner in the past year. It’s been fun to follow along with your training! This week in running was awesome for me. The weather made a HUGE difference. When you don’t have to wear 10,000 layers you feel like the fastest person in the world! Lol!
Thank you so much! I am enjoying following your training so much right now. And I’m a bit envious of your sunshine right now! Those first few runs in shorts do feel amazing!
I can’t believe we are up to race day! it went so fast, at least for me lol.
It did go by so fast! All of a sudden it’s March!
YAY for the factory tour at Theo! We did that while we were in Seattle, and we had a great time (plus their chocolate is so to die for!). Love how much they put into their sourcing as well as the product itself.
Ta-ta-ta-taper time!
Their chocolate is amazing. We got Scotch truffles that are just about everything I could ever want in terms of dessert.
Great job! Can’t wait to hear about the race 🙂 Good luck and have fun!
Thank you so much, Gretchen!
You were at Deception Pass! We go there all the time. We need to meet up there one of these days!
Yes we should! It’s only like 60-75 minutes north of us. I love how pretty it is!
Congrats on a great training cycle and good luck this weekend! And, girl, please – you could have stayed on the couch all week and still not be undertrained, you’ve done great work!!! Fingers crossed for good weather this weekend, eager to see how things go!
Thank you so much, Hanna! I’m really hope for good weather – or at least not snow!