With the Dublin Marathon on Sunday 25 October, you’re now in the taper. Your long runs come down, your weekly distance drops, and your legs finally get a chance to absorb everything you’ve put them through since the summer.
It’s also when most runners feel at their worst. Phantom aches appear, you feel sluggish, and you start to worry you’re losing fitness. None of that is a sign that something is wrong. It’s what happens when a body that’s used to being tired starts repairing itself.
The fitness is already banked
Nothing you do in the next three weeks will add to your fitness, but plenty could take away from it. The single biggest mistake we see is a panic long run ten days out. It won’t help on the day, and it’s more than enough to leave you sore at the start line.
So cut your distance, but keep some pace in your legs with a few short, faster efforts in your easy runs. Keep your strength work going, just lighter, and stop it entirely in the final week. Expect to sleep badly the night before, and don’t let it rattle you. The night two nights before is the one that counts.
Keep this one going: the single-leg glute bridge
- Lie on your back with one knee bent and that foot flat on the floor.
- Straighten the other leg and hold it in line with your thigh.
- Push through the planted heel and lift your hips, keeping them level.
- Lower slowly. Do 3 sets of 10 on each side.
Weak glutes are behind a lot of runner’s knee and hip pain, because the knee ends up controlling what the hip should be doing. If your hips drop or twist on one side, that’s the side to work on.
Your race week checklist
- Nothing new: not the shoes, the socks, the gels or the breakfast.
- Practise your race morning breakfast on your last couple of runs.
- Walk around the expo as little as you can. Hours on your feet the day before add up.
- Lay everything out the night before, pins included.
- Plan your first 5km to feel too easy. It should.
Achilles or heel pain that won’t go away
Tendon problems rarely settle with rest alone, and they’re one of our specialities. We use shockwave therapy alongside a loading plan, which means most runners keep running through treatment rather than stopping altogether. If a niggle has been with you for more than a few weeks, there’s still time before the 25th.
Something bothering you?
Book online, or call us on (01) 667 0111. We’re in Ballsbridge and Trim.
