We talk about getting ready for race day so that you can give your best performance.
In this series we have guided you through the different phases of training needed to get you ready for a target race whether you are planning a 5km or a marathon. We have looked at the importance of the base phase to build your aerobic system, the hill phase to build your strength and the few weeks of faster running to train your body’s emergency system up. After all this training you are ready to race at your best.
What do you do in the final four weeks before the race?
You will need to make sure that on the day of your event, you are as fresh and as ready as you can possibly be. Don’t be tempted to continue with the hard training because you have already seen the results. Be brave in the last month before the event. You have banked a lot of fitness so don’t worry about losing it in this part of your build up.
Do some short races
If you are aiming for a marathon, then a 5km or a 10km race a few weeks before the event is ideal. Remember that it will take you one day for every mile you raced to recover. Racing a 10k will need a total of six days recovery. So don’t schedule it too close to the marathon. Run it at your marathon pace or, at the most, half marathon pace to prepare your body for race day.
Do some time trials
You may be targeting a 5km race, so finding shorter races in this phase will be not be possible. Instead why not try a time trial. A 3km time trial would be ideal preparation as long as you don’t do it flat out. Use it as a practice for the 5k but save your maximum effort for the actual race.
Save yourself for race day
These short races and time trials help to teach your body to run fast. You will have to push yourself if you want to give your top performance on race day. These short races and time trials start to get your body used to this.
One week to go…
You are now ready and can taper towards race day. Do some Chatty paced running and some Sparkles, to keep up the faster running. On the morning of the race you should feel fresh and raring to go! The biggest mistake runners make is not coming off the training soon enough before race day.
What if I’m doing a marathon? When do I reduce my long runs?
Your longest run can be as much as six weeks before marathon day. Reduce your long run gradually down from two and a half hours. You will only need to do a 60 minute run the weekend before your marathon and a 90 minute run two weeks before. Have faith the aerobic fitness you have gained will last a long time.
We hope you have found this series of videos useful. Best of luck if you are planning a race in the months to come. For more advice and guidance join our Facebook community.