Taper Weekend - 12 days Until American River 50

Having to really pay attention and monitor my training sessions and monitor my energy is kind of a pain in the neck. But for all of the tapers I have completed in my running schedules, this is the one I am taking most seriously. Because if I get to that starting line with aches, pains or lethargy, they aren't going to get much better over 12 hours of running.

Last week was all about squeezing in cross training gym time. Aqua jogging, swimming, biking and elliptical. I think I tallied 8 hours of workouts over the week before heading into weekend workouts. And despite that amount of time I spent in the gym, my legs felt pretty good Saturday. The low impact workouts were doing some good stuff for these creaky knees.

Saturday's run was a quick 12 miles down in Santa Monica. It took us a bit over 2 hours, and afterwards I didn't really feel like I did anything - meaning, I could have gone for another 20 (if forced to!). I took that as a good sign - the taper is working. After the run, I met up with my friend Brett, who was in town on business. We did the short Runyon Canyon hike and went out to breakfast. Another 3 miles of walking, and half of it uphill. I woke up a little surprised at how sore I was from the inclines.

But those were nothing compared with the Westridge Canyon run Sunday. 7 miles in the Santa Monica mountains. Moderate hills (nothing like Pt. Mugu in Malibu, but enough to get you breathing heavy). The schizophrenic weather produced a rainbow, a clear shot of the ocean and downtown (at once), heavy rain, fog and blue sky. All in the course of three hours. I love that trail. It's nice to get above Los Angeles and away from the people/traffic/smog/billboards of the city.




Today, Monday, has me resting. Tomorrow I'll be back at the gym for a swim/bike/run workout before work starts. The days are winding down, my nerves are starting to wind up. It's going to be a fun and nerve-racking experience up in Sacramento!