Meredith’s Training Diaries: Surviving the Dreaded Taper

Welcome to Training Diaries, a Lifehacker series about my journey to the 2023 TCS New York City Marathon. This series will cover all the ups, downs, and hill repeats on my journey to the biggest marathon in the world. Leading up to race day on Sunday, Nov. 5, I’ll go over proper fueling, injuries and setbacks, treadmill tips, wardrobe malfunctions, long run logic, and just generally reflect on what it takes to cross a marathon finish line. I’m guided by a mantra both corny and true: A marathon is actually hundreds of miles; race day just happens to be the last 26 or so.

I officially completed my peak mileage week leading up to New York City marathon. For me, that meant I hit a little under 50 miles—on the skimpier side for most marathoners, but I’m content. And now, it’s taper time.

The marathon taper—aka the approximately two-week period of reduced training in the final weeks before your big race—is a mentally challenging time for runners. After months of hard training, suddenly you are supposed to run less, and the natural temptation is to worry that your fitness will decline. Or that you’ll go stir-crazy. I get it, but I’m forcing myself to learn to love the taper.

My guiding philosophy to get through the taper is that “the hay is in the barn.” It’s a saying that means that all the hard work is done, and there’s nothing else to do—even if you want to. Here’s why the taper is important to your fitness, and how you can survive mentally when running becomes inadvisable.

Why you need to taper before a marathon

The taper is necessary to recover from the workouts you’ve already done, without adding any extra stress. There are a few key reasons tapering is so important before a marathon:

• To rest fatigued muscles: During marathon training, the legs get broken down from all the miles. A proper taper allows time for damaged muscle fibers to fully repair and recover before the race.
• To reduce overall fatigue: Cumulative fatigue builds over weeks of training. The taper period gives the body and mind a chance to back off and absorb all the hard work. This helps you feel fresher on race day.
• To allow inflammation to subside: Hard training can cause micro-tears and inflammation. The taper lets this dissipate so you don’t have to run 26.2 miles on swollen, beat up legs.

Outside of your physical recovery, the taper can provide a psychological break after intense training. Runners often feel renewed excitement as race day approaches. Or they can go crazy with all this sudden free time on their hands. On that note, let’s dive into some tips for making the most of your taper period.

Tips to survive the taper

• Stick to the plan. Your training plan is your bible. Don’t increase your mileage during the taper, even if you feel great. Remember that the entire purpose of the taper is to rest your body and absorb all the fitness gains you made during your peak training.
• Cut back gradually. Cut your weekly mileage by no more than 30-50% during the taper to allow your body to adjust. Going from high mileage to low mileage too abruptly can leave you feeling sluggish on race day. This is the mistake I made during my first marathon, and I paid the price.
• Reduce intensity before volume. In the early taper weeks, keep doing key workouts but cut back on overall mileage. In the final 1-2 weeks, eliminate intense sessions but keep running easy for mental focus.
• Take more rest days. Listen to your body and take extra rest days as needed to stay healthy. Now is not the time to push through pain or fatigue.
• Stay active. While running less, you can still cross-train to maintain fitness and keep yourself sane. Swimming, cycling and other aerobic activities will keep you fit without fatiguing your running muscles.
• Eat well. Don’t change your diet during the taper. Stick with the same healthy nutrition plan that got you through your peak training.
• Visualize success. Use your taper time to mentally rehearse crossing the finish line strong. I like to virtually peruse the course, if your race has that option.
• Trust your training. I find this to be the hardest part, but like I said above: The hay is in the barn. Have faith that all the months of hard work you put in will pay off on race day. Avoid last minute panic.

The bottom line: Trust your training

Marathons attract all types, but I find a lot of people disciplined enough to run over 26 miles are also the type to be prone to restlessness. At the same time, everything about marathon training forces you to gain perspective. There’s a reason people throw around the saying “it’s a marathon, not a sprint” to describe the importance of consistency, patience, and delayed gratification. The taper is one of your most valuable sources of mental fortitude, teaching you to trust your training and accept that there’s no more fitness to be gained in the days before the race.

Personally, I think of the taper as a reward, not a restriction. I earned this taper. You earned this taper, too. For more, Lifehacker senior health editor Beth Skwarecki has a great piece with even more tips for staying sane during the taper.