Reflections: by Ryan K. Beck

The start of a beautiful Saturday run Ideation vs. Execution One week. That is all that remains between me and my second Boston Qualifying (BQ) Marathon attempt.  When I started training for the Baystate Marathon on June 7th, I had lofty ambitions for the amount of time I could dedicate to training. I started working full-time for my summer job the same week. I had dreams of waking up at 5 AM and running before work every day to build toward my 80 mile peak week goal, averaging 65-75 miles per week for the 19 week training block. I knew that achieving a BQ time would require an indelible commitment to the running grind.  Ultimately, my marathon training ideation failed to account for the life I have outside of running. I ended up traveling to see friends and family most weekends. During the semester, I scarcely have the time to do this, and it felt important that I prioritize my relationships. The inconsistencies in my routine that come with traveling meant that I started to s...

Chicken parm w/ homemade sauce Let The Taper Begin In my first marathon block, I was extremely excited for the "taper" phase of my training. Essentially, a taper involves lowering the intensity (speed and effort) and volume (mileage/distance) of your running to keep your legs fresh for race day. It typically begins after the peak intensity and volume week of your training.  I fear the first time around I was too excited to taper. I ran my peak long run workout—20 miles with the last 6 mi at marathon pace—5 weeks before race day. It was a 63 mi week, and the workouts felt great. But in the weeks that followed, I ran 30 miles (including my 5K race PR of 17:28), 47 miles, 41 miles, 32 miles, and 21 miles (plus the marathon). The structure, unintentionally, caused me to lose fitness before race day.  This time, I have left the taper late. I peaked at 60 miles last week, including a long run workout of 20 miles with the last 8 mi at marathon pace (6:30/mi). I ran 52 miles this wee...