Taper Down

They say after your last long run you need to taper down the training for a few weeks before the actual marathon. Well taper is an understatement when it comes to my training. My training is pretty much nonexistent right now. After the pain I suffered with my IT band I knew I had to just stop and let it heal as much as possible. I called and made 3 appointments with a physical therapist. Going has been totally worth it to me. The therapist has taught me how to do different stretches and some strength moves. I also love the ultrasound machine and stimulation machine. The only running I have done is a short run on the treadmill and I am planning another short run this coming week. After that, the marathon will be the test if my IT band will hold up. I am so nervous.

My dad on the other hand has done awesome keeping up with his training. He goes out a few times a week and runs anywhere from 3 to 7 miles. My mom has also been running with him. They have been doing so good at staying focused and getting their training runs in. My dad's biggest problem right now is he has been getting some crazy nosebleeds. They land him in the emergency room because he can't get them to stop on his own. I think one of his biggest fears is getting a nosebleed during the marathon.

I can't believe it has already been like 7 months since we started this crazy journey. I have to say that I for one am glad it is coming to an end. I don't want to quit running. And I love running with my dad. But I just need this marathon to get here so I can get some reward out of the past 7 months. I also want to know if all my stretching is going to work on my IT band because as of now I can see myself wanting to do this again if I can conquer that. I say that now, but after the marathon I might be saying something different. When I ask my dad if he thinks he will consider doing another one he just says, Let me get through this one first. We both say if we can just continue doing maintenance runs it wouldn't be as hard to go right into another one because we don't need to build up like we just did. I guess we will see.