day 11:

started off the day feeling great. the long run two days ago marked the start of my final phase of marathon training and the beginning of the dreaded taper (...i like volume). i don't usually taper for this long leading into an event but i have had some great sessions over the last few months so i thought i would try something new. hopefully i can consolodate my fitness gains from the previous two months and have the race of my life.

time to increase the intensity and reduce the volume. still have a few key sessions that i will do over the next few weeks. this sunday will be my last longer run. meeting up with a friend to pace them through the first 10 miles and then i plan on running the next 10 miles at my goal marathon pace. this will be done on the marathon course covering the last section of the run so hopefully it will serve me well (mentally) on race day.

personal stats:
weight: 165lb (-7)
feeling: awesome
sleep: 7hr
legs: awesome

today's exercise:
run: 40' w/ 3 x 3' steady (850-900m)/3' jog + 6 x 20" sprints (~150m)/40" jog

today's diet:
breakfast: scrambled eggs w/ spinach
snack: apple, carrot, almonds
pre-run: black coffee
lunch: fruit (honeydew & rock melon, banana) + kippers, tomato, avocado salad
snack: almonds, raisins
dinner: bolognaise w/ steamed veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, carrot, spinach)

today's summary:
my legs felt springy at the start of the run due to yesterday's rest day and in an unusual turn of events i ran without the garmin so was unsure of pace and distance but i was feeling pretty good. the wind was blowing during the intervals and after the third one i decided that was enough. don't want to blow it now this close to the marathon. finished up with half a dozen sprints to end the session. nice and quick and to the point!