Tapering for the Missoula Marathon

Last week began the first of three weeks of tapering for the Missoula Marathon. I went from 40 miles (peak) to 30 miles last week. I plan to do about 23 this week, including a 10-or 11-mile long-run on Saturday. Yesterday started the second of three weeks of tapering. I did 5 and change. I felt good through the first few miles but then tuckered out. Perhaps it was the heat. Perhaps it was the fact that I was coming off two days of rest, something I had not experienced in months. After the marathon, I plan to post a comparison of this buildup vs. my buildup for the Hartford Marathon in 2007. Here's a peak: my weight as of yesterday is more or less the same. I was 145 in 2007 and 148 yesterday. I ran at an 8:32 pace in 2007 and 8:24 yesterday. One of the big challenges this time around has been getting my upper body through the latter miles of long-runs. I haven't done any pushups or core workouts. In 2007, I was religious about that. After Missoula, I plan to incorporate pushups and core workouts into my training for the Mount Desert Island Marathon. While I don't plan to run a fast marathon on the MDI course, there's certainly room to become an overall stronger runner.