 
|
|||||||||||||
              
|
Tuesday, May 02, 2000
Cheryl Collins Gatons ran the Pittsburgh Marathon three times, finishing second in 1996 and 1999. Collins Gatons is in semi-retirement and is serving as the Post-Gazette's race expert this week, discussing everything you wanted to know about running marathons.
Today's question: What do you do the week of the race?
"I do a major taper. Five days before the race, I'll do five miles, four miles, three miles, two miles and then one mile. It's a huge taper. The highest mileage I do during a week is 100 miles. Three weeks before the race I would do 75-80 miles. Two weeks before the race, 50 miles. But the week of the week is the huge taper. My last long run is the Saturday before the race. I would usually do 10 miles.
"When you do that minimal mileage, the day of the race your legs feel really fresh and springy. When you're training, they tend to feel really heavy. On race day, it's like you have a brand new pair of legs.
"A lot of runners the day before the race hole up in their hotel room and lay in bed all day. But not me. I'm not one to alter my lifestyle for racing. I just try to take in the whole environment, try to have fun and relax."
-- Ray Fittipaldo
|
||||||||||||
