This article is prepared by LøberLab. LøberLab specializes in evidence-based training and works to optimize runners' performance through the latest research and physiological knowledge.
You've done the training. The long runs are completed, intervals are done, and the form is in your legs. Now, the last weeks are about something else: not ruining it. Most runners know their form well enough. Yet many stumble in the days before the start, almost always in the same five traps. Here they are, and what to do instead.
1. You train too hard too close to the race
The last week can tempt you to an extra hard session to confirm your form. The problem is, the fatigue from a hard session doesn't disappear before you're at the start line. You show up drained instead of fresh.
Do instead: Schedule your last really hard session a few days before the race. Then short and easy. The form is already built. Now it just needs to come out.
2. You stop all training instead of tapering
Out of fear of being tired, many almost stop running the last week. But the body quickly loses what it doesn't use, and after just a few days of rest, the legs start to feel heavy and rusty. You shouldn't rest to the start line, you should taper to it.
Do instead: Keep running as often as usual, just shorter. Keep a few short, sharp bursts so the legs remember speed.
3. You try something new on the day
New shoes, a gel you've never tested, a different breakfast, or a completely new pace plan. Race day is the worst time to experiment because you don't know how your body will react.
Do instead: Stick to what you've trained with. Shoes, food, energy, and pace should be tested in training, not for the first time when it counts.
4. You overlook sleep in the crucial week
Many focus on training and energy but forget that sleep is one of the most crucial pieces in the last week. It's when the body truly gathers form as fatigue falls.
Do instead: Prioritize sleep in the days leading up to the race. If you're nervous the night before and sleep poorly, it matters less than you think. It's the nights in the whole week leading up that count.
5. You start too hard
The adrenaline at the start line makes most run faster than planned. It feels easy the first kilometers, but the bill comes later, and it's costly. A too fast start is one of the most common reasons to hit the wall.
Do instead: Start at the pace you've trained for, even if it feels too slow at first. If you have energy left at the end, you can always increase. It's much better than the opposite.
Common to the five mistakes is that form is neither saved nor created in the last days. It's already built through your training. The last weeks are about training smart enough not to stand in its way.
The article is prepared by LøberLab.
Ready for race day?
If you want to follow RunnerLab's advice and build the last month correctly, find the specific plan in , and the explanation of why less training makes you faster in the article on . If sleep, diet, and recovery also need to be in place in the last week, we've gathered it all in .
And because mistake number three is about not trying something new on the day: if you need fresh or new for the race, find them in good time so they're broken in before the start. If you want to monitor how your body reacts during tapering, a can show you resting pulse and recovery along the way.
