Coach MK and Coach Sarah livestream a weekly QA session for their runners on The Fitness Protection Facebook page and Twitch. Follow the page and join the fun! This week we have excellent questions about tapers, migraines, testing, and the upcoming strength beta!

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Maintain

1. Can you pretty please discuss and demonstrate the Chair Test that Coach MK referenced as a bench mark for readiness for marathon ramp up? I see different chair test on the InterWebs but I am not sure if they are the right ones. Thank You!!!

2. Can you talk about the taper? Do you have a "taper template"? How far out from race to cut back on long run and hard stuff? Thank you!!

2a. Please remind me of what a half marathon taper looks like. Is it 2 weeks or just the week before? Thanks!

3. Could you elaborate on last week's question about maintaining heart rate under 140? The answer was that heart rate should be below 140 for the first hour. But after the hour, it seemed like the suggestion was to maintain a pace. I thought a key aspect of HR training to keep your heart rate below 140? If subsequent hours we should focus on pace, is heart rate disregarded?

4. Hi Coaches. I am in a good running place right now. I working my way back from injury with tenacity. My Plantar Fasciitis is much improved. I am feeling stronger and faster than ever. All the strength work is really helping me especially the strength accountability thread every day. My question is this : I don’t know whether to do the strength beta or not. I am doing 90% of the work 90% of the time in maintain ( but no hard speed work yet as I heal) I am hoping to do a half at the end of September which is half way through the strength beta. I am loving doing all the body weight and other exercises but I am not sure my body could handle the pace work in the plan (i am guessing there will be a lot of this) I don’t know whether to do what I can in the strength beta. Or wait until i am back to 100% fitness and just continue to work in maintain. One more request: can you release a BOSU series as I love my bosu. I think it has helped me recover from PF. I want to do MORE BOSU Thank you #coachedandloved

5. Any ideas to prevent the post long run migraine headache? I’ve experienced migraines since puberty and regular running is helpful at preventing them, except I still get them after long runs and harder effort work outs. I aggressively hydrate during the run, wearing my Nathan hydration pack for any thing over an hour w nuun but still am getting them. Any ideas? I know you’re not my doctor, etc,, but thought maybe you or others have ideas I haven’t tried yet.