Jul 10
2
The Taper
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G’day guys,
There are lots and lots of different ways to taper for a race and I’ve tried my share of a few and tried a few out on the people I coach. I’ve used a 5 week taper, 3 week taper and 10 day taper and even a reverse taper.
I’ve also had what I thought was the perfect taper to only pick up a chest infection 4 days before an IM, aaarrgghhh.
So what I’ve done is kept a record of people that have good and bad races and try and replicate what it is they did and felt like during their taper.
Here is example, of some email quotes I have received lately from a athlete that seems to fit the mould of a taper working well
At 3 weeks out
“I have a cold”
At 2 weeks out
“I feel really really tired. Actually I felt the same during the simulation tapering some weeks ago, so I understand this is how I should feel now, right?”
This is a really really good sign that you are feeling fatigued, I told them. This appears to be a common occurrence during a taper and something David H used to talk about when all three of us were training for Germany. I can also remember Eric feeling like crap right before IMNZ too. M
During a taper it is really important now to listen to your body first and follow the plan second. If you tired cut back the session planned by 50%. If you feel good, don’t do more just follow the plan.
Getting the taper right is so hard and ideally you should feel like crap right up to about Tuesday or Wednesday next week (Race week). It’s because you body is switching off from training and is growing and adapting……..getting ready to race!!!!!!!. I believe too that in absence of training your body is working hard physically, on boosting it’s immune system. You never hear of people getitng colds and sick after an IM event, but often they do before the event. I think the heavy training, does not allow the body to maintain it’s immune system and this is what kicks into over drive during a taper.
This sounds really sill but there are usually two things I like to happen in a taper
1. You get a cold, so that you build your immune system before the race, because often people get their colds 2-3 days before the race
2. You feel like crap is a good indicator your body is still working hard but just on other systems within your body.
You have had the cold and now you feel like crap……………………….PERFECT!!!!!! taper.
So don’t dispair if you feel like crap and you view the experience a cold during during a taper as a bad thing, it can work in your favour.
fluro
