Checkin’ IN!!!
TAPER – Let’s talk taper!
C26 Crushing Iron podcast focusing on the Taper – some good thoughts in here! (LINK)
DISCLAIMER: I am not a coach, nor doctor, nor researcher, these are my personal thoughts and findings and I wanted to share!
The ‘taper’ is often misunderstood. That being said. Let’s establish some things that Taper is:
- Reduction of exercise in the days just before an important competition.
- Customary in many endurance sports, such as long-distance running and swimming
- For many athletes, a significant period of tapering is essential for optimal performance
- Reduction of distraction (Social Media, negative self-talk,
- Focus on Proper amounts of sleep
- Focus on Nutrition
- Time to dial in the ‘execution’ plan
As you can see above, ‘Taper’ does not and in most cases SHOULD not equal Lazy or a period of complete inactivity. Oh contraire! Its purpose is to ‘sharpen the sword’ and allow your body enough time to recover and be performance ready for the event and allow for your mental state to become more acutely aligned to your physical. Optimal performance is what most are trying to achieve (this may be defined in many ways so I am not getting stuck on this one). Step away from the brownies – but always run toward them ?
I imagine one of the most difficult things is defining the exact needs of a taper. Well let’s be honest, for the A-typers out there – you have to figure this out yourself and a coach or mentor can really only guide you and YOU have to make some decisions here. This goes for all the non-A-Typers too! ?
To that end, the taper is not a hard and fast rule either. So let me give some context and thoughts to the bullet-points above.
Reduction of exercise in the days just before an important competition.
The reduction of exercise and activity is just that – a reduction. For example, in triathlon, a participant may be in a 10-day taper and still swim, bike and run during those ten days. The volume will be SIGNIFICANTLY decreased and each work out may have a specific focus within the exercise to ‘prime the pump’. Example a swim may not be event distance let’s say over those 10 days, 6 swims may occur at 1/4 or so the distance. Each of those swims may be at event pace, or 80 percent for half of the distance swam, the rest at a comfortable pace. A bike ride can be similar, with a small set of intervals or single-leg drills. The run may include a 10-minute warm-up, 15 minutes at 80 % race pace or Real Perceived effort. The major focus for me is keeping the sword sharpened. Sometimes, the cranky comes because my body is in between being optimally ready and needing a bit of focused rest. This IS NOT the time to go have that EPIC workout – that’s the day of the event, rather, it’s a time to reduce things down to the primary goals of the race. I want to accomplish X, so in to do that, I must focus acutely on these specific things the next few days – stretching, getting enough rest and sleep, removing stressors as examples.
Just remember the context here is to allow your body the space to off-load the heavy fatigue and get to where it is actionable and antsy to get tot he start line to perform at the level you want to achieve.
Customary in many endurance sports, such as long-distance running and swimming
The participant needs to identify if a taper fits what they are doing. In triathlon, some argue it’s not needed for a SPRINT and some will say yes. Remember taper needs to be fit to the individual. If you are dreading workouts, and are no longer excited, the taper may be EXACTLY what you need. There is the curious exception of particularly long endurance competitions, such as ultramarathons and multiday races, which can also be argued, and hopefully, the participant has a good support group they can sanity check with. The long-endurance competitions are often just a sufferfest of showing up and completing, it’s not always about performance (speed) rather of the mind.
Whether it is customary or not, in most activities the journey isn’t a singular event. Rather it is the compilation and the build-up or the ‘load’ of all the little consistent activities that drive us to be prepared or not, for the big event. – the test/exam. Anyone can go into the event trained but are you overtrained. Are you depleted? Is your mind and body on the same page? For some events and participants, it may not be needed, for others it is. This is a personal thing to define. Is this TAPER thing taking up too much space and becoming negative – then its time to re-calibrate.
For many athletes, a significant period of tapering is essential for optimal performance
I think the guiding principle to not lose sight of here is – OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE. How to define a period? And what is significant? Recall the guidelines here, it should fit the event. And it should fit the fitness level of the athlete. It will be different for a couch to 5k athlete compared to an elite Ironman Full distance triathlete. My rule of thumb for me is a 10-day taper for any running distance that is significant to me (that includes a 70.3 or Half Ironman and above and its equivalent (A full marathon as an example for me). This is also determined by optimal – are you seeking optimal physical, or optimal mental performance. IS it both? Maybe a small combination of the two. These are all frustrating variables. When I get overwhelmed, I fall back to the 10-day rule for me and start there.
For running only event, I tend to focus on what is needed to make sure that I am at peak performance – that has included a focus on the last few days with great sleep, better nutrition, focused hydration and a few moderate runs at a 5k k distance. In the 13.1 mile example, my 5 k will normally be at a z2 pace or effort, with 1 or 2 miles at race pace – like a fartlek, but I may walk between the two efforts – I tend to do this 2 times on day 10 – and 9 days out. The rest will just be a few cruising 5 k’s and maybe just a 1-mile jog, trot, walk.
Reduction of distraction (Social Media, negative self-talk, general noise of life, work, politics, etc)
“Stress is stress is stress” and the body CANNOT scientifically as of yet, compartmentalize it. Whether physical or mental it is just stress. So, a reduction in the distractions can be an often overlooked but critical and necessary part of Taper. Example – you are a person that gets fired up by political memes found in social media platforms. Facebook, Twitter, Reddit – doesn’t matter – dial it back. At work, seek to have a level of control to throttle your inputs and outputs and associated stressors or disruptors. This can be difficult and why some folks talk a few personal days in preparation for a critical event where a goal is optimal performance. That being said, this may mean a complete reduction for some, others are just chasing sprinkles and brownies and others chasing rainbows and unicorns. This needs to be fit to the participant’s individual needs, but the guideline is the same – reduce noise and distraction – concentrate on focus.
Admittedly this is one of the most difficult ones to work through as a hobbyist. IF you watch, the elites and pro’s have time like this burned in. More so, we are seeing a trend of these folks signing off tot heir Social followers and then lost in their event for the last few days. For them, it is a double-edged sword. For us mere mortals, however, it’s a great time to just whittle things down and concentrate on what is MOST important. What are the primary circles of influence that require the most effort and nurturing, stay in that area? Don’t go beyond that for a few days. Those supporters closest to you, family members, close friends, your sherpas. Thank them, express gratitude, alert them to why you are grateful. These activities will help to hone the equation and problem-solving skills that may be required on race day and may serve to fill those dark moments that inevitably appear during those long days at the event. To me a stand-alone mantra is ok, but paired with gratitude and meaning and those that buoy us up – there’s power and strength and long-suffering in those relationships.
Focus on Proper amounts of sleep
Say what? This is a joke right. NOPE!!! The night before the event will be SLEEPLESS for many, so we can’t bank sleep, but we can return to strong habits and rest – where most of the REAL recovery for the body occurs – ignore science here, I dare you! If you want to achieve optimal performance, this one should not be skipped. Period, it’s not negotiable – cuz when that sleepless night occurs the night prior to the event, you’re body will be ready to ‘push’ and endure as the effect of your preparation and respect of a proper taper for you. The research is clear here and each person will have to determine the optimal range, and notice I didn’t say OVER SLEEP. Good luck with this one, you can research your needs to your little heart’s content.
Focus on Nutrition
Often overlooked is the unspoken and neglected discipline of nutrition. During taper, it’s critical to be on point with nutrition. You are going to be HANGRY otherwise and manifest like the meme at the header of this post. I think I notice I am tapering right by that vector alone. I tend to begin my focus on nutrition about 30 days prior to the event. When taper begins it gives me another level of just how ‘dialed in’ or how far off I am. I believe in the practice of pre-loading electrolytes. I ramp up my water intake to 120 oz a day with a bottle of EFS and a reduction in caffeine. I like to eat nutrient-dense foods and concentrate on lighter foods the 2 days prior to the event – if its chewy and ready to digest the better. I avoid the carb-load night before parties because for me that is just a gut bomb and porta-lu rendezvous the day of the event. I also try to get my timing for the ‘deuce’ to occur at a time before the event will start, I don’t mind the pee needs, but the critical ‘deuce’ should be pre-event. Not during – this is a critical marker for me that I executed my taper well.
Time to dial in the ‘execution’ plan
Do you even have a race plan? If you should, this is the time to be mentally walking through, preparing your transitions, or what is your plan at the support tables – will you walk, grab water, need anything, find your hidden water or nutrition on-course stash? Are you wearing a watch, using music? What and where should you know that its optimal day or is it time to just throttle it back and survive? Are you willing to settle for what the given day gives you or will you push to the cliff and see what happens? What about clothing, how long is it necessary? What will you do to deal with weather events? Do you even care? If there are transitions, what time will you allocate to yourself for a quick and timely or a prudent and collecting transition? will you use technology to keep you controlled or will you be operating by ‘feel’. When and what will you do if it is truly that day for optimal performance? Are you mentally prepared and ready to just go after it?
All these things are great pointers to help you navigate a taper period and not get lost in calculating your supposed paces (often neglecting your real training) or getting lost in the anxiety of perfect race day weather. The taper isn’t as hard as some make it out to be. It’s not the unicorn that will make or break you, you are what will make or break you. The taper is not the time to be lazy. It is not the time to conjure up all the excuses to be at the ready for when you didn’t achieve optimal performance. And to be frank, even if you don’t achieve optimal performance during that singular event, is that the journey that you truly had? The taper is a great time to measure back and see who you have become. To identify some simple recalibrations and corrections moving forward and keeping expectations realistic but a bit out there to push you through, if it is that time and expectation for you.
What about massage you ask? A massage should be treated like a workout. Plain and simple at any time during your training. So, if you are getting massages as part of your routine, one at the beginning of taper can be fine. But, if you don’t commonly get them, getting a massage 2-3 days out from an event can be disastrous (but this is in the risk vs reward zone) as some folks have great success, but I’d say the earlier in the taper period the better to give your body space to work out all the toxins and so forth that the masseuse just conjured out of your body.
As one may see, the taper is a period designated to help one to refine the performance-ready diet, the hydration a few weeks before and into the final days before an event, ignoring phantom injuries or identifying true injuries. It can and often should include simple Active recovery zone runs, short relative to the event.
I’d love to see a runner specific taper podcast or discussion from this community -as my taper norms are generally more from a long course multi-sport perspective.
Just remember that being a human in the taper is hard, for you and oft times the support group closest to you – they know you are a cranky beast. ? It can be a time where you want the event to just happen but you are still precious days away. It can be a space where we forget to be active, but in a highly restricted state with a great reduction of load. It can be a period of ultra focus and allow us to mindfully practice our routines. It shouldn’t be a time where we obsess about the uncontrollable, conjuring up anxiety and destroying acquired confidence during one’s training and build up to a given an event. The taper is not a one-size-fits-all with a dedicated map a plan for each and every step. Rather, it is a collection of patterns, hopefully culminating in the execution of solid and strong habits developed during the last training periods.
Other topics
In other topics, training is ok, we got a new to us hot tub, that was fun getting it installed and today the electrician comes to finalize the connection so Liz can get to help her back, Sure we need to set things up, shock and clean etc, but hopefully we can be using it by Thurs/Fri. I have snuck in a few pool sessions. Albeit it shorter, but I like where I am at and feeling solid. Last night was pretty positive as I was trying to fix my head position a bit and beginning to up my stroke rate a bit. I’m sure I look like a hot mess, but my early vertical forearm and my slow and long pull to transition needs work. That is my focus for now as I rebuild swim fitness and volume.
Busy, busy, busy. Now, back to work.
Activities –
I use the following trackers:
- Garmin Connect (which pushes the files to the following services):
- Training Peaks
- Strava
- and the ones I don’t remember (Map my stuff via Under Armour and things like the Great Bicycle ride initiative stuff)
Honestly, I mainly use Training Peaks as I pay for an annual subscription on it now, and it is the most detailed in data and other helpful information to keep me where I want to go. Use the ‘Links’, then ‘Track me’ section to find and stalk me if that’s your thing.
Relevant Pics
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