Is tapering overrated?
Us in EN are clicking along do similar workouts, workout hrs/week for several weeks in prep for IM/HIM races.
Our TSB will eventually settle out around zero +/-
It seems in past I have a TSB of Bike +20 and Run +10 for my A race, but have been underachieving on race day.
On the other hand, I have good RR for IMs and HIMs in past with TSBs aroung the zero range.
I realize there are LOTS of factors affecting race, BUT assuming that I swam easy and pace welll on the bike, I usually feel much worse on race day starting the run that compared to the UNtapered RRs. Wondering if Im "too rested" or tapered? Do we really need to taper since really we're not overtraining here in EN. Is there really a great advantage....IOW is a TSB of +30 better for race day that just being around zero.
Reason for this is I my consider for IMKS going in alittle less tapered and see how I do........
Anybody noticed this themselves??
Comments
After twelve years of racing tris (probably well over 100 races) I still haven't figured out "tapering". But I will share my observations thus far.
1. For Olys and HIM, I seem to do just fine on 1-2 days of easing off before the race. Also, I don't do anything long within 7-10 days of an HIM, and don't do any hard interval type work within 4 days. I also seem to do OK racing 3-4 out of 5 weeks in a burst in the summer, after a good six week training program.
2. For IMs, I did once look at number of hours in the week before a race. I did OK in the races with about 5-6 hours of easier, shorter stuff mixed with short hard efforts (e.g., strides, one length pool sprints, 30/30s for 2 x 5 min). When I got up to 9 hours several times, not so good. Also, I have started to consider the "taper" to be the time from 8-10 days before the race, and do OK with long bikes before that time. I do fine starting to drop the length of my long runs 2 weeks before the race, i.e., my longest run of 2.5 hours is 3 weeks before, then 1.75 2 weeks before.
I haven't been following my PMC before a race long enough (only 2 data points so far, and the second doesn't count as I didn't get to race) to learn anything meaningful. What I'm did last year before IM CDA was have my CTL start to plateau about 19-20 days before the race, and drop about 2 weeks before; my CTL and my ATL crossed during that drop, with my TSB being about + 10-20 during race week, and 30 on race day.
I'm not saying this is right, just that I had a very successful race with that pattern in the last three weeks. So I'm aiming for it again this year, and if I get two positive data points, I'll call it a plan. Here is my chart from 1/1/10 thru 7/2/10. The dips early on are ski vacations, the dip in April is OS >> IM plan transition:
@Al....awesome recs:
Question: do you just easy spin and light jog on last 4 day?
The above PMC came from me following the EN IM (Adv) plan as consistently and obsessively as I could. So whatever I did in the last four days would be what RnP put in the plan. I think the main values of doing something in those few days are:
1. Release nervous energy, which will be welling up both from anticipatory anxiety about the race, and also as the body build strength after the fatigue of training.
2. Get to know unfamiliar aspects of the course.
3. Do a few short hard efforts to remind the mitochonria in the muscles to keep reproducing.
It's doubtful that anything your do training wise in the last 8 days +/- before an IM will have an effect on fitness improvement. You can, however, booger your readiness for the race by doing too much in those last days.
As usual I agree with Al. Tapering is hard to figure out but certainly works. If I could handle it mentally I might try not running at all the week of an IM. I have also had reat HIM races on zero taper in an IM build, like running 17 miles on Tuesday and racing on Saturday but think that is more a function of fitness rather than that actually being a good idea.
This is a great discussion. From personal experience of tapering in 3 or 4 sports over the last 20y yrs (swim/bike/run and tri), I'd say that taper is not overrated, but varies greatly by individual. Also, it will generally 'work', but won't make you super-human. IOW, it's not likely that you will do things after a taper w/r/t power or pace that you could not do in training, its hopefully just that you will be less tired after them or be able to hold a given pace for longer b/c your body is fully recovered.
As for me, I've had very good experiences tapering for shorter races and up to HIM, but haven't quite figured out the IM taper yet.
Another thing that I've seen and I think is consistent with what you both said is that it is possible to be very good on 1-2 days' rest and also very good on a 'full' taper (10-14 days), but very flat in the middle. We used to see this all the time in swimming back in the day ... very good at the last meet(s) before some championship event, then dead flat the intervening weekend and roaring fast at the champ meet. I've read a number of articles suggesting this is both mental and physical. The mental part is, I think pretty obvious, but the physical part is more interesting and has to do with how your body works when it realizes it is in fact resting and allowed to recover (as opposed to being challenged daily with more hard work). Apparently, your systems do a bit of a reset that can make you feel 'off' and 'flat' mid-taper before you've fully rested and while your body believes it is on hiatus. You see and hear similar things from cyclists in stage races who can actually do worse after a rest day -- it's the same phenomenon.
The key is figuring out where that sweet spot is individually -- and it is likely different for each of the three sports and also differend for each distance of tri. Experiment and se what works.
I wonder if there any possibility that your underachieved results were from either bad timing of the start of the taper or maybe not tapering quite enough, so that the only place you get to is that "recovery blahs". Just speculating of course.
My experiance has actually been that a taper is more important for shorter races.
My theory for my personal situation is the outcome of a sprint or open 10k, half marathon, is VERY dependant on exactly what I did for the last 2-5 days before the race as I need my body in tip top shape to hold those paces. However, the HIM or IM is done at a lower intensity that I can hold no matter what shape I am in, the importance there seems to be just not showing up exhuasted or fatigued.
For example at 70.3 whether I show up well rested after a full taper, no taper at all with normal training even the day before the race, or 5 days after a BBW, my result is actually relatively similar and within a few minutes. However for sprint tris and open run races where I need top end speed I find that the taper is actually more important for me. There is no way I'm pulling off a solid 10k or half marathon after a full normal week of training, however I have been within minutes of my 70.3 pr on zero taper.
@Tim - I think I may fall into your example as I some of my best races were on the 1-2 day taper approach and some of my worse races where I was flat are on the 5-7 day taper. I have yet to get a 10+ taper right.