Taper

Well, incredibly Ironman CDA is just over a week away. Seems crazy. I mean, don't get me wrong, I am so happy we are finally nearing the date...but it seems like it was just yesterday that I was cursing the short December days wishing for summer to hurry up and get here. So here we are. I've been getting a lot of questions regarding what the last few weeks looks like for me heading into an Ironman so I thought I would take a minute to explain what I do. First and foremost, my plan seems to change slightly every year and each race I taper for based on past experience and current conditioning and health. This year, the plan relies a lot on my coach's plan. Muddy has me dialed this season and I'm not about to back away from his insight leading into the race.

So, without giving too much away (that's why I pay the guy after all!), here is the gist of my plan. The two weeks leading into the race are about rest, recovery, yet remaining sharp. I have rested too much previously and have been flat on race day. I have not rested enough and have been tired on race day. This year we are after the perfect balance. So we start by resting more than normal and then resuming normal interval training 1.5 weeks out. We will then rest more and take this weekend very easy before getting back to short and fast workouts next week leading into the race. I will stay active every day leading into the race outside of my travel day. Part of this is physical and part is mental. Bottom line, when you are accustomed to putting in hours a day of training, your body and mind crave some sort of activity most days. Especially when you start to rest because you start to feel really good. What we need to avoid during these periods is for the body to enter into full recovery state.

The whole idea of a taper for a full Ironman distance triathlon is still a work in progress among most you ask. Many would tell you just back off a little each week. Others will insist that you must rest and then when you are done resting you must rest some more. The truth, at least for me, lies in the middle. You must allow the body to recuperate, but not allow enough rest that it starts into deep recovery. This will railroad your chances for a solid race. Meanwhile, if you don't rest enough, you run the risk of not allowing your muscles and energy systems to recover properly from the big blocks you put them through. So what is a guy to do? Heck, I got Muddy. I could care less about my taper this year. It's such a nice feeling. I just trust this guy. I also trust myself. I know if I'm not feeling right I will speak up and we will make adjustments. But at this point folks, the hay is in the barn. The only real danger you run beyond resting too much (hard to do really) is to train too hard (easy to do).

So, I'm getting excited for the trip. I've prepared for some time for this opportunity and hope to enter the race healthy for once (knocking on wood currently). I truly appreciate all the support and interest from everyone. More soon.
-T