3 Ways Triathletes Screw up their Taper

Peak racing season for triathlon means there are many triathletes out there who are currently going insane in the tapering phase of their training programs. Arguably the most important aspect of any solid training program, very few athletes “get it” when it comes to effectively tapering before their race. Says 6-time Ironman World Champion, Mark Allen:

When athletes start to give themselves rest, the system in the body that responds to stress (which is the system that allows you to get up for big workouts) starts to shut down. This is like working on the engine of your car. You cannot give the engine an overhaul while it is running. You have to shut it off.

Here are the most common things athletes do to rob themselves of the full benefits tapering can offer:

1. They don’t allow enough time to taper
   
2. They don’t reduce volume enough in taper
   
3. They reduce intensity during taper

The memories in your brain may be able to help you cram for a test, but the memory within your muscles isn’t that sharp. A solid tapering program takes several (read “more than 3”) weeks in order to be effective. Some athletes only reduce their training volume a week (or worse, a few days!) before the big dance. But you can’t blame them – shortly after tapering begins, athletes will feel sluggish and heavy. Some will lose motivation to continue training, as their bodies power down to repair.

Then, not-so-slowly, athletes get paranoid that they are losing fitness and gaining poundage by the minute. So they sneak in an extra swim at the pool or an hour-long run on an off day. This prevents the mini-tears in muscle fibers and strained ligaments from healing and hanging on to the strength they’d built up. Reducing the volume of training during taper period is vital to maximize your energy stores and neuromuscular systems for race day.

In the opposite end of the spectrum, there are athletes that mistake “reduction” for “vacation” and reduce both intensity and volume of workouts during taper. I committed this sin two years ago before the Nike Women’s Marathon by skipping workouts and short tempo runs in favor of Parisian cafes and shopping. This is quite easy to do, if you’re an endurance athlete used to the endorphins released by constant exercise. The body stops receiving these ‘happy’ signals and gets depressed. Motivation to train is lost, and the little voice that says “you’ve worked hard, take some time off!” [My] Google research shows that short, intense workouts help athletes maintain their fitness level and also build up the short-twitch muscles responsible for race day speed.

So if you are tapering for your race, be sure you back off early, get enough rest and make those shorter workouts count!

Online Resources:

Training Online

Trifuel.com

Active.com

Peak Week - Lessons in Training

Perhaps you are one of the lucky folks who is preparing for the height of triathlon season too - Coeur d'Alene? Lake Placid? Austria? Germany? Switzerland? Vineman?

If you've got a race coming up in the next 3-6 weeks, then you'll likely be reaching your peak training weeks, too. Way to go! Just keep these three things in mind:

1. Don't cheat yourself out of a little hard work.
Expect to be fatigued, especially if you are training for a distance you haven't done yet this season. Go the distances now, and you'll be guilt-free in the taper.

2. Now IS the time to be perfecting the details.
There won't be a better time to experiment with your nutrition, clothing, equipment positioning, etc. A one-inch adjustment can translate into miles of comfort (or suffering!). Don't wait until race day to realize what you've done right or wrong.

3. Now IS NOT the time to 'cram' for proficiency.
Don't expect to overhaul your running efficiency or the power output on your bike - or throw in an extra hour to your distance run in hopes that you reduce your splits. Have faith in the hard work you've been doing, and let yourself recover during the taper period.

Happy training,
Jen

I Walk the Line

I keep a close watch on this heart of mine,
I keep my eyes wide open all the time...

But apparently the Johnny Cash lyrics have changed in the past few weeks:

I keep a close watch on this race of mine,
I think about my workouts all the time,
Because they're mine,
I walk the line...

Triathletes in particular walk a very fine line with their training. I've developed a fever blister but (see also, "DENIAL") I'm not feeling sick. Sure I haven't slept more than 7 hours a night this week compared to my usual 9, but that's just because I'm getting so pumped about my workouts (denial, times 2).

But I am really into Internet research these days, so I checked out a few articles on Active.com, triathlete mags and found the following bits of useful information:

Over-Training: Symptoms

• Elevated resting heart rate
• Persistent muscle soreness and fatigue
• Headaches
• Insomnia
• Irritability
• Depression
• Inability to maintain AT heart rate in workouts
• Increased susceptibility to infections or illness
• Loss of motivation
• Weightloss

I start to wonder if I am in fact over-training, but then I realize why I am JUST FINE: This is my peak week of training in preparation for the Ironman in 5 weeks - I'm supposed to feel tired! (Periodization of training: includes specific phases of hard training followed by periods of adequate recovery.) I'm in the build part of my training cycle, which means that I was recovering last week and will spend extra time repairing the muscle tears and replacing nutrients and amino acids when I taper in 10 days. But just to be sure I've scheduled a deep tissue massage for the weekend.

Are you walking the line? Check out these sources for more info:
Wikipedia
Triathlete Blogger Rachel
Trifuel
Active.com

Escape from Alcatraz

I didn't Escape from Alcatraz this weekend, but I watched many who braved the cool, undulating San Francisco Bay current at one of the country's most famous triathlon events.

After a 3/4-mile run to the transition area, athletes grabbed their bikes and set out for the Presidio, climbing up toward the Legion of Honor and Presidio Golf course before descending toward the ocean and the Great Highway into Golden Gate Park. I saw the disk wheels and teardrop helmets coming in as age groupers were heading out - there was definitely a strong field racing out there!

I'd like to give a big congrats to my friends and fellow Olympic Club athletes who had a great race at Alcatraz:

M45-49 3rd A.G. DEAN PANZICA 2:30:41
M40-44 10TH A.G. GLENN STEPHENS 2:31:58
M30-34 25TH A.G. MATTHEW HART 2:37:56

M40-44 DIRK GILLIARD 2:45:09
M30-34 ANGUS WILSON 2:45:47

F35-39 2ndA.G. JORDAN CANTWELL 2:47:21
M60-64 5thAG VITO BIALLA 2:50:51
F45-49 1stAG PEGGY LAVELLE 2:55:09

M45-49 ANDY SCHILLING 2:56:52
M40-44 MARTY LOBDELL 2:57:08
M45-45 STEVEN FOLAND 3:06:41

M45-49 PETE RYAN 3:09:41
F30-34 SIMONE SEELEY 3:10:46
M50-54 MARK ROSEN 3:13:05

M55-59 8thAG BRETT EVART 3:13:24
M60-64 9thAG TOM MCCARTY 3:15:07

M45-49 JOSEPH BERTAIN 3:28:17
M40-44 ROBERT GIGLIO 30:46

If you want to add the 'triathlete' notch to your belt, but also want to keep your day job (and 'civilian' life while training for it), make sure you're in the loop for next year's Escape from Alcatraz registration. Entries are chosen by random drawing - one drawing pulls half of the entries for 1st-timers, the other drawing pulls from veteran escapees. [More Info]

It was nice being a spectator again at a triathlon; I realized then how many months (and races) went by where I was a participant, not a spectator. I remembered how inspiring it was to watch the pros and 'joes' alike pass by during each leg of the race, both with equal levels of determination.

I can't quite remember when or why I thought it'd be a good idea for me to do a triathlon; but having the vivid knowledge of the rush and emotion you get from running the last 100 meters through cheering crowds, a rainbow of country flags and the timing mat at the finish is all I really need to hang onto anyway...

Post Race Report: Ironman Hawaii 70.3

Chelonia Midas - (aka "green turtle", HONU)

Conditions were sweet misery at this year's Hawaii Ironman 70.3 on Saturday. It was the first triathlon where I was body marked with ink and stenciled stamps instead of the ever-faithful, easy-to-remove Sharpie pen. [I have since returned to the office wearing only sleeveless shirts to show off my 1-1-4-2 tan lines; a great conversation piece! But I digress...]

Swim was nice and choppy - but didn't have much of an effect on my friend McCall, who in doing her very first half-iron distance triathlon was the first female out of the water. The rest of the pack bottle-necked around buoy #1, splashed around Hapuna Bay and then ran under garden hoses to remove the saltwater and sand before heading up to Transition #1.

Biking the big island was breathtaking in both the beautiful scenery sense, as well as in the "fight the headwind uphill just in time for the downhill crosswinds" sense. There were a good number of riders suffering flats and blow outs, but we should have expected this to be the norm on a course that is lined with a lava rock shoulder and garnished with thorny deciduous foliage blowing all about.

And once we finished the bike course, we were strewn about the Mauna Lani resort and golf course for a blessedly breezy, vog-covered half marathon run.

If you're interested in combining a half-iron distance triathlon with a summer vacation, I definitely encourage you to do this race next year! And if you were one of the people who finished this challenging event last weekend, CONGRATS, GREAT JOB!