taper Archives - foultips.run

Taper: Nothing to Win, Everything to Lose

by Adolfo Salgueiro | Oct 8, 2024 | Article, List, Science

By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro

As you prepare to reap the benefits of your hard weeks of training. Or you may be wondering if you have done enough to hit the starting line in PR shape. Or as you realize you have screwed up your training and will have to wing it. If you plan to race hard, or long, you will need to taper.

Taper (or tapering) is the label commonly used to identify the short training cycle between the end of our race-focused training cycle and race day. The word taper is an intransitive verb. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, it means \”to become progressively smaller toward one end. To diminish gradually.\” In running, that\’s exactly what we are referring to. We start reducing our workload as race day approaches. But why?

Our bodies usually take 14-20 days to adapt to whatever we do in training. If we ran 20 miles today, we are not better for it tomorrow. As our body recovers, it adapts to the benefits of such stressful events and thus becomes stronger. This is why whatever we do in the last two, maybe three weeks before race day, will be of little or no benefit.

There is nothing to gain during taper, but everything to lose. Many races have been ruined by not taking the taper seriously. Don\’t become a victim.

Meb Keflezighi has a great quote that epitomizes the last few paragraphs: \”It is better to be 90% ready and make it to the starting line than panic and become overtrained or be unable to start the race.\”

According to Jess Movold, in a 2024 article in Runner\’s World magazine: \”Tapering is one of the most critical parts of any marathon training plan, but in many cases, it\’s also one of the hardest to implement. Ever heard of the taper tantrums? \”

In my personal experience, I\’ve felt better with a 2-week taper. But if the fatigue accumulation really beats you up and feel like another long run will destroy you more than help you, an additional week is beneficial.

Theories abound about how to handle the taper, but the scope of this blog post does not include analyzing any models. It wants to point out a handful of errors and misconceptions you may incur that will eventually negate your training gains.

While on taper, be on the lookout for the following so you don\’t ruin your race:

I know I picked this up from Instagram, but I don’t know the source I should credit.

1. Follow the original plan: If you got here with your plan, then this is not the time to improvise, regardless of how confident you are or not about attaining your goal.

2. Don\’t try one more long run: There is no place for it. It will add to the fatigue, hinder your recovery and won\’t produce adaptations in time for race day.

3. Focus on nutrition: Avoid detoxes, new supplements, weight-shedding schemes, carb unloading/loading protocols, and indulgent eating. Eat clean and enough.

4. Tapering means you are still training: You shouldn\’t think you can stop because it\’s tapering. It is still part of the training program, and it requires work.

5. Manage your excess energy: With the decrease in activity, as your body rests and recovers, you will bounce off the walls. Expect it and control it.

6. Take the extra sleep: Your body is repairing itself, so it may ask for more sleep than usual. Don\’t skimp on sleep. It is the best recovery tool.

7. Control your training effort: Because you\’ll feel energized, compared with the last few months, it is easy to push harder and even perform your race effort before the actual race. Don\’t!

8. Focus on the main goal: Everything you do must serve your race. This is not the time to try new stretches, foods, gels, shoes, or routines. Stick to what has worked so far.

9. Strengthen your immune system: Your body is working overtime to repair itself, so your immune system is low. Be proactive. It is no time to get sick.

10. Tread carefully: Be extra cautious as you transit through life. Don\’t take unnecessary risks. Don\’t climb ladders, jump the sidewalks, text while walking, or rearrange furniture. All that can wait.

Please like this post and share any recommendations from your previous experiences in the box below. Let\’s build a community of informed and prepared runners.

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Learning the Hard Way

by Adolfo Salgueiro | Sep 19, 2023 | Article, List, Personal

By Coach Adolfo Salgueiro

When it comes to us runners, sometimes experience goes out the window, and we make stupid, rookie mistakes that derail our training, fitness, and/or goal races. Who can forget Daniel Do Nascimento, an Olympian and 2:04 marathoner, going so fast during the 2022 NYC Marathon and collapsing at Mile 21 on a hot and humid day? He also collapsed during the Tokyo Olympics. If he screws up monumentally in the biggest stages, what’s left for us mere aficionados?

Daniel Do Nascimento collapsed in both Tokyo and NYC. Lesson not learned

Failure must be embraced as an opportunity to gain experience, sure, but it doesn\’t make it any easier when we screw up and are forced to learn a lesson at an inconvenient time. So, here are eight areas of your running where you could avoid learning the hard way:

1. Starting too fast: The equation is straightforward. The faster you go, the less endurance you have. Racing a half marathon at 5K pace will end in disaster. Starting faster than your race plan is not conducive to PRs but to bonking. Don\’t fall for the \”I-feel-awesome\” fallacy at mile 8 of a marathon. You\’d better feel formidable there if you trained for 26. Execute your race plan as designed. The chances of a satisfactory race will multiply exponentially.

2. Expecting linear and/or unlimited improvement: Because the curve of progress is so steep at the beginning of a training cycle, especially for beginners with little to no historical reference, it becomes imperative to understand that each body has a performance ceiling. If we didn\’t, we would all eventually be setting world records. The apex of our curve can still move up as we get better, more experienced, and in better shape> But that process may take years, which requires patience. Too much, too fast, too soon is the cardinal sin of running and a sure path to injury.

3. More mileage is not necessarily better: If you are planning to run long distances, you must run a lot of miles. It is inevitable. Now, what \”a lot of miles\” implies is very personal. It may mean 120 miles for Olympians but just 30 for a newbie looking to finish strong in their first half marathon. If you run beyond your body’s capability, recovery will be affected, and injury, overtraining, cumulative exhaustion and burnout will derail your goal. Figure out what works best for you and apply it.

4. Bad races are part of the deal: You may have done everything right. You were dedicated to your training, you slept enough, hydrated properly, strength trained, didn’t miss a day, and rested. And yet, you had a bad race. Well, nobody can guarantee you a solid performance. That\’s why we compete on race day and not just pick up our medals and trophies by showing our training logs. Sometimes it happens, sometimes it doesn\’t. Accept it and don\’t let it be the measurement of your worth as a person.

5. Not practicing race strategy during training: The place to figure out you can\’t stomach that 5th gel shouldn’t be mile 20 on marathon day. Discovering that you don\’t have enough pockets to carry all your needs should not be realized on race morning. And so on. Be smart. Go for more than just one dry run during the training cycle.

Not taking care of your rest will inevitably lead to burnout or injury (Photo: Nataliya Vaitkevich, Pexels)

6. Rest days are an integral part of any plan: Even elites take rest days. At the height of their training for a Marathon Major, it may mean 10 easy miles at a pace that would be a PR for you or me. But we are not training to win Boston or London. So, let\’s put our goals in perspective and understand what we want to carry out. Let’s not compare ourselves to other runners, and make sure we rest properly—enough so our body doesn’t have to choose a rest day for us, which I may bet would come at an inconvenient time.

7. Squeezing in one more long run: The body usually takes from 10-14 days to adapt to the stress of a particular training session. This is why we taper. Not much of what we do in the two weeks prior to the race will help us. Yet, it can harm us. So, refrain from squeezing in one more long run or an added speed session in during taper. Follow your plan.

8. Trying new things on race day: Is the cardinal sin of racing. This is not the day to find out how these shorts fit, if this brand of gel upsets your stomach, or the responsiveness of this brand-new pair of shoes. You\’ve been training for this day. You have sacrificed sweat, time, money, and emotion into this project. Don\’t screw it up at the time to see it through.

We would love to hear your advice for fellow runners. Leave a comment below; we appreciate every contribution!

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