General Discussion Triathlon Talk » Help with first taper please :-) Rss Feed  
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2008-10-06 8:31 PM

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Subject: Help with first taper please :-)

Nearing my first triathlon, international distance.

I am searching for a good taper plan that fits my work schedule.

Here is where my novice taper idea has gotten me, please help me perfect it.

10-19- triathlon  7 am

10-18- morning work / 4 pm:  500 yard sprint/pasta/ sleep 

10-17- 7 am: run 3 mile sprint 500 yard sprint swim/carbs  /  work evening

10-16-  10 mile bike sprint/carbs

10-15- Final brick  27 mile bike 7 mile run/carbs

10-14- 1 mile swim final core workout / work evening

10-13- 26 mile ride with few sprints  /  work evening

10-12- 1 hour  run sprints/ work evening

 

Now I have no idea if this will be a good taper but I do know that one day without working out is amazing for my body and 3 days of very light workouts might be exactly what it takes for me to put in a decent time.

 

I have read about how you can exercise with very high intensity for short amount of time and then eat lots of carbs and have them ready for the next day to be unleashed.

Any help is much appreciated!

-Ben



Edited by benc84 2008-10-06 8:34 PM


2008-10-06 9:03 PM
in reply to: #1722495

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Subject: RE: Help with first taper please :-)
I followed an olympic training plan out of Matt Fitzgerald's book "Triathlete Magazine's Essential Week by Week training guide". It was level 7 plan, and was superb. EXCEPT for the taper had way too much stuff. So, the week before my race, I switched to a Gale Bernhardt plan I followed two years ago, which had just the right amount of taper. Here's what I did.

Thurs: Swim 1:00 E Speed (short speed set)
Fri: Run 0:45 A7 (zone 2 run with 5x90 sec accels)
Sat: Brick 1:30 bike / :30 run (negative split each)
Sun: Bike 1:00 E2 (zone 2)
Mon: off
Tues: Swim 0:45 E Form (lots of drills)
Wed: Run 0:30 S1 (easy run wi 5x30 sec strides)
Thurs: 0:30 OWS or E(Speed)
Fri: brick: 0:20 S4/0:10 S2 (20-30 sec accels strides)
Sat: Race!

E means endurance, A7 is like a fartlek run, E2 means zone 2, S1 means strides, S4 means fartlek bike, S2 means fartlek run, both with short accelerations).

Basically, everything the week before a race should be easy and short, with just a small amount of short bursts of speed to keep your legs ready for speed. I went easy on the hills, too!

Good luck!!! I did great at my race this past weekend, btw, totally slashing my goals :-)

PS: I also followed each of my workouts that week with Endurox R4 recovery drink, 2 scoops. Normally, I wouldn't take Endurox R4 with a short easy workout, but I did just for the carb loading. So, I agree with your high carb idea. I also ate dinner at 5pm on Friday, so it would have time to digest. Then ate a 500 calorie pb and j sandwich 3 hours before my race start, then a can of Boost 1 hour before race. Then Gu 10 minutes before, and every 30 min during.

You should do whatever you have trained for foodwise! Don't try anything new on race day!


Edited by keyone 2008-10-06 9:09 PM
2008-10-06 9:14 PM
in reply to: #1722495

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Subject: RE: Help with first taper please :-)

AWESOME THANKS

As far as the "dont try anything new" comment, lol everything is new for me. 

And im scared!  

This first race will set the tone for how I prepare for races in the future. 

2008-10-06 9:21 PM
in reply to: #1722642

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Subject: RE: Help with first taper please :-)
benc84 - 2008-10-06 10:14 PM

AWESOME THANKS

As far as the "dont try anything new" comment, lol everything is new for me.

And im scared!

This first race will set the tone for how I prepare for races in the future.



Well, hopefully you have tried everything out in training. If Gu is what you used in training, then use Gu for your races. Or gatorade, or whatever. If bagels are you favorite pre workout food, then do that for your race, too. etc.

I still am extremely nervous before races. Just as much as with my first race. The neat thing is once you hit the water, that nervousness melts away and you just GO! You'll do great!

One thing you can do is practice transitions. What I do in the weeks before a race, is make every workout have a T1 or T2 (or both if it's a brick). If you are going out for a run, first put your run gear in your back yard. Then go to the top of your drive way. Start your workout by running to the backyard, doing T1, then going for the run. Same idea with the bike. Doing this alot helps you not have to THINK in the middle of a race. Thinking always slows me down - LOL!

Some people like to set up a mock Transition are in their living room and practice it that way.

OH, and don't fret if you don't get a wink of sleep the night before. I never do.

Edited by keyone 2008-10-06 9:23 PM
2008-10-06 9:31 PM
in reply to: #1722495

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Subject: RE: Help with first taper please :-)

I was going to approach transition like a professional at first, you know, the rubber bands with the shoes and the body glide for my running shoes.  But i've backed off that notion and going to go with the  new guy way of doing things, come out of the water, put on the shoes run out of the bike area with shoes on, hop on bike and go,  transition 2  jump off bike with shoes already unstrapped, plop them off, plop on running shoes, put hat on and sprint out of transition area.

 

 

HEY

just thought of something.

Are there any important rules I should know about traithlons.. I know I cant draft and I know to yell out PASSING LEFT when I pass a slower biker, but besides that is there an important rule/rules that many first timers might not know that could be an easy violation without even knowing it?

2008-10-06 10:38 PM
in reply to: #1722716

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Subject: RE: Help with first taper please :-)
benc84 - 2008-10-06 10:31 PM

I was going to approach transition like a professional at first, you know, the rubber bands with the shoes and the body glide for my running shoes. But i've backed off that notion and going to go with the new guy way of doing things, come out of the water, put on the shoes run out of the bike area with shoes on, hop on bike and go, transition 2 jump off bike with shoes already unstrapped, plop them off, plop on running shoes, put hat on and sprint out of transition area.




Good plan. I tried the rubber band thing once in training and decided I am way too uncoordinated.

HEY

just thought of something.

Are there any important rules I should know about traithlons.. I know I cant draft and I know to yell out PASSING LEFT when I pass a slower biker, but besides that is there an important rule/rules that many first timers might not know that could be an easy violation without even knowing it?



It's a good idea to go to the pre-race meeting if you can. They'll explain alot of good things there, like commonly violated rules, explain the swim course, transition area setup, etc. Lots of good info. Sometimes they even give tips like which way the current will be pushing you so you can plan your swim, or like at my last race, to carry your bike out of the grassy parking area because of thorny burrs in the grass.

Here's a link to most commonly violated rules:
http://www.hy-veetriathlon.com/article.php?story=rules.violations&q...

My pet peeve is bikers who don't follow the overtaken rule. As soon as someone passes you, you must immediately drop back three bike lengths. At my race this past weekend, people were trying to drag race me when I passed. Grrr!


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