With 4 weeks left all to often this is when people screw up!
10) Get injured: going for max lifts, playing ultimate frisbee, getting out of bed to fast, screwing around in general. The further you get into a taper the more energy you will begin to feel and that's when it often happens.
9) Try and make a technique change: save that project for May 12th (take 1 week off after nationals and repair your body). This is not the time to change from a grab to a track start, this is not the time to staart learning to SDK....not is the time to refine and dial in whatever you've been doing all along.
8) Go on a diet: This is a national championship not a bathing suit contest...you need to eat healthy more than ever. Because your intenstiy should be upped the next 7-14 days DO NOT reduce calories but rather eat better in general...5x a day (a healthy low cal snack between breakfeast/lunch & lunch/dinner).
7) Get sick: more often than not this is when many people do. #1 way to avoid it is to avoid others who are sick...and wash your hands..a lot! Even if you do keep your head screwed on tight...we have all seen and at times first hand experienced great swims in spite of getting sicik right before or during a meet.
6) Take the stairs/wear flip flops/practice starts: Stop all 3 of these 2 weeks out...the legs ill take the longest to feel 100%.
5) Not take rest days: whereas I will typically swim 3-5x a week and go "hard" 2-3x....from here on out I will be in the water every single day...however I will make every other day...or more as needed, recovery days. For the next week that means keeping yardage the same with more rest and doing broken swims every other day with some speedwork and on the rest days longer, hypoxic swims.
4) Not stretch: Even if you typically don't stretch on a regular basis you like most probably do some...or a lot at a meet. This is often times shy people feel sore at meets because they have not been doing it all along. Start today and 2x a day spend 5-10 minutes...you will 100% feel/see the differance...espcially by the last day of your meet.
3) Not test out a new suit...goggles; Don't wait till the meet to buy them...get them now and practice with the suit at least twice and the goggles every day.
2) Try to get into "shape": you've either banked your yards by now...or not so don't up your mileage with 4 weeks to go and try and play catch up. Either wat the next 7-14 days you need to be doing quality swimming with more rest added in. If you go pace 50's on :50, go to 1:00 and try and get 1-2 seconds faster, if 100's are typically 1:30, go to 1:45 and try and be 2-4 seconds faster. Remember...you will most likely feel terrible the last week of your taper...this is not because your getting out of shape...its your body adapting to a change in training and healing...this is also one of the main times people screw up...trust your training/trust yourself.
1) Turn into a head case. Listen...its a cliche but its the journey not the destination. Nationals is simply the gravy on top of the mashies...have fun, swim fast, get ready to come back and start the whole process again!
- Go out of town Sunday for a week for a business conference. Got to do something to pay for my swim lessons.
- Look up the local masters team and swim a good workout Monday morning with a good team and coach. I'm off to a good start. However, $50 in cab fares makes it expensive swim lessons.
- Stay out late and party with clients and colleagues. But I do back out from the extreme late night... I have to speak at a session tomorrow! ("really, I'm trying to taper" excuse did not fly.)
- Walk, walk, walk all over the place. Everything is a hike.
- Eat, Eat, Eat...lots of food wherever I'm walking. Not exactly health food.
- Lamely attempt to train at the hotel pool. Well, I did get in an hour, and at least they had some lanes, although I think they were about 29.2 yards long. And not flat walls... benches on the ends of the lanes. Hit my head on the underwater benches at each end a couple of times.
- Nearly get stranded due to the AA flights cancellations.
- Get fortunate (I guess) with a redeye, middle seat flight back home.
- Get four hours sleep. None on the flight of course.
- I know, lets make it up with a 4500 yard workout!
- I'm ready now!
- Go out of town Sunday for a week for a business conference. Got to do something to pay for my swim lessons.
- Look up the local masters team and swim a good workout Monday morning with a good team and coach. I'm off to a good start. However, $50 in cab fares makes it expensive swim lessons.
- Stay out late and party with clients and colleagues. But I do back out from the extreme late night... I have to speak at a session tomorrow! ("really, I'm trying to taper" excuse did not fly.)
- Walk, walk, walk all over the place. Everything is a hike.
- Eat, Eat, Eat...lots of food wherever I'm walking. Not exactly health food.
- Lamely attempt to train at the hotel pool. Well, I did get in an hour, and at least they had some lanes, although I think they were about 29.2 yards long. And not flat walls... benches on the ends of the lanes. Hit my head on the underwater benches at each end a couple of times.
- Nearly get stranded due to the AA flights cancellations.
- Get fortunate (I guess) with a redeye, middle seat flight back home.
- Get four hours sleep. None on the flight of course.
- I know, lets make it up with a 4500 yard workout!
- I'm ready now!
