I'm planning on resting for a meet in Feb. As usual, I'm wondering what taper to use, how much to rest, etc. I don't feel like I've really hit on the "one" plan that works for me.
I know everyone has their own approach to taper and may taper for between 1-4 weeks. In every taper plan I've seen, the yardage always drops off gradually. Has anyone ever tried a "drop dead" taper? One where you continue to exercise at your regular level and then, say 7 days before the big meet, you precipitously drop the yardage down to 1500 or so with very little sprinting? Thoughts?
I'm wondering if this type of taper might work for me, as I feel (possibly falsely) like I lose conditioning if I taper too long.
Tapers work for a variety of reasons, one of which is the confidence of the swimmer. Since you do not think you will be able to hold your conditioning, you are predisposed to look for failure if you taper too long. Lots of people think like this.
Interesting ... Well, I mention this because that's how I felt in Austin after a full two week taper. Nothing left at the end of my 100s. However, I did swim all PBs there, so perhaps I'm overstating the effect.
It'd be interesting to test the staying in bed for a week theory. I'm inclined to believe it's true ... but no masters swimmer has ever really tested this theory right?
Qbrain:
Thanks. Yeah, 50K a week has little relevance to me. lol. However, I do think tapering works, and works quite well. I'm just not sure what the right amount is for me. This is part of the downside of training alone too ... That's why I was pondering the drop dead idea.
Tapers work for a variety of reasons, one of which is the confidence of the swimmer. Since you do not think you will be able to hold your conditioning, you are predisposed to look for failure if you taper too long. Lots of people think like this.
Interesting ... Well, I mention this because that's how I felt in Austin after a full two week taper. Nothing left at the end of my 100s. However, I did swim all PBs there, so perhaps I'm overstating the effect.
It'd be interesting to test the staying in bed for a week theory. I'm inclined to believe it's true ... but no masters swimmer has ever really tested this theory right?
Qbrain:
Thanks. Yeah, 50K a week has little relevance to me. lol. However, I do think tapering works, and works quite well. I'm just not sure what the right amount is for me. This is part of the downside of training alone too ... That's why I was pondering the drop dead idea.
