Sprinters Taper

Check out this thread. forums.usms.org/showthread.php Many of your questions were discussed there. Seems like it's OK to not cut yardage 2+ weeks out, as long as the general intensity level is down. I'm a sprinter and was also probably averaging around 14,000 a week. I ended up doing a two week+ taper (I say + because I cut out cross training almost 3 weeks out), mostly following Chris Stevenson's suggestions, although with less yardage than he would do. Seemed to work very well for me. Good luck!

What do you think a reasonable taper would be yardage and time wise? Resonable is as reasonable does ~ A taper for even highly successful high schools, colleges and even Olympic teams are tricky so the answer to your question isn't easy. A taper is different for everyone because everyone's body recovers from stress differently. The key is to listen to your body. Your goal is to feel more confident and faster as you get closer to your meet. Muscle (shoulder) soreness is a red flag for many reasons and can kill a season let alone a taper so find what's causing it and stop it. Team tapers are tricky because being tired doesn't mean you're not recoverying it may mean you're not getting enough rest (an element that increases during a taper). Listen to your body, feeling good as the meet gets closer is a great sign and you can tweak it until you get a week out from the meet. Your body will adapt to the stress you're putting on it right now, so if you're a sprinter - sprint your distance and work on your weakness ( starts, turns, end-of-the-race, pace, explosive beginning, etc.) to gain the confidence that you trained what you need to train. I my opinion, three weeks is way too long for a taper and cutting yardage isn't nearly as important as cutting intesity. If yardage equates into intensity then cut the yardage. You should be doing more race pace training with more rest as you get closer to the race date. Specificity during a taper is critical! Something that can not be overrates is "a positive mental state" or a positive mental attitude, as you get closer to the meet amd is something you'll need to work on. Great coaches usually find a way to help someone find their inner strength. Try to find that inner strength; the "something" that lifts your attitude toward a new high. Good luck, Coach T.

Hi! I am a sprinter (50 and 100 m ***). 38 years old. 98 kgs. 1.94m long. (sorry I am Swedish...therefore the units). I try to taper 4 weeks for the big meets. After 2 weeks I actually typically feel very tired. I have tried 2 week tapers with disastrous results. I need the 4 weeks to get back into shape fully rested. The last week I dont even do 25 meter max:s. Only starts, some turns and maybe som 15 meter sprints...but lots of technique drills. Normally I swim 10 000-13 000 meters per week divided on 4-5 practices a week. During taper I go down like this (i do the same sets... just shorter with less reps.) Taper week 1 - 8000-10000m Taper week 2 - 6000-8000m Taper week 3 - 4000-6000m Taper week 4 - 2000-3000m my :2cents: /Per PS Maybe I should add that my normal training is very "sprinty". I never do long 10x100s etc. Only short 25-50-75-100 sprints with 100% speed and focus or very slow recovery sets DS