Tapering vs. Building

check out my responses from this thread: http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=162376&posts=12&highlight=taper&highlightmode=1#M2195123

Good luck!

btw jorge since you answered my previous thread....i finished my sprint at a decent pace managed 5th in my AG and still rode the night before.  legs did feel little sore and i thought i could have put down a better split IF i rested but did well.  my run was a little slower, i wanted a flat 22 min for 5k BUT i was happy with the result.

Edited by trix 2009-06-24 1:23 PM

Generally, I would say: 

Train "normal" through about today.  Then a couple of easier days prior to the race (include a full rest day if you like).  Race hard.  Then take a 2-3 easy days after the race (again, include a full rest day if you like) and back to "normal" training mid-week.

But if your logs are accurate, you're not doing much volume for an HIM right now anyway.  So I'd just keep training normal straight through.  Take the day before and day after off.

Thanks for the feedback! I have decided to taper for this race because I really want to peak for this particular race. Also, it is my first Oly distance so I want to be as fresh as possible. I'll take a day off after the race, then I'm really ramping up my volume of training for the next few months before the HIM. I realize now I've been doing too much tapering. As one of you mentioned, my training log doesn't look like I'm training for a HIM... because as soon as I start getting some decent training volume, I would start my next taper.

For instance, I tapered for the sprint that I did in May. While I was extremely happy with my result (cut 19 minutes off my time from last year), I lost a couple weeks of good building. So... I will taper the rest of this week, race HARD on Sunday, take a day off Monday, do a few light workouts on Tuesday and Wednesday and then go full bore into my HIM training plan. And I won't do much of a taper for my next Oly race as I see that pretty much as a fun race with the HIM being the culmination of the season.

Thanks again everyone.
Bill