Taper Revisited

I somehow feel much better about my taper this week than I've ever felt. Cristi commented on my blog the last time I mentioned taper and referred to "Reduce volume, keep intensity. You should get that "race feeling" in training sessions leading up to the big day..."

Hm, I've kept that in mind...I haven't quite followed that model completely. Yet, I've gotten a lot of fantastic aerobic exercise this week and reduced overall volume by only about 15%, which is right on target. Monday I went to yoga which was a great workout to follow my Sunday swim and long run. Tuesday I had to bring my bike in to Lombardi Sports, the fabulous store that sponsors the triathlon team I am so proud to be a part of and represent. Normally I might think "oh, just take the 8:44 BART train (bikes not allowed before then - SO COMPLETELY lame but that's another story) and get into work late." But...I've been good about getting to work on time. Didn't want to do that.

Other option? Drive in. No, not an option. I'm not spending another $14 in daily parking fee and driving into the City, not to mention the fact that I wouldn't be able to use the casual carpool because I'd have to bring my bike along. And I want to use my car as little as possible.

Third option: Ferry. Ride bike from house to Oakland ferry terminal. Ferry one way = $5.50. BART back to Berkeley and walk home. Awesome! Could time trial myself over to the ferry and get a nice 25 minute intense workout, and could make the walk back home a nice brisk walk - all uphill.

I did just that. I wanted to ride faster than I did over to the ferry but stoplights and cross traffic sort of got in my way. Still, it was a good workout. I raced a garbage truck down Telegraph Avenue, which was fun. I gave them a thumbs up for their hard effort, but I ended up winning. :)

I rode my bike from work over to Lombardi, which only took about 10 minutes (up Market street to McCallister and onto Polk...down Polk and there I was!). Took the MUNI back to work. Rode BART to Downtown Berkeley and walked a brisk 30 minute walk up the hill back home. So, 1:10 of exercise, 0:30 of it more intense, the rest aerobic! Great!

Wed morning I taught spinning but mostly took it easy with a few short bursts.

Thursday I got a LOT of walking in due to the fact that I had an appointment in the Marina and since the MUNI never made a magical appearance, I just kept on walkin'...and walkin'...and ended up at Lombardi to pick up my bike. Rode down to BART, time trialing again due to the fact that at 8 p.m. BART only comes every 20 minutes and I was desperate to make the 8:17 p.m. train.

Today I will teach spinning again and get in a few good intense bursts with easy spinning in between. Tomorrow I'll get a nice easy swim in. Overall, I just feel...READY. I feel GREAT! I AM READY TO GO KICK SOME BUTT!!!!!

David G. in my Wine Country Velo group asked if any of us had tips for the last three days of taper...here's what I wrote, based on reading and great advice:

1) Hydrate
2) Don't drink (alcohol)
3) Eat more carbs than usual (not TONS, but just a bit more)
4) Get your protein (tofu guy)
5) No last hill repeat/quality interval/insert hard workout here is going to help at this point. Allow your body to rest, recover, and be fresh for race day.
6) VISUALIZE. You know the course inside and out. Think about that quick climb at the turn on Westside. Imagine zooming past the vineyards. Anticipate that turn onto Canyon and how it's further than you remember. While everybody else slows down at the turn onto Chalk Hill because they think the hill is 'coming right up," keep up your speed and let them all be confused at why you're still going fast. As you visualize, imagine yourself not letting your cadence fall below 90 rpms. Practice your deep breathing. On Saturday, take 30 minutes to just meditate and visualize the entire race. Be ready.

Cristi had a great quote for me, which I just really loved. I'm all about mantras. Between this and Klaus Barth's "You have no idea what the human body can do" - I think I've got some great things to hold close to me during race day:

"One from Barb Lindquist is when going up hills, imagine a Japanese fisherman pulling you up the hill with his line in order to painlessly scale the slope."

If anybody has any other great tips, bring 'em on!

VINEMAN, HERE I COME!!


By the way...Lombardi is such a fantastic place. They saw that my rear derailleur cable just totally needed replacing and did it right then and there and made sure they stretched it out as much as possible...in other words, they just took such good care of me knowing I have a race on Sunday. Lombardi Sports (namely, Robbie and Scott) - YOU ROCK!!