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Art Of Tapering, The Final Frontier Before The Big Race


Courtesy of Gerry Rodrigues, Tower 26, Santa Monica.

Tower 26‘s Be Race Ready podcast episode #16 on tapering has been posted by Coach Gerry Rodrigues and host Jim Lubinski.

With listeners from 112 countries tuning in, Coach Rodrigues and professional athlete Lubinski have certainly gone global.

In episode #16, Jim and I discuss tapering for the swim. These frequently asked questions include: How much should you? When to start? What’s best? How much volume or intensity? How much cutting back should we do?

Coach Rodrigues discusses, “What is tapering? It is the funneling down or cutting down or, in sport, if we have been exercising a certain amount, what should we do to prepare the athlete? Cutting back needs to be introduced in the training. A short taper is 2-3 weeks in competitive pool swimming.

Is a taper even necessary for triathletes? If an athlete has been swimming 2-3,000 yards 2-3 times per week, then that athlete is not doing enough sessions or distance or intensity to justify a taper. Tapering should depend on what the athlete is doing.

But really tapering is more focused on the mentality of the athlete. The mental aspect of the performance is hugely important. The swim should be very process-driven, but that is more psychological, isn’t it?

Coach Rodrigues talks about the frequency of the swimming sessions (its ‘touches’) and its importance here at Tower 26’s “Be Race Ready” series episode #16, available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and at TOWER26.com.

Questions can be emailed to Gerry Rodrigues at gerry@tower26.com.

Additional Tower 26 articles and podcast are posted in the links below:

* TOWER 26 Be Race Ready Podcast Goes Live
* Be Race Ready – Framing Cycles And Swim Workout Design
* Be Race Ready Podcast On Tautness, Alignment, Propulsion
* Guardians Of The Sea, From Tower 26 And Beyond
* Tower 26 website
* The Open Water Grave By Gerry Rodrigues
* Alignment And Structural Presence In The Open Water
* Tri To Improve In The Pool And Open Water
* Tower 26’s Gerry Rodrigues On Gripping And Ripping
* DPS And EVF In OWS
* Kicking In The Open Water For Triathletes
* Breathing For Triathletes In The Open Water
* Fear Can Be Overcome With Frequency To Build Familiarity
* Sultan Of Swim Discusses Open Water Essentials
* What Can We Learn From Olympic Swimmers?
* Triathlete Airplanes, Gliders, Helicopters In The Open Water
* Art Of Tapering, The Final Frontier Before The Big Race
* Gerry Rodrigues Towers Over Open Water Coaching
* Fill 3 Buckets for Better Swimming By Gerry Rodrigues
* 3F: Move From Fear To Familiarity Through Frequency
* What Can We Learn From Olympic Swimmers?

Copyright © 2016 by World Open Water Swimming Association

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