I am 10 days out from my first full Ironman in Austria. My ambition is simply to finish, time is mostly irrelevant.
Final Build/Peaking Phase:
The last 3 weeks were the hard block, and each week I did something similar to this:
Friday: 4k Ironman Swim (either in a pool or the lake with a wetsuit on)
Saturday: Roughly 100miles then a 30-45 minute brick run doing a 9:1 run/walk
Sunday: 9:1 Run Walk. Varied from 2hr15 to 3hr
The rest of the week was a lot less heavy, the reason for the weekend being like this was to replicate some of the stress of the activity.
Taper
I think I made a mistake as the build training finished 3 weeks out which may have been too early in hindsight.
At 3 weeks out - it was a bit disjointed and odd due to social weekend I had planned
Friday just gone I did a 3000m swim which was good, then later a 7 mile run which felt terrible.
Saturday/Sunday/Monday just gone I did nothing. Partly just felt so tired and just a bit rundown, lack of sleep, fatigued and just felt bad. NOTE: on the Saturday I did drink a lot of alcohol and was at a social event so that no doubt contributed to this.
Tuesday: 2000m swim
Wednesday (yesterday): 45 minute easy run
Is this Taper Madness?
I’ve only recently heard about this. I feel the following:
Legs sore simply just going up stairs they feel heavy, dead, and old. No spring whatsoever
Shoulders sore after a 2000m swim
Calves tight and achy even at rest
Hips tight when I cross my legs sitting down
Knees and feet aching
Yesterdays run which was 45 minutes felt fine but my legs felt heavy afterwards and towards the end
There are added stresses here too:
My training shoes are not race legal. I’ve bought 3 pairs of legal ones which I didn’t get on with. So now I am a bit unsure what to do. I have two pairs left to try - Hoka Mach 7 or the Asics Noosa Tri (many say it’s best for shorter distances)
I’ve just resigned from my job and about to start a new one (about 2 weeks after the Ironman)
That’s reassuring. I’ve read it’s very common, and taper is very personal as some need/prefer longer recovery and some don’t. Think I am in the latter category.
I am planning a 75 minute easy turbo ride today, and a 15 minute run after just to keep moving
If you had a good build overall, you’ll probably be fine, especially with your goal being finishing. But yeah, when you turn off the machine, things can feel weird.
Here’s a screenshot from Gordo Byrn’s YouTube video titled “Peak Like A Pro.” He says it’s basically translated from a pro short course athlete he knows (he’s in Boulder). He talks through how he has used it successfully. I’ve also used this template successfully several times in the past 14 months for a sprint up to a 70.3. Works pretty good to avoid resting too much. At 10 days out, you’ve basically gone through an unload phase already. Could weigh adding in some “loading” (whatever that means according to your current training, but probably some race intensity +) for the weekend. The “Freshen” is just keeping some intensity with reduced volume. Probably a good time to turn the engine back on and get it warmed up regardless.
I haven’t used precisely the Mach 7, but I’ve used earlier versions and I’d be inclined to go with that one. But it’s not too late to buy squishy Alphafly 3s and bounce-smoosh around like you’re floating with no impact to your joints for the first half of the run.
Regarding taper madness – ya, when ever I cut back volume I start noticing all the little phantom aches and imagining old minor injuries etc. I’m sure there’s any number of good reasons for it.
My take is I think too many people try to taper like a pro athlete, who by nature of their profession needs to maintain a pretty high level of fitness across a period of years, so they are paranoid about not getting the most long term fitness out of every week. So they lie to themselves that their taper is good enough, and they race very well anyway, because they are very fit, and they reproduce that cycle for a couple years until they get seriously injured requiring surgery, or skipping multiple races. Thus undoing all the “gains” they assume they got from not having a longer taper.
I think as long as you don’t turn into a slug who just sits around and eats and doesn’t move your body during the longer taper, you’ll feel great on race day. Right now your body is absorbing all that fitness, repairing and making things stronger, etc. Trust it to do the work that you’ve already put into it.
Definitely a thing, the first week of taper usually I feel every little thing that my mind thinks it’s out of place, then usually in race week once your body is truly rested you start to feel fine by Wednesday/Thursday. Also, your training is banked. Taper is important to absorb everything, shed the fatigue and keep your body aware of what’s coming. But you’r not putting any load anymore, the focus is getting fresh for race day.
