The Case For a "Post-Race" Taper

"If you get tired, learn to rest, not to quit."

~Banksy

Let me set the stage: you’ve spent the past several months training hard, staying focused, and building toward one big goal. And it totally paid off. You smashed your A-race. You trained with discipline, executed with focus, and perhaps even surprised yourself with what you accomplished. You’re feeling strong, motivated, and more confident than ever. You think to yourself, “What if I can keep this going? What if I push just a little harder? What could another 5% of fitness unlock? But, I probably should chill for a bit, too, right?” Before long, you've thrown caution to the wind and are already sketching out a plan for the next big challenge, setting your sights even higher, determined to ride the wave of progress toward your next breakthrough. I’ve been fortunate to experience this delightful dilemma more than once, and I’ve taken both paths at the fork in the road.

Achieving peak fitness is one of the great rewards of focused and intentional training. But once you’re on the razor’s edge, at the tip of the spear, or as my friend Chris Johnson likes to call it, the pointy end of sharp, none of us can exist and thrive there very long. As tempting as it may be to take up residence as long as possible, the law of diminishing returns sets in quickly. Our bodies benefit far more from periodic rhythms: build, peak, recover, rebuild. Rinse and repeat.

So, before you put your nose back to the grindstone, let me suggest an alternate course of action. Pause. I’m not talking about the off-season. I’m not suggesting weeks of total inactivity. Rather, a deliberate 1–3 week phase with significantly reduced training volume—somewhere in the range of 20–30% of normal (yes, you read that correctly), while maintaining frequency and sprinkling in some intensity, can be highly beneficial. This period is quite similar in structure to a taper leading up to the race, which I discussed in this newsletter, but with different goals in mind.

If you knew this approach could lead to even greater breakthroughs, all while reducing your risk of injury, burnout, stale performance(s), or worse, would you consider giving this a try?

The Paradox of Pulling Back

Endurance athletes (and their coaches) are often highly fearful of losing fitness and performance if training is reduced for several days or longer. Everything about our sport reinforces the idea that something is better than nothing. More is always better. If you’re not working, your competition most certainly is, and they already have a leg up on you.

Thoughts like this can trigger anxiety, doubt, and a fear of losing what you worked so hard to gain, even when we know that rest and recovery are the real magic ingredients in the sauce. Not convinced that this mindset is pervasive in endurance sports? When was the last time you heard someone humbly brag about the cutback weeks they took after a breakthrough performance? I rest my case. 🎤

What The Science Says

Numerous studies on swimmers, cyclists, and runners show that even significant reductions in training volume (70-80% cuts) don’t necessarily reduce fitness or performance, provided that a few key variables are maintained.

Training Frequency - No more than a 20% reduction in normal training frequency should be implemented. Some research has shown that adaptations specific to running can be negatively affected if training frequency is reduced by more than 50%.
Training Intensity - Training intensity appears to be an important variable to maintain. That said, intervals of higher intensity work can be as brief as 90-120 seconds. Studies show that approximately 25% of weekly training volume should be maintained at a level of ~70% of VO2max, which, for context, would be in line with a runner’s goal marathon pace.

Variables that do not appear to be negatively impacted by a 1-3 week reduction in training:

VO2max
Running economy
Maximum HR
Exercise time to exhaustion
Maximum speed/workload
Energy (carbohydrate/fat) utilization
Post-exercise blood lactate levels

The Psychology of the Post-Race Reset

High-level training and racing are as mentally and emotionally demanding as they are physically. For most athletes, the weeks and months leading into a goal race are the most structured and intense of the year. While most of the discussion so far has centered on the physiological factors that affect athletic performance, the influence of high-intensity training on an athlete's psychology cannot be ignored.

When training stress is high, our mood often reflects it. When training stress is reduced, our mood tends to improve. I think most athletes would accept this at face value. Instead of trying to train through the fluctuations that athletes tend to experience when they’ve been training for long periods, this is where coaches and athletes alike need to shift perspective.

A short break from normal volume and intense training is not a sign of a loss of discipline. Instead, athletes and coaches should see it as a protective avenue to explore in an attempt to safeguard against burnout and overuse injuries. This period can also result in renewed enthusiasm for a return to training and subsequent competitions. Unless you’re paying your mortgage on the back of your athletic performance, most of us train and race better when our motivation is high.

The healthiest and often most successful athletes know that pushing hard is only half the battle. Training in a vacuum, without adequate recovery, can have harmful effects on both performance and overall well-being. It’s only when we allow our bodies the time and space to absorb the work we’ve done that we see a return on our investment. Just like one solid workout isn’t enough to build peak fitness, a few scattered rest days aren’t enough to allow for meaningful recovery.

The next time you’re coming off a performance that included a substantial build, give yourself the gift of a true recovery period. Don’t rush into the next training block. Let your body and mind recharge. When you’re ready to chase your next goal, you might be surprised by how much more focus and determination you bring to it.

Keep moving forward!

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