Runners have all sorts of pre-race rituals. From carbo-loading to drinking the right kind of gatorade, each runner has his or her go-to strategies for ensuring a fast race. One of the most common pre-race rituals that really does work is to taper your training. “Tapering” simply means lowering your training intensity in the week before a race in order to give your body time to rest. While it can be hard to allow yourself to cut back on running, it is important in ensuring that your body has the best chance to succeed.
For example, one study attempted to determine the effects of tapering on 5k times. In this study, authors recorded the 5k times, oxygen consumption, and caloric expenditure of twenty-four runners. The study’s authors then broke the runners into three groups. In one group (the taper group), runners lessened their training intensity in the week before a second 5k by 85%. Another group preformed the same workouts as the taper group, but added workouts on an exercise machine. The final group of runners did not reduce their running prior to the second 5k.
Each group then ran the second 5k test race. The taper group decreased their prior 5k time by 3%, and also showed improvements in oxygen consumption and calculated caloric expenditure. The runners in the exercise machine group and no-taper group had no change in their 5k time or running economy.
After weeks and months of hard training, it can be difficult for runners to cut back on running in the week before a race. However, allowing the body to rest and recover can have a big impact on performance.
