The problem with me creating my own do-it-yourself training plan for a sport that I know very little about is that you are likely to get a few things…um…WRONG. Apparently, there is no need for a 3 week taper (or perhaps anything other than a light week) in century training. I’d sent my plan to a few of cycling enthusiasts but when I received reactions like The Man who said, “I generally don’t incorporate a taper,” I misconstrued this to mean that *he* did not because he is such a seasoned cyclist.
It wasn’t until Big Sis commented that I’d recover quick enough from this weekend’s century to turn around and do another the following weekend that I clued into my error. Umm…and then I began to panic. Could it actual be bad to have backed off so much in the weeks leading up to my 100-miler? Oh dear, oh deary, dear, dear.
Somehow, some way, if I was to reconcile the whole matter, I would need to log a healthy helping of miles.
So I took The Man’s back-to-back spinning classes again and logged 43 miles of quality time in the not-as-comfy-as-MY-saddle. The following day, I headed out for a few hours before YaYa’s football game.
On Monday, I took in a hot vinyasa (yoga) class and stretched it all out. I left feeling flexible, strong, and empowered. Then, on Tuesday, I slipped on my Vibrams and headed out for a run. Yes, I said “run.” It was awesome!
And…then I received a text message telling me to be easy on my legs this week. Umm…okay. Easy. It’s a relative term but I think that means to back off in a taper-like fashion. *sigh*
What would I do without you all steering me in the right direction? Is there any other words of wisdom, corrective measures, or advice you I should have?
Just go and have FUN.!
Cycling and swimming require less recovery time than running, but no worries. It’s better to be a little over tapered than under :-)