Race week - the importance of a plan
With summer approaching rapidly, races are taking place all over the (mostly) northern hemisphere.
You have been training for weeks or months for a particular race which always seem like some event in the distant future and now it’s finally here - race week. Now it’s time to reap the rewards of all the hard work you put in during the colder part of the year.
“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”
We don’t really know if Benjamin Franklin said that (he most likely did not) but it’s absolutely true. You have put too much time into training and looking after yourself to not spend a little bit of extra time during race week to give yourself the best possible chance of achieving your best result.
This week we will cover four key points that can help you get the most out of the entire week and race.
Tapering
Tapering involves the process of lowering your training volume (but not necessarily intensity) in the week(s) leading up to your race. The time for improving your fitness has passed and now it’s all about keeping your current fitness level while allowing your body to recover and be as fresh as possible for the race.
Visiting a physio
If you haven’t been doing it during training, you should absolutely visit a physio during your race week. Massages and some tips from them will help you a great deal in achieving peak fitness when the gun goes off.
Carb loading
Your main source of fuel during a race will be glycogen stored in the form of glucose. It is derived from different types of carbohydrates that you put into your body through food.
Glycogen is mostly stored in the liver and muscles so if you can top those reserves up in a smart way in the days leading up to your race, you will be able to push harder for longer.
Race day plan
There are many things happening during a race and every race in itself is different. Your focus for race day should be to know the course to the best of your abilities. That means to know the course layout (e.g. elevation and direction) as well as about any potential dangers (e.g. steep descents, potholes, road works, etc.). Another thing to keep in mind is the number of aid stations, the distance between them and what will be offered on each.
There are a lot of simple things that can help you get the most out of you race and we will try helping you tick as many boxes as possible.
