WAG Tapering before a meet for better performance?

[Yuenling]

I know in running, before a race, it is good to taper the workouts to optimize race times the day of. Is there the same benefit in gymnastics? I noticed that at my daughter gym, they train the full 5 hours the day before a meet. I'm guessing they don't do intense conditioning that day, but even without that, I would think the workout is quite tiring.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

yes, an experienced coach tapers before competitions.

 

[Yuenling]

Thanks dunno. What does tapering look like by an experienced coach? Skip practice the day before? Or, no conditioning the whole week? Or just no conditioning the day before... etc

 

[wnl256]

My DDs team "tapers" before a meet. Typically a shortened practice two days before (similar to a meet warmup --- serveral runs through each routine), then no practice the day before.

 

[wallinbl]

In DD's gym, this is more about periodization than about day before or week of practice modifications.

 

[peginer]

My DDs team "tapers" before a meet. Typically a shortened practice two days before (similar to a meet warmup --- serveral runs through each routine), then no practice the day before.

That's exactly what my daughter's coach does, except if it's a regular training day the day before a meet its a short warm up and run thru.

 

[Faith]

DD's coach doesn't taper . He is very experienced, older and been at it longer even than the esteemed Dunno .

Basically for DD, competitions are just for experience at this point. She's 10, and her coach wants real results in 4, 5 years time.

He pretty much continues training as normal, does a comp, back to training. Sometimes she wins, sometimes she doesn't. It gives them a bit of a guide to what needs a bit more work, so they're even a training aid.

Four or five comps a year, and tapering can take 2 weeks out of training before each comp. Thats 8-10 weeks out of his plan per year. Two or three months.

So I would say it depends on the aims of the gymnast, and the training plan, and amount of competitions per year. If states is going to be a childs *big* comp, then yes, taper for that. If junior elites is the childs *big* comp, states is little more than a run through and save the tapering for JE.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

older doesn't mean smarter. who has HE produced?? experienced coaches use a periodization schedule with macro and micro cycles.

this concept and it's practice are worldwide.

 

[Faith]

older doesn't mean smarter. who has HE produced?? .

Plenty .

His aim is to produce elites and national team members. All I know is he doesn't think much of the pressure for medals now, in such young athletes. Competitions interrupt his training plan . At this stage comps don't lead anywhere- no national squad or national team selection, so no big deal.

 

[Yuenling]

I'm curious what is a periodization schedule, and what does a macro and micro schedule look like?

My daughter is never going to make the national team. She just wants to collect as many gold medals as possible. =)

 

[dani4]

DD's coach doesn't taper . He is very experienced, older and been at it longer even than the esteemed Dunno .

Basically for DD, competitions are just for experience at this point. She's 10, and her coach wants real results in 4, 5 years time.

He pretty much continues training as normal, does a comp, back to training. Sometimes she wins, sometimes she doesn't. It gives them a bit of a guide to what needs a bit more work, so they're even a training aid.

Four or five comps a year, and tapering can take 2 weeks out of training before each comp. Thats 8-10 weeks out of his plan per year. Two or three months.
.....

What Faith describes is how my husband tapers in his sport. For him most competitions are "just another practice" but with added pressure, and if he tapered for each one he would not be training optimally for whatever his big race is. His former coach who preached this approach is a former Olympian from the Soviet union. He also currently trains with former us national team members who do this.

It makes sense to me that this approach would work for gymnastics too, although my husband's sport is quite different.

I also train, but nowhere near on my husband's level so there's no point in me pretending to taper. Haha.

 

[iwannacoach]

DD's coach doesn't taper . He is very experienced, older and been at it longer even than the esteemed Dunno .

What??!!

To have been around that long this coach would have taught kids to vault over a big flat boulder instead of a sideways pommel horse.....

 

[Canadian_gym_mom]

What??!!

To have been around that long this coach would have taught kids to vault over a big flat boulder instead of a sideways pommel horse.....

Yeah, I thought dunno invented gymnastics.... And the wheel!

 

[wnl256]

So I would say it depends on the aims of the gymnast, and the training plan, and amount of competitions per year. If states is going to be a childs *big* comp, then yes, taper for that. If junior elites is the childs *big* comp, states is little more than a run through and save the tapering for JE.

I would say that's fair. DD has no aspirations to join the national team or to go elite. For her the goal is state, regionals, and (if she lasts that long) nationals. Invitationals are a good gauge for how she is progressing, and she has goals she wants to achieve at each meet. So for her (and her teammates who are all mostly in the same category) tapering for a meet makes sense.

Not all of the 70,000 gymnasts in the JO program are going to be a JE.

 

[Aussie_coach]

Plenty .

His aim is to produce elites and national team members. All I know is he doesn't think much of the pressure for medals now, in such young athletes. Competitions interrupt his training plan . At this stage comps don't lead anywhere- no national squad or national team selection, so no big deal.

So if there is no value in competing, why compete at all?

Surely the time could be better spent of skill learning and body development?

My guess is that he competes them to give them early exposure to competition and to help the. Learn how to compete so to speak. Even if you are not concerned with the results. There is value in teaching gymnasts how to prepare for competitions, on areas such as making sure they are aware that doing the killer conditioning program two days before a comp is probably not a good idea.

Tapering does not mean wasting training, tapering means a carful evaluation of the load placed on the gymnasts muscles in the lead up to the point where you want them to be able to perform to their best potential. This doesn't mean training has to be wasted.