How to Taper (and Peak) for Your Next Triathlon

Tapering is a dark art that many triathletes fear and few get right at first. We’re here to help you master the lead-in to your next race so you arrive at the start line feeling fit, fresh, and ready to go. 

Tapering is the process of reducing training volume as you prepare to peak for a race. Training causes stress on the body, breaking down muscle fibers and prompting them to adapt and get stronger, which is how we get fitter. But when it comes time to race, it means you’ll need a planned reduction in your training in order to arrive at the start line in your best shape yet. And while there are some standard rules as to how to do this, there’s probably one universally agreed upon truth—it can be different and difficult for everyone.

What Is a Triathlon Taper?

Exercise physiologist Iñigo Mujika defines a taper as “a progressive, nonlinear reduction of the training load during a variable period of time that is intended to reduce physiological and psychological stress and optimize sport performance.”

Of course, there are many variables that will affect how your taper period looks, such as the length of the race you’re preparing for, how much training you’ve done in the preceding weeks and months, how much experience you have, and your goals for the race.

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There are also variables that can and should be manipulated, such as training load, frequency, and intensity.

As a general rule, most coaches will look to drop their athletes’ training volume by 40-60% during the taper, depending on the length of the race you’re about to undertake. However, training frequency (how many sessions you do each week) and training intensity can often look quite similar to your regular training program.

Learn What’s Right for You

Jim Vance is an endurance sports coach and author who has guided many top pros and age-group athletes to lifetime best performances, so he understands what’s needed in these final weeks leading into a race. He also doesn’t underestimate how hard it can sometimes be to get right.

“It can be an unknown abyss,” he says of the taper period. “But I’ve had my greatest success with athletes when we’re both very clear from the outset what the goal of the training block and race is. That helps define the right taper. There is also an element of learning what’s right for each athlete as they taper.”

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Vance is the long-time coach of Ben Kanute, a 2016 Team USA Olympian, runner-up at the 2022 70.3 World Championship, and current American record holder for the full distance (7:37 at Challenge Roth in 2023).

He explains that for most athletes it’s only possible to peak and taper one or two times per season for your “A” race(s). It is, of course, feasible to race more frequently than this, but it’s not recommended to taper fully for races of lesser importance, Vance says.

How to Taper for Triathlon

When it comes to tapering for your “A” races, Vance says it’s important to ask the question: What do you need to do to be at your best on race day? Of course, there are many weeks of consistent training that need to be banked prior to your race, combined with good sleep, nutrition, and recovery. And the answer to Vance’s question will be different for every athlete, depending on their own unique strengths, weaknesses, and history. But the basic physiology of a peak and taper follows a similar pattern for everyone. 

“The peak actually comes in the one to three weeks before your race and the taper is your time to unload the fatigue to let the athlete express their fitness on race day,” he says.

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So to get the taper period just right, you need to look at the workload that’s been undertaken in the weeks leading in and how well the athlete has responded to it. Of course, this will largely be determined by the distance you’re racing (we’ll dive deeper into that shortly). For most people, this will mean a taper period of 10-14 days for an Ironman, 7-10 days for a 70.3, and 5-7 days for a sprint or Olympic distance. But Vance emphasizes that if you’re feeling fatigued or stressed, or if you’ve undertaken a significant block of training up to this point, then it’s better to err on the side of caution and begin your taper sooner and/or focus on more rest. “It is always better to go in slightly over rested than slightly overdone,” he says. “It’s a time to reduce stress and freshen up.”

During a taper period you will actually lose some fitness (and that’s OK, that’s part of the plan), so the trick is to balance the frequency, intensity, and duration of your sessions so you remain sharp and feel fresh, not fatigued. It’s undoubtedly a balancing act—and one that can take time to get just right—but there are a few key rules to follow: 

Duration: When it comes to overall duration of time spent training, the goal is to reduce this by about 40-60% over the taper period.

Frequency: The frequency of your sessions might not change too much, but they should be shorter in duration. The goal of the taper isn’t to rest completely (that’ll lead to you feeling extremely sluggish and to lose too much hard-earned fitness) so it’s important to balance rest, good sleep, and training. 

Intensity: Race-pace intensity is your friend during the taper. Vance recommends hitting some race-pace intervals every 72 hours to ensure you keep your engine revving and don’t start feeling too sluggish. Race-pace work in the taper period is important to help keep you feeling sharp and to help with neuromuscular coordination, that is, the dialogue between your brain and your muscles.

Of course, all of the above will largely be determined by the distance you’re preparing for, so let’s look more closely at how that varies.

Tapering for Different Triathlon Distances

How to taper for Ironman: 

• Depending on your history/experience at Ironman, you might want to consider beginning to cut volume from three weeks out, particularly on the run. 

• From 10-14 days out, cycling volume should start to drop and run volume should be reduced. You can maintain swim volume, frequency, and intensity at this stage.

• At 8-10 days out, many experienced athletes will do their last harder run. 

• With 7 days left to go, you’ll want to drop total volume by 40-60%, so that could mean 4-6 hours of training if you’re typically hitting 10-hour weeks. You’ll still want to hit some race-pace work in race week, possibly on the Monday and Wednesday ahead of a Sunday race, with a total day off two days pre-race. 

• The day before the race it’s advisable to do a short session in each sport, even if that’s a 20-minute swim, a 30- or 40-minute spin, and a 10 or 15-minute light jog. 

RELATED: How to Prepare for Your First 70.3 Triathlon

How to taper for 70.3: 

• For 70.3 racing, run volume should start to be reduced from 14 days out. Cycling volume can be reduced 10-14 days out. Swimming frequency and intensity can be maintained. Race-pace intervals across all three sports should still be included.

• Many athletes like to take a complete day off eight days out from the race and then begin race week feeling fresh and rested.

• Monday and Wednesday of race week (for a Sunday race) are good days to include some race-pace intervals. Vance suggests a bike session such as 4 x 8 minutes @ race pace on 2 mins rest on Monday, which could be followed by a run on Wednesday that features 3 x 10 minutes building to race pace (but he urges athletes to go on feel and what they’re used to from their own training). 

• Tuesday and Thursday of race week can be lighter days; Friday is often a good day to take a complete rest day.

• Pre-race day: Consider doing a short session in each sport, similar to that listed above for Ironman. 

How to taper for Olympic distance :

• Begin your taper 7 to 10 days out from your race, unless you’re feeling particularly fatigued. Maintain run intensity but cut run volume. 

• From 7 days out start reducing bike volume but keep frequent high-intensity work with short spells at and above race pace. 

• With 4 days to go, spend some time at threshold effort in swim, bike, or run (your choice). 

• With 2 days to go hit some “openers” in all three sports if you can, e.g., run strides, 30-second bike builds and sprints, short bursts of high-intensity swim effort.

How to taper for sprint distance: 

• This can be similar to the Olympic distance plan above, but don’t be afraid to maintain frequency and intensity, cutting load/duration from 7-10 days out based on feel and fatigue.

Tapering Differently Across Swim, Bike, and Run

As you’ll see from the above plans, tapering can vary greatly for each of the three disciplines. Running is the most corrosive of the three sports so it’s typically advisable to cut that first, then bike, then swim.

Vance says: “If an athlete is on the tired side I’d keep their running lighter, but swim frequency and intensity can be kept the same up to two to three days out for more experienced athletes. It can be different for each athlete, though, and I always like to listen to athletes if there’s one sport that helps them feel good. There’s a confidence/emotional aspect to this too.”

Spoiler Alert: Tapering Doesn’t Always Feel Great

This might be the most important part of tapering to prepare for: It can be a very funky time. Don’t expect to suddenly feel fresh, fit, and fast. In fact, you might feel quite the opposite. Your body is used to moving a certain number of hours a week and you’re cutting this by 40-60% so it’s quite common to feel restless and sluggish, for random aches and pains to start bothering you, and you’ll almost certainly start to experience some pre-race nerves/anxiety. 

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Vance says: “Tapering isn’t just about training, it’s about getting the entire body and mind ready to go. Many triathletes get so used to being tired from day-to-day training, but taper time is the time to freshen up, a time to reduce stress and volume. Many triathletes struggle with this, but if you’re too Type A to actually rest then that can be an easy way to sabotage your taper.”

He recommends aiming to set up this time so you have minimal life stress and maximum time to sleep and rest outside of your workouts. It’s also a good idea to dedicate time for mental rehearsal/visualization ahead of your race. 

He says: “Stress is the invisible load that people carry and we want this time to be as stress-free as possible. It shouldn't be hard to remove stress or load from the body and mind.”

This becomes all the more important if you’re preparing for a long-distance race like an Ironman. “Ironman is such an emotional rollercoaster,” says Vance. “The longer the race the more likely there are things that can go wrong, so you want not just your physical energy to be high but your emotional energy reserves to be high too. It’s not just about physical preparation. You’re freshening up to tolerate that stress as best you can.”

Taper Takeaways

So as you’ve probably gleaned from all of the above, there are a myriad of variables at play when it comes to tapering for triathlon. If you’re tapering for the first time, don’t be afraid to keep notes in your training journal/platform so you can begin to learn what works for you—and what doesn’t.

While it can seem complicated, as long as you cut overall training volume while maintaining some intensity and frequency then you should be setting yourself up for success. Also plan to fuel and hydrate well, sleep, rest, and reduce stress as much as possible, and you’ve covered the basics. All that remains then is to hit the start line ready to enjoy swimming, biking, and running your way to the finish line and trust that your body and mind will be ready to deliver your best performance yet.