How to adjust your food intake when you taper

Whether it is to prepare for an upcoming competition or re-adjusting intake after the season is over, tapering intake goes hand-in-hand with tapering training. So, here are a few tips to make the process slightly less confusing:

1. Calculate carbohydrate needs
Because carbohydrate needs increase as training increases, needs also decrease when training decreases. Therefore, it helps to calculate where your intake should actually be when tapering.  To do this, first calculate your weight in kilograms by dividing your weight (in pounds) by 2.2. So, for example, 130lb/2.2 = 59.1kg. Next, multiply by the correct factor based on how training hours you are currently doing:

>4-5hrs/day = 8-12
1-3hrs/day = 6-10
~1hr/day = 5-7
Low intensity or skill-based activities = 3-5