Brad Kearns warms up his voice with Tupac and then covers a topic that hasn’t been mentioned much – how to taper for a peak competitive event. Here’s what NOT to do: don’t training chronically for weeks on end and then crash on the couch for the final couple weeks before the event. Instead, pretend the race is a week earlier than actual and be chomping at the bit as the clock counts down. Maintain intensity, high blood volume, and an active lifestyle, but dramatically cut back on volume – you don’t need a 20-mile run two weeks before your marathon because it takes two weeks to recover from a 20-mile run! For diet, you best be eating optimally at all times instead of pondering some magic regimen to give you a competition boost. Finally, get over yourself and the importance of your event so you don’t waste mental energy stressing.