Friday 7 August · two days to City to Surf. Today the plan says one word: REST. One email is the whole job.
Nothing else on — which is exactly what the taper wants. Tomorrow (Sat): 08:00–09:00 AI Education. Sunday: 05:30 — CITY TO SURF.
32 items in the last 24h. Two that need you, two worth a glance.
Noted, no action: LinkedIn connection from Greer (BCD Meetings & Events) still waiting — thirty seconds. Kids in Focus program still open, hard deadline 19 Aug; post-race week is the window.
Everything else was noise — job alerts (Indeed ×4, Seek, Marriott) and newsletters/marketing (SBS ×2, James Clear, ByteByteGo, The Rundown, Examine, Waking Up, School of Life, Broadsheet, Ace Hotel, Zara, Amazon ×2, Withings, Ben Greenfield, Pace Athletic, Hyrox, Cloudflare, Cunninghams, Bullet Journal, Substack ×2).
Week 8 · TAPER / RACE WEEK · two days out. City to Surf 14km, Sun 9 Aug. Target ~65min (4:38/km).
Load rule: the block closed on Sunday. Nothing you do today or tomorrow adds a second of fitness — but plenty could take some away. The plan is explicit: Fri: REST, hydrate, early night · Sat: REST, carb-aware. Both days off. The only work left is logistical and chemical — fluid, sodium, glycogen, sleep.
Today: optional 15min flat walk, HR under 110 — that’s the whole allowance. Then 12–15min decompression: dead hangs ×3 @ 30s, calf and soleus wall stretch 45s/side (do this properly — it’s your foot cramps), couch stretch 60s/side, pigeon, 90/90s, legs up the wall 5min.
Fuelling — today is where Sunday is decided. Carbohydrate up from lunch onward, nothing you haven’t eaten before. Salt every meal, visibly. Fluid steadily — pale by evening, not a litre skolled at 9pm. No alcohol; caffeine as normal, at the normal time.
Tonight, not Sunday morning: kit laid out (proven socks), bib and pins, watch on charge, transport and corral time confirmed, and the race plan on one line — hold back km 0–3, shorten the stride on Heartbreak Hill, negative split into Bondi. Early night: Friday’s sleep matters more than Saturday’s, because nerves usually cost you the night before.
Back talking? Hang and stretch, don’t attack it with the roller. Nothing new in the legs, on the plate or on the feet between now and the start line. Tomorrow (Sat): rest, carb-aware, 10–15min walk if you want it, kit checked.
Nothing new filed. The Inbox is empty and stayed empty; the only movement is the 07:52 sweep touching the index and yesterday’s brief.
Which means the Sleep Co 12-week education block ended on 6 August without its deliverable landing in the brain — the top-10 takeaways and the research scope both missing. Twelve weeks of learning with no handoff artefact. That’s the biggest capture gap right now, and it’s a sit-down job, which makes it perfect for this weekend.
Friday · Week 8, taper / race week · REST — race-eve protocol. Two days to City to Surf.
No session today. The plan says one word: REST. Nothing between now and Sunday adds fitness; plenty could take some away. Today’s work is fluid, sodium, glycogen and sleep.
Movement — optional, 15–20min ceiling. Flat walk 15min, HR under 110. No hills, no “brisk.” Twitchy? Walk longer — don’t run.
Fuelling — today is where Sunday is decided. Carbohydrate up from lunch onward (rice, pasta, potato, bread) — nothing new, nothing you haven’t eaten before. Salt every meal, visibly. Fluid steadily through the day: pale by evening, not a litre skolled at 9pm. No alcohol. Caffeine as normal, at the normal time — don’t change it now.
Logistics — tonight, not Sunday morning. Kit laid out: singlet, shorts, the proven socks, shoes, bib, pins, watch on charge. Transport and start-corral time confirmed, bag drop decided. Race plan on one line: hold back km 0–3, shorten the stride on Heartbreak Hill, negative split into Bondi. Then an early night — Friday’s sleep matters more than Saturday’s, because nerves usually cost you the night before.
Caution: if the lower back is talking, hang and stretch — don’t attack it with the roller. Nothing new in the legs, on the plate or on the feet between now and the start line.
REST, carb-aware — same shape: no training, carbohydrate and salt maintained, a 10–15min shakeout walk if you want it, kit checked. One sit-down calendar item at 08:00.
Weights logging coming soon.