Do Deloads and Tapers Improve Performance?

Good question. The short answer?

A well-timed taper, or deload can improve performance, but the effect depends on the athlete, the sport, and how demanding the prior training block was.

Let’s break down what the research and anecdotal knowledge from coaching shows.

Key Points:

• Mid-cycle deloads help manage fatigue, but don’t directly boost performance and may actually slow progress.

• Tapers before competition Consistently improve outcomes by 2–5%

• Athletes in practice Typically deload every 6 weeks for 6 days.

• Strength vs. longevity: Skip deloads and you might gain faster short term, but risk stalling or burning out.

• Plan, don’t react: Proactive recovery keeps progress moving and lets you peak when it counts.

Mid-Cycle Deload Studies

A 9-week study compared a group with a 1-week mid-cycle deload vs. continuous training:

• Hypertrophy, endurance, power were similar between groups.

• But the continuous training group had better strength gains.

This suggests mid-cycle deloads don’t necessarily enhance progress in short blocks, and may even slow strength gain slightly.

Read the paper

Active vs. Passive Recovery

A small study compared one week of active vs. passive recovery after six weeks of resistance training:

• No major difference in body comp, mood, squat velocity, or muscle growth markers.

• Molecular differences were noted, but the practical outcome saw no real performance edge short term.

Read the paper

Tapering Before Competition

Where the evidence is strongest:

• Strength-trained men saw small but significant improvements in jump height and force output after tapering.

• Endurance athletes often improve 2–5% post-taper.

• Pro rugby players reported up to 35% jump height and 45% power increases after a taper.

Tapering ≠ mid-cycle deloads, but it shows that cutting back volume while maintaining intensity can unlock higher levels of performance.

Anecdotal Reports

Plenty of lifters claim to feel stronger and more motivated after a deload, but anecdotes aren’t evidence and it may just be the aspect of the mental reset.

Why Deloads and Tapers Work

• Reduce accumulated fatigue (physical, neural, psychological).

• Restore glycogen and hormonal balance.

• Improve muscle contractility and motor unit recruitment.

• Re-sensitise the body to hard training.

Practical Application & Takeaways

A taper or deload isn’t magic, it’s a tool.

The research shows mid-cycle deloads don’t give much in the way of short-term strength boosts and may even slow progress, but used strategically, they can help manage fatigue and keep you consistent and training hard through longer training cycles.

Tapers, on the other hand, have solid evidence for improving performance, below are some takeaway points.

• General lifters: A 3–7 day deload where lowering volume while maintaining some intensity is often enough to refresh and put you in a position to hit new PBs.

• Strength athletes: A 7–14 day taper before competition where cutting volume while maintaining intensity is the most effective way to express peak performance.

• Mid-cycle deloads: Won’t ruin progress, but may slightly slow strength gains in the short term. They’re best used for fatigue management in long, high-volume cycles.

• Be Proactive: Don’t wait until you’re utterly fucked, but also don’t plan them arbitrarily. Deloads and tapers work best when applied strategically.

Think of it this way, a taper doesn’t make you stronger, it just uncovers the strength you’ve built through training.

Final Thoughts

I undulate volume and intensity while moving through the rep ranges, thats a normal part of a lot of high level programming and it means that naturally there are some easier days than others within the week and training block, that being said I rarely utilise a full deload and never plan them.

Why? Because as stated in ‘Mid-Cycle Deload’, unless it’s a mega long training cycle, deloads have been shown to possibly slow strength gains in the short term.

And being real, there are very few professional athletes who’s day or week revolves solely around training and performing. 99.9% of us have lives and life often has a way of deciding when you deload, so I often just try and wait for that.

Thats not to say I don’t think deloads don’t have their place, I just don’t think that the traditional 60% reduction in workload every 4 to 6 weeks is a little arbitrary. Couple that with the fact a good coach should be chatting to clients regularly and managing fatigue by making micro adjustments to training based on the feedback and I think the usual recommendations are often a little overboard.

Anecdotally, if you’re fucked from last weeks training, it’s often better just to identify the thing that fucked you and adjust that for the upcoming week to prioritise recovery there.

The other option I often take is to drop normal volumes by 40% (Think changing a 5x5 to a 3x5 or 5x3) while maintaining intensity, giving you around a 20% drop in total work load.

Lastly, do some cardio because if you’re cardiovasculary fit, you’ll recover better, need to deload less and over time, make more progress.