How to fuel for triathlon race day

Preparing for a triathlon is much more than registering for a race and training to improve fitness. Sport nutrition plays an important role in race day readiness. Whether you are traveling to compete in a full distance triathlon or participating in a local sprint triathlon, dialing in your race day nutrition is key.How you fuel during a race primarily depends on the duration of the event, the weather and your racing intensity. No matter your experience, proper fueling will help you maximize your performance without compromising your health.

While you may be able to get away with a haphazard sport nutrition strategies (or not fueling at all) during your workouts, an enjoyable race day means avoiding these common performance limiters - extreme fatigue, cramping, dehydration, gastrointestinal issues.

Because proper sport nutrition should be part of your training and not something you only do a few times per month (or in the two weeks before your race), I'm providing some easy 'get started' tips to help you dial in your sport nutrition for race day.

If you would like to try out new products, consider ordering from The Feed, where you can order single servings of a wide variety of sport nutrition products.  

Race Recap: Peachtree International Triathlon

 

A few days after finishing IM 70.3 Florida, Karel was itching to race again. He enjoys racing a lot more than training so his ideal strategy is to race himself into great fitness. Knowing that our athlete and good friend Alvi was racing an Olympic distance triathlon just outside of Atlanta two weeks after IM 70.3 Florida, Karel decided to join him (I stayed home with the furry kids). 

After a solid night of sleep on Thursday (allowing extra time to sleep in knowing that race night is never a good for sleeping), Karel had his daily pre-workout oatmeal before heading out on the tri bike for an hour ride. He followed it up with a 20 minute treadmill run. I packed up a cooler and bag of food for him (also booked them a hotel with a microwave and fridge) and he left around 11:30am to pick up Alvi. 

Knowing that they had a long drive ahead (well, only a planned 3-hour drive but one that included Atlanta traffic), Alvi made sure to bring along some pastries. And if you ever want to make Karel super happy, just give him a flaky, buttery and airy croissant. 

After a long time in the car, Karel picked up his packed at the race venue by Lake Peachtree and followed that up with a quick swim (with wetsuits) in the lake (~14 minutes/~900 yards). Then it was time to pick up Moe's for dinner and check in to the hotel. 

Karel had a really rough night of sleep. His leg was bothering him (sciatica/disc issue) and even his Oura ring gave him all the signals that he should take it easy on Saturday (race day). I received an early text from Karel about his horrible night of sleep. I felt bad for him but knew he would be able to put together a great race - even if really sleep deprived.

After his pre-race oatmeal and coffee (from his espresso machine that he brings wherever we go when we travel), they packed up the car and drove the 2 miles to the race. 

The race day routine was fairly normal - rack bikes, set up the transition area, go for a jog, bathroom, warm-up some more, one last potty stop and then head to the swim start for a warm-up swim. Around 7:15am, the first group of 50 athletes (by bib number) started the race. This group included Alvi and Karel. 

0.93 mile Swim - 25:03

Prior to the start of the race, Karel was shocked to see a fly-over above him. This was just the start to an incredible race experience organized by Tri Peachtree City.
The swim was pretty straightforward. Swim out, make a right turn, swim, make another right turn and head back to the finish. There were several sighting buoys but Karel focused only on the turn buoys. He noticed several swimmers moving to the left of the lake but Karel just stayed straight as he made his way to the first turn buoy. For the majority of the swim, he swam by himself. He didn't feel fast but just held a steady effort (all that he had in the water for the day). As he was nearing the end of the swim, he caught up to the supersprint triathletes and that caused a little slow down but no biggie - Karel just made his way around those athletes as he exited the water. 

T1 - 1:05
The transition from swim to bike was uneventful. A quick 65-second transition and Karel was on his way out of the transition area and on to the bike course. 

25 mile Bike - 1:03.54 

After passing one lady at the start of the bike, Karel rode the rest of the bike by himself. He couldn't believe that there were mile markers every.single.mile of the bike - for all 25 miles! The course wasn't closed to cars but there was very little traffic on the course. The road condition was excellent (well - anything is better than our road condition in Gville) and the roads were really smooth. The course had rolling hills but nothing too steep or technical. Karel settled into a good rhythm and he was so relieved to have no back pain. This was one of his better bike performances in a really long time as he was able to just ride his bike without having to deal with his back. The recent changes he made in his bike fit have really helped. Nearing the end of the bike, Karel had to slow down as a golf cart got rather close to him - he was a bit thrown off his game but all was good. I was really happy to have our friend Eedee out on the course cheering for Karel and giving me updates. She was also there to support her hubby and our athlete Joshua who was racing. 

T2 - 1:20

Nothing major to report here. In and out. Karel didn't wear his Naked hydration band for this race but instead, just carried his flask with a sport drink in it. 

6.2 mile Run - 37.09

Karel didn't feel the best on the run. His legs felt a bit flat. He was hoping he would find some snap in his legs as the run went on but that dull feeling just lingered. But that didn't stop him from giving his best on the day. The run course was out and back, which allowed Karel to see the leaders. After Karel passed Alvi and a few other athletes, he was on the hunt for the leaders. Karel managed to get close with the fastest run split of the day, but only managed to get 3rd overall - 50 seconds behind 1st overall and 8 seconds behind 2nd. Not to shabby for Karel's almost 45-year old body to race with the young kids (well not super young but the first place guy is 32 and the 2nd place guy is 37). 

Total time: 2:08.30, 3rd overall. 
Results

Karel really enjoyed being finished with a triathlon race before 10am. After Alvi and Joshua finished, it was time to exchange race stories before collecting their awards and making their way back to the car for the drive home. Although Karel was tired from the race + drive, the excitement of watching the live coverage of IM 70.3 St. George (pro race) got his heart rate up as we spent the rest of the day watching the race. I had already watched the race earlier in the day but I couldn't wait to watch it with Karel as he had no idea of the race results. 

Racing is back and it feels so good! 

Side note: Karel and Alvi were super impressed with this race - the organizers and volunteers were incredible and the race was very safe. They highly recommend it! And thanks Eedee for the pics!

It's Race Week!!

 

This picture was from our last triathlon - waaaay back in October at the Ironman World Championship. 

After all of our registered events were cancelled, I didn't have much confidence that we would be racing in 2020. Not too long ago in mid-summer, we heard that a USAT sanctioned race was happening just 63 miles away. We kept it on our radar as a possible race option. We waited until 2 weeks before the event before we made the decision to register (which we did last week) and now we can finally say that it is race week! 

Karel and I will be participating in the Tugaloo Olympic distance triathlon on Saturday - September 12th, 2020 along with eight of our athletes. I guess we could call this a team race - yippee! Knowing that we are still in a pandemic and the race experience is a bit different, here are a few of my thoughts going into this race: 

• I have extreme gratitude for the local community, race director and event staff for putting on this race. 
• We are taking this race as serious as we would any other race. We will take advantage of this opportunity to race as it may be our only triathlon this season. 
• With extra safety protocols in place, it is our responsibility to know the course and be extra prepared and self-sufficient before and during the event. 
• I am grateful for my health that I am able to participate in this event. I will continue to follow all protocols to stay safe before and during the event.
• I will race with joy. Although I'm doing my best to stay optimistic and positive during this stressful and unpredictable time, it has been difficult to lose the race day experiences that have become part of my self-identity throughout each summer for the past 14 years. Racing is something that brings me great joy and adds purpose and value to my life. It feels incredibly wonderful to have something on my schedule to look forward to. While I've been training all spring and summer, I feel like my training now has a clear purpose. 
• Recognizing that the race experience will feel a bit difference, I will focus on what I can control. I will focus on the process and let the outcome take care of itself.  
• I have no expectations for this race. As with any "first race" of the season, I am excited to dust off the rust, explore my capabilities, put myself into uncomfortable situations and embrace the unknown. 

Yay - it's race week!! 

TriWeek: Triathlon Cycling

Sandwiched between the swim and run, the bike portion of the triathlon is the longest discipline in both time and distance. With nearly 50% of your race time spent on two wheels, insufficient skills and not enough time in the saddle will cost you valuable time and energy on race day.  Proper bike training will not only help you get faster on the bike but you’ll minimize the effect of cycling on your running legs.

When it comes to triathlon gear and equipment, cycling is by far the most expensive discipline. Plus, training outdoors has its hazards, especially when you are sharing the road with cars, pedestrians, and nature. For these reasons, many triathletes don’t train properly, or spend a considerable amount of time cycling indoors. At the end of the day, preparation for the bike portion of a triathlon is about having the right equipment, doing the right training, and constantly working to improve your bike handling skills.

The cycling culture may look intimidating, but as long as you are riding a bike and having fun, you are part of the club. The way to building bike fitness is fairly straightforward: Go ride your bike. But to truly showcase your cycling fitness, proper bike handling skills and training are critical for safety, confidence, and efficiency. Knowing how to corner, brake, descend, stand, climb, and change your gears will take your bike fitness to an entirely new level. For most triathletes, due too much indoor riding (or a dislike of riding a bike), these fundamental skills are lacking.

Bike handlingAlthough it seems basic, you must learn how to signal a turn, making a u-turn, point to something in the road, and take in nutrition (from a bottle or your pocket) as you ride. All of these tasks require you to ride your bike with only one hand. The only way to become efficient at this skill is to practice. In an empty parking lot, practice lifting one hand at a time off the handlebars to learn how to balance yourself on your bike. Then practice grabbing your water bottle from the cage and looking behind you as if you were able to make a turn.

Cycling Skills: 5 Pro Tips
1. For smoother shifting, braking and turning, anticipation is key. For example, change your gears right before you really need to, especially when approaching a hill. 

2. Don’t wait until you are on the side of the road to perfect your flat-changing skills.

3. Learn the rules of riding on the road. Know how to signal appropriately when making a turn or pointing out a hazard on the road. Try to anticipate the decisions of the drivers (cars) around you.

4. Check your bike (cables, brakes, tires, spokes, chain, etc.) before every ride. Don’t forget to pump your tires. The recommended tire pressure can be found on the sidewall of your tire. Give your bike a quick clean after every ride. 

5. In wet weather, stay off the painted line, watch out for oil, and break earlier than usual, especially when taking a turn. Look out far enough ahead so you can see and react to any obstacles on the road or on the shoulder.

As a newbie triathlete, the improvements you make in fitness will impact your performance more than an expensive set of race wheels, aero helmet, or high-end bike components. That being said, having the essentials will certainly make triathlon bike training much easier.

Purchasing a bike
You may have noticed that a triathlon bike looks very different than a traditional road or hybrid bicycle. The major difference is the geometry of the frame and handlebar set-up. A road bike is typically light, stiff, and responsive. Equipped with drop bars, this allows you to make use of multiple hand positions, which makes for more comfortable climbing and descending. Easy to handle, a road bike also makes it fun to enjoy a casual ride and to constantly work on your bike-handling skills.

A triathlon bike puts you in a more compact, forward, aerodynamic position, lessening drag and letting you apply more direct transfer of power to the crank. This position also lessens the load on your quadriceps to ensure more efficient running off the bike. Built for speed in a straight line, a triathlon bike handles very differently than a road bike. It’s not uncommon for beginner triathletes to feel unstable on a tri-bike compared to a road bike.

Purchasing a bike is a big investment, but your first bike likely won’t be your one-and-only forever bike. Buying from your local bike/triathlon store will help you find the right bike size for your body and budget. Plus, a new bike comes with a warranty and may even come with a service-package from your local bike store (LBS).

For beginners, there's nothing wrong with starting on a hybrid bike (that's how I got started!). However, it's recommended to invest in a road bike. Although clip-on aerobars allow you to rest your elbows on pads to lower your body in a more aerodynamic, tucked, position, the road bike is not set in a position for you to be aerodynamic on the aerobars and ride efficienty in the drops and base bars.

Although an aluminum bike frame is durable, carbon is light, which makes for a smoother ride when on the road. Also, electrical shifting, while quite a pricey upgrade, allows you to change your gears with just a push of a button (electronically) instead of using conventional shift levers and mechanical cables. Not only is electronic shifting quick and precise but you can also shift better under a heavy load – like pedaling uphill or when standing out of the saddle.

For an extra upgrade, you may want to consider disc brakes (over rim breaks), which have more responsive and stronger braking power and control, especially in wet conditions. Regardless of the bike you choose, you need to understand the inner workings of your bike and take care of it. A clean bike is a happy machine.

To learn more: Athlete to Triathlete

TriWeek: Triathlon swimming

Triathlon swimming is much more different than swimming in a pool. The training, swim stroke and demands of triathlon swimmers is very different than that of the competitive pool swimmer. Inefficient stroke habits in the pool will come at a cost in the open water. Recognizing the challenges of the open water triathlon swim (rough water, crowds, no lane lines), triathlon swim training should emphasize technique, strength, stamina and power.

If you lack a swimming background, you may notice that your current fitness level doesn’t translate easily to swimming. Unlike the experienced swimmer, who has a fishlike ability to slice through the water, if you are inexperienced and try to swim fast, you’ll quickly feel exhausted and out of breath. And since improvements are slow to make and getting yourself to the pool can be a logistical challenge, triathlon swim training is usually the first to go for the time-crunched triathlete.

The most basic swimming skill to master is learning how to hold your body in the water. This is called body position. On land, you have great body awareness when it comes to movement. But once you submerge yourself into the water, most of your body weight is dispersed. It can take a while to get used to feeling weightless in the water.

Proper body position will help you move forward in the water with minimal energy wasted. By learning how to keep your head, hips, and feet in a straight line, you’ll create less drag, making swimming less exhausting. Because your lungs give the upper body natural buoyancy, you need to learn how to “hold up” your hips and legs. Sinking legs means more mass to move through the water, which in turn means drag to be overcome by excessive kicking—which wastes a lot of energy.

Recommended "toys" to help with body position, alignment and tautness: Snorkel, buoy (or buoyancy shorts) and ankle strap/lock.

Most of your propulsive force comes from the upper body. A powerful catch and pull (not excessive kicking), moves you forward. By catching, or holding, the water with the fingers, hand, forearm, and upper arms, you are literally grabbing the water and pulling yourself forward. A high (but efficient) stroke rate is key for open water swimming.

Whereas proper body position and alignment will help reduce drag, the hips and legs play an important role in propulsion. When timed appropriately with your stroke, hip movement can contribute to overall power. Although forceful kicking offers little return on investment regarding propulsion, trying to power through the water with only your arms is not the most economical way to swim. When you kick, keep your feet relaxed and pointing away from you (not toward the bottom of the pool). Avoid scissor kicking (crossing your legs), as this can throw your body out of alignment. Kick timing is key. A two-, four-, or six-beat kick pattern will help drive your momentum forward. As for moving through the water, your body – shoulder, torso and hips - should roll throughout each stroke.

Before you try to swim faster or longer, do yourself a big favor and spend a significant amount of time improving your body posture and stroke mechanics in the pool. I suggest aiming for 3-5 swim sessions per week of around 30-60 minutes. Frequent swimming will help you keep a good feel for the water while allowing you plenty of opportunities to improve your technique and build endurance. There's no point swimming longer and harder with poor stroke habits.  

Feeling out of breath while swimming? The struggle is real.

Although swimming freestyle has many moving parts, breathing should be rhythmic and timed with your stroke. As one arm is extended in front of you, you’ll breathe to the other side by slightly turning your head (not your entire body) so that your chin is near your shoulder.

Trying to both exhale and inhale when your face is out of the water is counterproductive. Before you turn your head to take a breath, exhale, forcefully, through your mouth and nose when your head is in the water, as if you were blowing out a dozen birthday candles. When you turn your head to breathe, you’ll find it easier to take in air without gasping.

You’ll likely have a preferred side for breathing but learning how breathe to both sides (bilaterally) can help in choppy open water, or if the sun is getting in your eyes. More so, many stroke flaws—like crossing your arms over the midline of the body, scissor kicking, and a sinking outstretched arm—develop when you only breathe to one side.

Open water swimming

As a triathlete, it’s important to think like an open water swimmer. But before you jump into the big blue sea, master your technique in the safe and controlled environment of a swimming pool. Open water swimming requires a special set of mental and physical skills—skills that can only be achieved by swimming in an open body of water. In the open water, practice sighting, staying on course, and managing the unpredictable nature of the open water as you swim at different intensities, surrounded by other people.

Open Water Swimming Tips:

1. Review the course. Take notice of the water movement. Make note of the sighting buoys, particularly the turn buoys. Look for landmarks like a brightly colored building, cellphone tower, flagpole, or large tree to help you navigate the open water and stay on course.

2. The shock of cold water can cause your lungs to contract, causing hyperventilation. Before you take your first stroke, go waist deep, submerge your face in the water, and blow bubbles.

3. Use a copious amount of Vaseline or anti-chafing cream around your ankles, arms, neck-line, and back to minimize chaffing.

4. Don’t ruin your swim by skipping the warm-up. Spend 10-15 minutes on the dry land and then in the water to promote blood flow and elevate the heart rate. During this time, you can also adjust your swimsuit/wetsuit, cap, and goggles.

5. Aerophagia, or the act of ingesting air while swimming, can cause gas, stomach cramping, or belching. Avoid starting out too hard, breathe every other stroke, and forcefully exhale through your nose and mouth when your face is in the water.

To learn more: Athlete to Triathlete

I also suggest: Tower 26: Master open water swimming

Are you ready to try a triathlon?

For the past fourteen years, I’ve called myself a triathlete. Prior to embarking on this incredibly fun multisport lifestyle, I participated in running events. Before that phase, I dedicated over ten years of my life to competitive swimming. While 

in college, I heard about a local triathlon event. I welcomed it as a challenging new training adventure and a way to meet other people. Here's a picture of me smiling my way through my first sprint distance triathlon. I had no idea what I was doing but I found a way to get to the finish line. 

Triathlon has allowed me to travel to new places, develop long-lasting friendships and discover my unique talents and strengths. Triathlon also has a wonderful way of teaching you many valuable life lessons.

Regardless of your background, triathlon is an everybody sport. Like myself, maybe you swam in college and miss the camaraderie of being part of a squad. Perhaps past running injuries have made you tri-curious. Or, maybe you are seeking a new challenge as a devoted cyclist.

Training for a triathlon adds purpose to your exercise regime. As a way to improve health, boost self-confidence, overcome a fear, stretch physical limits or be a role model, there’s no escaping the obvious of being drawn to the challenge of participating in a three-sport event.

Despite your nervous energy, excitement and curiosity, it’s normal to feel a bit overwhelmed by this new multisport endeavor. For example, you may be intimidated by all the gear used in a triathlon. Although triathlon is an equipment-heavy sport compared to a sport like running, you don’t have to break the bank just to cross the finish line. Another challenge to this multisport lifestyle is balancing training for three sports with work, family and life. By having clear expectations of the available time that you can realistically dedicate to training each day, you can build your training around your life and still achieve positive fitness adaptations.

Although the sport of triathlon has evolved since I first entered the sport, one thing has remained the same – through your hard work and determination, you’ll accomplish feats that you never thought were possible by your body and mind. 

In my new book Athlete to Triathlete, I discuss everything that you need to know to ensure a fun, enriching and sustainable triathlon journey.

For the beginners and tri-curious:
☑️Learn the fundamentals of how to train for a triathlon.
☑️Learn how to select your races.
☑️Understand how to fuel for a sprint and olympic distance triathlon.
☑️Learn what gear is needed to train for and participate in a triathlon.
☑️Learn more about race day, including what to expect during athlete check-in, transition area set-up, an open water swim start and all the nitty gritty details of participating in a 3-sport event.

For the experienced triathletes and coaches:
☑️You can access two easy-to-follow, descriptive and periodized 12-week training plans for sprint and olympic distance triathlons.
☑️You can access dozens of strength, mobility and stretching exercises targeted to triathletes.
☑️Learn how to fuel better around and during workouts and on race day to minimize the risk of GI issues, maintain optimal hydration and delay fatigue.
☑️Descriptive how to become a better open water swimmer.
☑️Improve your bike handling skills to become a better triathlon cyclist.
☑️Become a better triathlon runner off the bike.
☑️Improve your transition times through sample brick workouts.

If you or someone you know can benefit from my book, you can pre-order your copy here at: Athlete to Triathlete.

If you are in need of a training plan to help you kick-start your 2020 triathlon training, we have a variety of plans to choose from. We have updated all of our training plans to reflect our current coaching methods and strategies for optimizing performance without compromising health.

2020 Trimarni Training Plans

-13-week Sprint Plan
-13-week Olympic Plan
-10 week Foundation Plan
-21-week Half distance Plan
-21-week Full distance Plan

You can learn more about each training plan on our website. Click HERE.

Are you at risk for a performance setback?

The other day I was chatting with a friend and I told her that there was no way that I would have been able to write my new book, Athlete to Triathlete, six years ago. Even though I've been a triathlon coach for over 13 years, several things have changed over the years that have helped me become better coach triathletes and understand the sport of triathlon.

For example, on Pg. 35 of my book, I address several factors that can place an athlete at risk for a performance setback.

Setbacks are no fun. They are frustrating, distracting and depressing. 

While motivation and excitement can help you show up to a training session, as an athlete, it's your responsibility to be an active participant in all aspects of your life. Seeing that lifestyle choices impact your training, your athletic success is built on great body-mind awareness.

In my book, I will help you train smarter and improve the odds of maintaining consistency with your training, all while building confidence for race day. If you are interested in more info on the topic of reducing the risk for injury, sickness and burnout, in a packed 199-page book filled with triathlon-related information, tips, guideliness, exercises, training and gear, you can pre-order my new book now on Amazon.

ORDER HERE: Athlete to Triathlete. 

Why I wrote Athlete to Triathlete (new book)

When I participated in my very first triathlon (2003), I knew little about the sport. As a collegiate swimmer, I felt extremely comfortable with the pool swim but the bike portion was super scary for me. I had a little experience with running so I was so relieved when my feet finally hit the pavement for final leg of the triathlon. I was equally exhausted and thrilled at what I had accomplished by finishing a sprint distance triathlon. It just seemed so crazy to me that my body could cover the distance of a sprint triathlon and that I did it by swimming, biking and then running.  

One year later in 2004, I participated in an Olympic distance triathlon. I had just graduated from college and I was a few weeks away from traveling to Florida for graduate school. I owned a hybrid bike and helmet but my triathlon equipment list was minimal - running shoes, swim suit, goggles and a bike (with a kick stand).

In 2005, I participated in my first marathon. I was in graduate school studying exercise physiology and I missed training for an event. After spending the last ten years as a competitive swimmer, I missed the comraderie of training/competing with others.

In 2006, I was bit hard by the endurance bug. I completed the Boston Marathon, my first half ironman and my first Ironman. Not only was I amazed at what my body was able to achieve but I loved the triathlon environment. The athletes were so supportive, inspiring and positive. Biking was always my weakest leg of the triathlon - and the most unnerving to me. However, over the years I've been able to go from weak to strong. And since my cycling skills have dramatically improved, I love riding my bike.

Karel came from a competitive cycling background and was seeking a new challenge in 2012. And boy, did he get one! He really strugged with swimming. He could barely swim 25 yards without getting out of breath. And for the first few years of triathlon racing, he would experience great anxiety when swimming in the open water.

Although I still feel like I have a lot more to learn and to accomplish in the sport of triathlon, I have learned the most from coaching hundreds of athletes over the past 10+ years. Although my focus is with endurance triathlon, every expert was once a beginner. From my own experience, I know exactly how it feels to be a beginner triathlete. It was scary, overwhelming, fun and exciting.

When I started the sport, there weren't a lot of resources for beginner triathletes - especially for individuals who had some type of athletic or fitness background. I felt like I had to learn as I went along. Because of that, I made some mistakes and had to figure things out the hard way.

As I was writing my new book Athlete to Triathlete, I took myself back to when I was new to the sport of triathlon. Confused and overwhelmed yet excited and eager to try something new. I wanted to provide practical and easy-to-read chapters that were related and applicable to individuals who are new to the sport, are re-entering the sport after a break or have dabbled in the sport without much understanding of what triathlon is all about.

The sport of triathlon has experienced significant growth since becoming an Olympic sport in 2000. Since I crossed my first finish line in 2003, much has changed in the sport. From gear and equipment to the training and fueling - triathlon has evolved and grown over the years. However, there are still several barriers to entry - such as cost, time and intimidation. From the outside, triathlon may appear complicated, exhausting, elitist and overwhelming. For these reasons, many active individuals are hesitant to train for and participate in a 3-sport event.

To help grow the sport of triathlon (specifically, making it more inclusive for women, youth and various ethinic groups), I hope that my new book Athlete to Triathlete will simplify the sport to help individuals safely and confidently enter the sport of triathlon, while exemplifying that the sport of triathlon is welcoming to newbies and beginners. I want others to feel the same excitement that I felt as a newbie - but also train for races in a smart and productive manner.

Athlete to Triathlete also serves as a triathlon training guide with features such as: 

• How to choose a triathlon race
• How to plan your season of training and racing
• Race day gear checklist
• Transition and brick workout tips
• Training principles and measuring progress
• Rest and recovery
• Motivational tips 
• Tapering for a race
• Swim, bike, run gear 
• Open water swim tips
• Warm-up recommendations
• The pre-race check-in and race-day procedure
• Triathlon lingo - yep, there is a language spoken by triathletes
• What to expect at the race (from start to finish) 
• Nutrition guidelines for training and racing 
• Race day rules
• Strength and stretching pictures 
• Workout advice tailored to swimmers, bikers and runners
• Detailed, day-by-day training plans to prepare for a Sprint or Olympic distance triathlon (12-week training plans). 
• And so much more!!!!

Along with pre-ordering my book, you can help me get the word out by sharing with your friends, training partners and anyone else you feel would benefit.
You can pre-order your copy here: Athlete to Triathlete.

8 tips to improve your transition time

Many athletes waste precious time in the transition area. It's not a place for rest, high-fives, hugs or taking in calories but instead, a place where you transition quickly from one sport to the next. Transitions offer a unique opportunity to save time without much physical cost.

However, for many triathletes, the transition area brings great physical and emotional stress as it is an unfamiliar component of triathlon racing that is only performed just a few times per year - on race day. Stressing about your transition area layout, the order that you will put on your gear and who's around you will only give you added frustration, anxiety and energy.

Here are a few tips for a smooth and quick transition:

1. Create an auto­pilot plan ­- You need a repeatable plan that requires little thought. Write out your plan from swim to bike and then bike to run in advance. Do not ignore any details. Create order to your plan so that your transitions are smooth and effective. Continue to practice and refine it over time in training and on race day.
2. Understand the transition layout ­- Just like you would study your race course, be sure to study the layout of the transition area. Where will you exit the swim, how will you enter T1, where do you bike out (and how do you get there with your bike), where's the mount/dismount line, where do you bike in and where do you run out? What obstacles will you need to overcome to get to and from your transition? Don't just study the actual fenced-in transition area but the terrain to and from the transition area. Always know and rehearse your transition before every race. If you are a visual learner, it's recommended to draw out your transition area (with arrows) and then commit to memory before your race. Look for unmovable landmarks (ex. light post and not a trash can) to help you identify key areas (ex. your bike rack) in the transition area.
3. Understand the rules of your transition area ­- Read the athlete guide and know the rules of your race. Some triathlons require you to put your swim or bike gear into a bag. Some races will not allow bike pumps or bags to be left in the transition area. Know how to properly hang your bike on the rack.  Every race is allowed to do things differently so be sure to know the details of what is allowed/not allowed inside the transition area. Also be sure to know what time the transition area closes (and opens).
4. Don't complicate your routine -­ The fewer tasks you have to complete in the transition area, the faster you can be in and out. Always adapt your plan based on the weather and course. In the case of rain, it's recommended put your run and bike transition gear inside different bags to prevent it from getting wet (ex. socks/shoes).
5. Reduce the energy cost -­ It is well known that triathletes will experience their highest heart rate in T1. Try to keep your emotional and physical energy costs as low as possible in order to ensure a smooth transition to your next discipline. Although you want to have a quick transition, rushing can cause careless decisions.
6. Mentally go through the actions ­- Before you finish the swim and the bike, start rehearsing your upcoming transition process and mentally prepare your body from transitioning from one sport to the next. By thinking through this process, you will avoid the panic and anxiety that often occurs when it is time to actually commit to the transition process.
7. Practice -­ By practicing your transition in training, you can build confidence for race day. Keep a list of what you use in training and what you will need only for race day so that you don't overthink and over­-clutter your transition area.
8. $h!t happens ­- No transition will be flawless. Anything can happen when you are racing under pressure. The most important thing is to stay calm and relaxed, no matter what. If anything, give yourself a laugh when you can't unbuckle your helmet, forget to take off your swimskin before the bike or you stumble as you try to put on your running shoes with wobbly legs.

A tribute to Bethany - Keep triathlon fun

I've been filled with emotions over the past week after learning of the passing of Bethany Rutledge. Bethany passed away in her sleep while taking a nap. Bethany was a leader, mentor and hero in the Atlanta triathlon community. Far and wide, anyone who met Bethany could instantly see her love for triathlon, her twin boys, her husband/family, writing, dogs and life. To learn more about Bethany, here are a few beautifully written letters:

Remembering Bethany
Remembering Bethany - Triathlete Magazine
Obituary

Times like this really shake me up. While the loss of a loved one can change your life, it can also change the way that you live your life. Ever since my dad passed away in 2014, I've made a conscious effort to live each day to the fullest. Regardless of the day or what obstacles I have to overcome, tasks I need to complete or how I am feeling, I try to live the day as if it is my last. Knowing that I can't quit my job and travel the world with Karel and Campy, there are still daily decisions that I can make in an effort to make the most of the day. One thing that makes me feel alive on a daily basis is the sport of triathlon.

When I think of the role of triathlon in the life of Bethany, I think FUN. As a leader in her tri community, she was very accomplished but also very humble. While I didn't know Bethany on a very close level, I know she welcomed everyone into the sport. This allowed athletes and exercise enthusiasts to feel like a triathlete without judgement.

I love the sport of triathlon. I've been racing competitively for the past 13 years and I couldn't imagine my life in any other way. It's my passion, hobby and business. Bethany always did an exceptional job of changing the way that outsiders look in at our sport. But as an insider looking out, we need to continue to keep triathlon fun.

Triathlon is a fun sport. Triathlon, like any other sport, offers a stress release, an opportunity to exercise, an escape from the office to nature, the opportunity to feel accomplished and the strength and tools to overcome failure. But if you hang with the wrong people, read too much or become too serious about it, it can quickly becomes overly competitive, draining, exhausting and obsessive.

For many, fun may seem counter-intuitive to peak performance. But fun is what keeps you in a sport - it's also what got you started. As people get older or more accomplished, it's easy to lose the ability to have fun. When fun is removed from sport (or never found), sport becomes a burden in your life. You can't quit figure out why you do what you do. When you have fun and truly enjoy yourself, you are more capable of dealing with everything else in life and there's purpose with your training and racing.

We all know that life isn't always fun.

Life is tough. It's often serious, sad and difficult. Triathlon is a beautiful escape from life. Triathlon shouldn't be all serious and hard work. Sure, being dedicating and working hard makes you a better athlete but if you are overly serious, competitive and extreme, you probably aren't having much fun. 

Bethany did an exceptional job leading the way to show others that triathlon and fun can coexist. Incorporating fun into your triathlon training and racing should not be difficult to do but if you have lost sight of why you are a triathlete (or why you started the sport), you may have lost the fun in triathlon. It's important to your physical, mental and emotional health as well as to your athletic success to keep your sport fun.

Surround yourself with like-minded individuals that make you feel great about yourself - and your decision to be a triathlete. Don't fall into the trap that you need to look, eat or train a certain way to call yourself a triathlete. If you are scared to get started, join a club/coach and find someone who can help guide you. Success looks different on everyone. Triathlon is not about podiums, PRs, body image or fancy equipment. It's about enjoyment, passion, development, personal exploration, building self confidence, overcoming fears, physical activity, health, learning new skills, supporting others, socializing, improving body awareness and of course, having fun! Having love for your sport, your body and your health is more important than results.

If you are a triathlete, coach or future triathlete, help me keep triathlon fun.. I know Bethany would want it that way.

A necessary recharge - taking a break.

Going into IM 70.3 Chattanooga race week, our coach told us that we would be taking a week break from triathlon training before getting into our training for Ironman Canada. Karel and I were really excited for this break. While we love training, we aren't injured and we aren't burnt out, we know that a physical and mental removal from sport is a necessary part of being an athlete. Certainly, it's much easier to enjoy a planned and intentional break than a break that is forced and unplanned due to injury, sickness, life or burnout. In other words, a necessary recharge is a way to help the body better adapt to training stress.

We were told from our coach that we could swim, bike and run (since these are great activities for overall health) but the goal is to return to training on Monday the 26th feeling excited to put in some hard work for the next 8 weeks. We were also given guidelines as to what we could do IF we did swim, bike or run in terms of duration per workout and total duration spread over the week.

Here's what my recovery week looked like:
Monday - planned 65 minute ride to spin out the legs from the race/travel
Tues - 20 min outdoor pool swim
Wed - 70 minute EZ spin
Thurs - 30 min strength + massage
Friday - 28 min outdoor pool swim + dry needling with my PT
Saturday - 2 hour kayaking
Sunday - 80 min bike + 18 min run
Total: 7 hours and 15 minutes of "exercise"

This break was just what we needed - mentally and physically. Campy got to go on a lot of walks, I swam outdoors twice in my mom's neighborhood pool (without lane lines and a lot of current flowing around) and I rode my road bike three times.

Throughout this week break from training, I enjoyed living a slightly different lifestyle. One week of minimal exercise does not result in any change of muscle mass, strength and endurance so I never felt the need to do more exercise to maintain fitness or significantly alter my nutrition because I was worried about weight gain. If anything, I've worked my body so much over the past six months that it deserved a break and lots of nourishment to help with recovery.

I also liked having a bit more time and energy to get some extra things done around the house and some to-do's that have been lingering on my to-do list. I also enjoyed having more free time. I enjoyed not having to wake up with an alarm and having a workout plan for the day. It was nice to have a normal appetite throughout the week and to have a more low key evening - with a bit more time relaxing on the couch. I don't believe that athletes should have massive changes in the diet between peak training and off-season eating for the foundation of the diet should always be a healthy and nutritious diet and then when training increases, it's supported by additional calories/carbohydrates and sport nutrition. In other words, there is always wiggle room in the diet when an athlete increases training volume but you shouldn't feel like your diet needs to be restrictive when you go from 10+ hours of training a week to less than an hour a day.

If you are feeling unmotivated to train, training feels like a chore, you are constantly feeling flat, you are a bit more moody than normal, your appetite and sleep habits have dramatically changed and you struggle to put together quality workouts, you are in need of a break. If you have been struggling with health issues, remind yourself that training breaks the body down. If you are already broken, it's very hard to adapt to training stress. Let the body repair itself before you start training again. While exercise may help improve your health, if you continue to train with compromised health, you may be putting in double the work for half the (or no) results.

There will be times in your season when you need to train in a fatigued state. You must still do everything possible to support the training (nutrition, sleep, fueling, hydration) as your body will be tired, training may not always be "fun" and your muscles will feel sore and heavy. But if your body is unable to recover from sessions, you feel like it takes a lot more work to experience performance gains, you train through sickness/health issues or you are no longer seeing positive adaptations from your training investments, you've crossed the line from quality training to haphazard training.

Every athlete needs a break - mentally and physically. Don't be afraid to temporarily step away from structured training so you can maintain longevity in your sport. Physical overload is good to a point but too much progressive training without proper recovery does more harm than good. Most of all, if you do take a break, make sure you really enjoy the break so that you return to training feeling recharged.

The break was just what I needed. I started the week feeling exhausted, sore and enjoying a break from training and now I'm rejuvenated, healthy, rested and excited to train again.

Triathlon Night - helping to grow the sport

In late December I told Karel that I wanted to put on an event to help grow the sport of triathlon in our Greenville community. It was a large undertaking but at the conclusion of the event last night, I feel like it was a great success. We had over 100 people attend from all over the area. The focus of the event was to put all types of triathlon experts and resources together in one room, combined with new, future and experience triathletes. All in an effort to help new, future and experienced triathletes get more out of their personal triathlon journey.

Although I've only been in the sport for a little over twelve years, I've seen a lot of changes over the years. Triathlon is a fast growing sport - in 2017 there were ~4 million participants in triathlons in the U.S! However, triathletes make up a very small community compared to runners. Because the sport of triathlon is still evolving, there's a lot of confusion with the best practices for training, nutrition, racing and how to incorporate a 3-sport activity into an already busy and stressful life.

This lead me to the purpose of this event. With so many barriers to entry and misguided and extreme practices, it's hard for many people to get into the sport....and stay in the sport. Triathlon is an expensive and time-consuming sport but if you equip yourself with the right people, you'll find yourself getting the most out of your triathlon journey - without sacrificing your relationships, health or bank account. Triathlon is a motivating, inspiring and fun sport but far too often it can become all-encompassing, health destroying and viewed as a chore. I don't believe that the later has to happen if the right experts are in your corner.

After earning my Masters in Exercise Physiology, I become a triathlon coach. Although I've been a coach since I started the sport, my knowledge in the sport has grown tremendously over the past few years. While Karel and I have a lot of coaching experience, never would we say that we know it all. We are constantly learning by making the effort to surround ourselves with experts who know a lot more than we do (and have much more experience than we do). Through these experts and resources, our athletes can become better athletes and we can coach them better. Whether it's a proper bike fit, massage, sport dietitian or physical therapist, every triathlete can benefit from being part of a team of experts. This team can help to reduce the risk for setbacks, can instruct on the most appropriate gear and equipment to fit your budget and can treat you like an individual so that you can get the most out of your triathlon journey.

To help grow the sport of triathlon, it's starts within the community. But within every community, cliques can easily develop. One expert feels threatened by another expert and the athlete is forced to take sides. While this may never change, I do feel that within each community, we need a more inclusive feel of experts - especially by coaches. By focusing on what you are good at, not going against your philosophy and what you believe in and being open to new ideas, thoughts, methods, be proud to welcome people who have great educational and real life experience in an specific area that you don't excel in. This is all in an effort to help your athletes excel. When we start on the community level, it's easier to grow the sport on a more global scale.

To ensure that this event was inclusive, I welcomed any and every local "expert" to the event. This event was free of ego, judgement and cliques as we had several "experts" of the same area in the room. Every expert had the opportunity to introduce themselves, share a little about their business or specialty area and provide info on how athletes can contact the individual. This event was great for newbie and future triathletes as well as for the experienced athletes and experts.

I love this sport now as much as when I started back in 2005-2006. It's my hope that we can get more people in the sport of triathlon and keep them in the sport for many more years to come. It all starts with every athlete having an all-start team of experts.

A huge thank you to those who attended the event. Thank you Randy for opening the Carolina Triathlon store to us for over 2 hours on a Sunday evening. And wow - the raffle prizes were incredible! Thank you to the following companies for donating to the event. 

• Katouff Supplements
• Run In 
• Xterra
• Sam Smith
• Katie Malone
• Brad McKay
• Joylynn Simmons
• Set Up Events
• Zealious
• Clif Bar
• Time to Tri
• USAT
• Mg12
• Veronica's Health Crunch
• Kelly Vanleeuwen 
• Frigid Cryo
• Carolina Triathlon

Executing a tune-up race

Hello from Augusta! This is my first time in Augusta and the downtown streets are packed with triathletes. I am thinking it's not always this way but this weekend is the 2018 Ironman 70.3 Augusta event and the town is booming with multisport lovers.

To be honest, I really wish I was racing. I bounced back really quickly from IMWI and feeling fit, healthy and strong. While I only have two "fun" races left on my racing calendar, I have a feeling my FOMO from Augusta may lead me to look for one last triathlon race in 2018. We will see if I can find anything for Karel's racing calendar is keeping us busy over the next 7 weeks as he still has a lot of racing left. Speaking of Karel, it's his birthday today!! Today we are celebrating Karel's 42 years of life!

While IM Kona is Karel's big key race of the season in 3 weeks time, and he is then following it up with IMFL 3 weeks after, Karel is racing Augusta 70.3 tomorrow as a tune-up race as part of his Kona training. Racing in the final prep of his IM Kona training is not for the faint of heart as it requires a no-ego and courageous athlete who can keep things in perspective to execute a tune-up race properly just before the Ironman World Championship. Karel is a smart racer and never chases times for validation of his fitness so I know that no matter what happens tomorrow on race day, he's going to be race ready for IM Kona.

Speaking of tune-up races, many athletes will race before a more important race. Often, these tune-up races will occur a few weeks (3-5) or months (1-2) before a goal race. Most of time, athletes will race a shorter distance or the same distance as the big key race.

To execute a tune-up race properly, there are a few important strategies that athletes should apply to ensure that a tune-up race helps and does not sabotage the upcoming big race training or performance.

• Many athletes will use a tune-up race to test current fitness. It is important to recognize that fitness is not linear. In other words, if your goal race is the most important race of the season, don't get too attached to the results or metrics of your tune-up race. You don't need to PR or see improved watts, paces or times to feel "race ready." While a tune-up race can assess how effectively your training is or isn't going, your tune-up race should ultimately help you gain confidence for your more important race. Therefore, if your tune-up race occurs less than 4 weeks before a goal race, the preparations have been done and there's little time to change your training before your more important race. Thus, you need to race with a smart mindset that this tune-up race is seen more as training than as a validation of your fitness or race readiness. If a tune-up race occurs more than 5 weeks out from a goal race, there's more time to adjust training to continue to move in the right direction, if needed. As I mentioned above, don't get too attached to your tune-up race results. Many athletes have had a sub-par performance at a tune-up race only to excel at their upcoming key race because they were able to race smart, bounce back quickly and have trust in the final training preparations, while nailing the taper and nutrition for the upcoming race.
• Although you may not be able to drastically changed your training between two races (the first being your tune-up and the second being your key race), you can change your nutrition (pre-race, race morning and during the race), specifically if you found yourself with a nutrition-related issue in your tune-up race. Reach out to a Board Certified Sport RD, who specializes in your sport, for help. 
• Because every race is different (ex. weather, course, terrain, etc.) there's little benefit in testing paces at your tune-up race to determine what paces you you should hold at your upcoming key race. Instead, check that ego at the door and race by feel. Feel what you want to feel at your more important race, even if that means racing below the intensity that you feel you should be racing at. While it's ok to take some risks with pacing, be mindful of how those efforts will impact your recovery, especially if you need to quickly get back into structured training.
• Tune-up races are great for going through the racing motions and emotions. Never in training can you experience the nerves, anxieties, worries and excitement that you will feel on race day. Tune-up races are perfect for practicing your race day routine (including the days leading up to the race) and what you will do before, during and after the race. This includes waking up early, dialing in your pre-race meal and pre-race warm-ups, racing in/with your race day clothing and equipment, going through pre-race rituals and dealing with racing stressors like traffic, bad weather, delays, waiting in line, feeling rushed, idol time and race-day adrenaline. You can also practice and test race day nutrition in race day conditions.
• Many athletes struggle to pace a race well in race day conditions, despite having great fitness going into a race. This can cause fear, worry and lack of confidence for the upcoming race. Many times, athletes underperform on race due to fear of messing up (or failure) whereas others overperform, blow-up and race below their potential. To develop confidence, be ok with holding yourself back and then building into an effort. Many times, this strategy becomes the perfect race strategy for you to nail your nutrition, pacing and form for a well-executed race. 

Remember, racing is about putting your physical and mental abilities to good use on race day. To do so, you need to master your nerves, expectations, emotions, self-control, ego and self-belief. Many times, this is more mental than physical. Far too many athletes have the fitness to perform well at an important race but fail to understand how to use that fitness properly at a tune-up race. With your big key race in mind, do what you need to do at your tune-up race to gain confidence, familiarity and excitement for your upcoming big goal race. 

Are you ready for the Triathlon Challenge?

When Karel and I were putting together our 2015 race schedule, we had a variety of races to choose from. Since sharing our race schedule in October, there have already been a few changes.
 There are races all over the world on almost every weekend of the year so that makes it very interesting and fun when planning a racing season. 

In the initial stages of our season planning, we wanted to make sure that every race that we registered for had a purpose. We are not known to race just to race. Although we do not expect to be at top fitness for every race, we take every race seriously and do our best to arrive to every race healthy and injury free. The most important goal of a triathlete who is planning his/her season is to remember that every race is simply a step closer to the big season goal where you hope to race in peak fitness.
You can have good performances at all or most of your races but when it comes to maximizing your fitness and being in the best shape all season, you want to limit that to once or twice in a season.
And above all, be ok with your building fitness and body composition throughout the season. If you are accepting that you don't need to be in peak fitness all year long, you certainly do not need to be at race weight all year long. 

 When planning our season, we wanted to make sure that our races helped to build confidence for the 2015 Ironman World Championship (our big season race) but that our races were placed appropriately so that we could periodize our training for proper peaking for Kona. The biggest mistake I find is that athletes register or plan to race a variety of races throughout the year but because of when they occur in the season (too early, too late or too many close together), there is not ample time to get through various phases of training. And unlike a cyclists racing and training schedule, triathletes do need different phases so they can not race a lot (specific to endurance triathletes).
And lastly, we wanted to make sure that our race schedule was practical in terms of logistics, race fees and course designs to match our strengths. We look for safe and challenging courses, a great vibe at the race, a beautiful location to race in and affordable race fees + travel. 

We are so excited to be supporting the Challenge Family race series in 2015!!!!

Not only will Karel and I be racing at Challenge Knoxville and Challenge Williamsburg but many of the Trimarni athletes will be racing a Challenge race in 2015. 

For a list of all the North America races:
RACE SCHEDULE

Also, in case you missed it:

Challenge Family regional championships and prize money confirmed in the Americas
Posted on: Friday 14th November 2014

The Americas region has a new championship series with today’s announcement of the Challenge Americas Championships, to be held at Challenge Knoxville, Tennessee in May 2016.

Encompassing all 13 half and full distance Challenge Family races in North, South and Central America, qualifying for the Championships will start at Challenge Knoxville on 17 May 2015.

To celebrate the launch of the first qualifying race of the Championships, Challenge Knoxville 2015 will offer all athletes who register for the race 50% off a second entry for a friend. This special offer is available until 30 November and equates to two half distance entries for just $382.50.

Throughout the year, professional and age group athletes will have the opportunity to qualify at Challenge Knoxville, Challenge Quassy, Challenge Williamsburg, Challenge Atlantic City, Challenge New Albany, Challenge Pocono Mountains, Challenge Maine, Challenge Rancho Cordova and Challenge Florida in the USA. Canadian qualifiers are Challenge Penticton and Challenge St Andrews while Challenge Ixtapa in Mexico will be the Central America qualifier and Challenge Florianopolis the South American qualifier.

The regional championships announcement was accompanied by confirmation that all Challenge Family races in the Americas will feature consistent prize money across all races.

Challenge Family CEO, Zibi Szlufcik said the Challenge Americas Championships was an exciting development for athletes in the region.

“With 13 races throughout the Americas and an outstanding championship venue in Knoxville, athletes will enjoy a quality race series, culminating in a grand finale and the prestige of calling themselves regional champion. Challenge Knoxville 2015 will be a test event for the 2016 Championships and all athletes are invited to test this beautiful course.

“We’re also delighted to be able to confirm a pro field with prize money at every race. We’ve had many requests for this and are extremely happy to be able to offer our valued athletes with a strong series of races paying 10 deep throughout the Americas region.”

Challenge Americas board member, Charlie Patten said, “”We are excited for the 2015 Challenge Americas Age Group series and Championship race! The hard work of amateur athletes often goes un-noticed and this is our chance to celebrate ALL athletes.  From the working mothers to the retired grandparents and everyone in between, now we get to celebrate your amazing accomplishments!”

St. Croix 70.3 - travel day

Even though our flight to St. Croix wasn’t until Wed morning, we started our traveling on Tues April 29^th with a 3.5 hour drive (well, more like 4 hours due to a stormy drive leaving Jax) to my parents house to drop off Campy at his “resort” while we are away.

We had an early wake-up on Wed morning at 4:45am to drive to Orlando (2 hour drive) . 

Races are expensive, especially when traveling and even more so when traveling with two bikes.

When we are traveling, I try to consider every option to make our trips affordable, memorable and easy. Since Karel made the switch from Cat 1 cycling to triathlons, we have to double everything when it comes to racing so that makes our trips very memorable but a lot more to consider (money, logistics, etc.) with our travels.

I found a reasonable flight from Orlando (2 hours from Jax), where we have taken a lot of our race trips as the prices are a bit more reasonable (although we do have to consider parking economy Orlando which is a bit more than Jax) and can save us a couple hundred dollars. Karel worked his magic with our bikes and we have only 1 bike box (stand-up box) this time with two bikes in the box….that is, two speed concepts with Di2 shifting and two wheels sets. Karel really worked overtime on taking apart the bikes and when he rebuilds the bike in St. Croix he also has to make sure he has extra parts, cables, etc. in case anything breaks.  The bike box weighed #90 which meets the guidelines for our aircraft per the website, however when we fly to Austria in June, we are on Delta which has different guidelines so we won’t put the wheels in the box (and extra tools) in order to meet the #70 weight limit. 

For the first time for a race, we booked tickets on Jet Blue. Not only was the price great for both of us but we couldn’t pass on the $50 bike fee (one way). The bike counts as one of our “free” luggage so we both combined our clothes into one large suitcase (meeting the #50 weight limit).

April 30^th

With our car packed with luggage and food for traveling, Campy was left covered in kisses from us and we were off to Orlando. I packed snacks for the flight but also, since we never travel hungry and always need to eat within an hour of waking, I had a Fage 0% yogurt and a banana and Karel had  an egg and cheese and broccoli sprout sandwich that I had made for him. After a stop at Starbucks we arrived around 7:40am to the Orlando airport. I dropped off Karel with the bike box and Oakley suitcase (both bags to be checked) and I went to park the car in economy and to take the shuttle to the airport.

We were so impressed with Jet Blue and the service they gave us while checking in our bikes. There were no questions asked about our bike box and the agents at the desk even helped Karel with the oversized luggage. What an easy process that fit nicely into my 30-minute extra time allowance for checking in a bike. By 8:30 we were through security and ready for a breakfast meal.

Our flight was scheduled to leave at 10:22 to San Juan and we boarded just around 10am. With our water bottles filled with water, 110% compression on and happy-tummy snacks (and hand sanitizer) for the plane (KIND bars, chocolate covered espresso beans, PB&J sandwiches, fig newtons, Trimarni trail mix) we were ready for our 2.5 hour flight to Puert Rico. Not sure why they couldn’t just fly 20 minutes more to St. Croix but it was nice to get some lunch at Chiptole (veggie and guacamole sandwich for me, chicken sandwich for Karel) at the airport and stretch our legs. On the plane, Karel napped and I watched Saving Mr. Banks on the airport TV screen (on the seats)  which was a great movie. Jet Blue also had a wonderful snack selection for free so we shared Blue Chips and Pop Chips which were both yummy. I got Seltzer water and Karel got apple juice.

When we boarded our flight to St. Croix (40-minute travel time but only 20 minutes of flying), the plane was filled with triathletes, compression socks, water bottles and bike boxes. Karel and I started to get even more excited that this bucket list race was finally about to happen.

Our flight was short and we spent the entire time looking out the window. St. Croix is a small island and it was so neat to be able to see all of it as we were flying.

When we landed in St. Croix we departed the plane outside for the outdoor airport (just like in Kona). Karel picked up our rental car from Budget (Ford Focus) and I waited for our luggage. Our bike box was the very last one to come on the baggage claim but thankfully all the boxes arrived for the triathletes. We gave ourselves one extra day in St. Croix (Wed) just in case our bikes didn’t make it on the plane. Because of our enjoyment to travel to new places for our race-cations, we enjoy having at least 3 full days before a race (if possible) to adjust to a new setting (or time zone) and to ensure we have everything we need, can grocery shop, relax, get a few good nights of sleep and warm-up in the race environment.

Karel did a little more magic with our bikes and removed the top of the bike case to put under the bottom case, removed the wheels and adjusted the handle bars and voilà! Karel managed to fit our bikes into our small car (II will save our IM Austria plans for another blog as that gets a little more detailed with the planning of our international trip with our bikes, which is already booked).  

It was an immediate adjustment to drive on the left side of the road and our brains had to adjust fast! There was a few times when I would say “left, left!” to Karel but otherwise, Karel picked up immediately.

Although there are very few stoplights in St. Croix and the island is not that big, it took about 40 minutes to drive from the airport to Chenay Bay Beach resort (East End Quarter, Christiansted, St. Croix).

I brought some foods with us in our checked bag (chia seeds, cinnamon, whey protein, jasmine rice, oatmeal packets, small container of PB) as well as our sport nutrition powder/bottles, pills (endurance aminos, Optygen, tissue rejuvenator) but we still needed to get some food for our stay.

We stopped at a grocery store on the way to our resort and purchased some staple foods that we not only eat on a daily basis but also that we enjoy on race week. 

Fruits and veggies, water (2 jugs to get us started), deli meat for Karel, fresh bread (local! We got three kinds – French bread, sourdough and raisin walnut), skim cow’s milk, fage 0% greek yogurt, eggs, tempeh, cheese, butter, frozen veggies, pasta, marinara sauce, boxed rice, tuna, soup.

The food is pricey on an island (just like in Kona) so our total bill was around $130 but a lot cheaper than if we were to eat out every day, for 2-3 meals a day. Plus, there’s nothing better than being able to control the food that you put into your body before a race, especially a race which you are traveling to and is a key race.

When arrived to our resort, it was exactly as I had imagined it to be from the website. 50 cute little cottages spread out along 30-acres, with a mile-stretch of private beach w/ incredibly calm waters. Our room was $150/night (triathlete special) which is a bit over what I’d normally spend when traveling to a race except for our key races that occur once a twice per year. Also, with a full kitchen (microwave, refrigerator, stove top) and just a few miles (3-4) from downtown/race venue, I just couldn’t pass up this beautiful and relaxing resort. Karel and I enjoy being close to race venues and for a race like Kona, it is ideal to be within walking distance. However, we typically do not stay at the “host” hotel for races for the amenities that we desire at our hotel/lodging to give us a great race experience are typically not included at most hotels. Aside from an extended stay hotel or condo, this resort had everything we wanted. And even better, our cottage has a beautiful view of the ocean and a little island!

Karel got started on assembling the bikes (which took about 90 minutes or so) and I unloaded the groceries and unpacked and got started on a light dinner (since we snacked all day) of eggs, veggies and bread.

After dinner we took a dip in the calm ocean around 6:30pm and we were greeted by a host of NO-SEE-UM bugs! Karel knows that I swell very badly when I get bit by bugs and we didn’t know about the bugs until we read about it on our resort guide so the first thing on our to-do list for Thursday was DEET bug spray! It was a rough night for me (tip for me, bring Benadryl next trip!) before bed but I ended up sleeping fine at night which was a relief, even though I felt like I had gained 10 lbs from so much swelling. Ugh.

We settled into bed around 8:30 and by 9-9:30pm we were asleep.

Although normally we don’t set an alarm the day after traveling to a race (if we don’t have to), we woke up around 5:30am so that we could ride with a guy we met (in the next cottage from us) who had done this race 3 times and this year is racing for a Kona slot. He is originally from Spain but lives out west and we knew it would be great to get some insider information from him and ride with him at 7am.

After we had a pre workout snack (wasa + PB and banana and cinnamon for me, oatmeal, milk and granola for Karel) we headed out around 7am on our bikes to ride the beginning loop and end of the bike course to familiarize ourselves with the course as well as to wake up the legs from our travels. 

Fruit for the road trip to my parents

5:30am early morning, pre-meal snack

My coach, best friend, hubby and bike mechanic. 

Precious cargo! 

Keeping everyone updated on our travels .....and answering emails. 

All race gear packed on the plane with us. 

Happy tummy snacks for the plane

Always bring an empty bottle with you through security and fill before you get on your plane to stay hydrated during traveling. 

We never travel without our compression socks on!

Yummy, Chipotle sandwich.

 Excited to make some memories together. 

St. Croix! Are we there yet??

Touchdown!! We have arrived!

Priorities.....food!

Shopping like the locals. 

Our cute little cottage

Fresh bread in the kitchen

Food

More food

Resort pool

Play time....

And back to work.

Enjoying the sunset in St. Croix. 

Stay tuned......day #2 of our trip is coming soon. Riding some of the bike course, driving the rest of the bike course and 1.2 mile open water swim. 

Triathlon season planning - top 10 tips

I grew up traveling a lot.

 My parents sacrificed a lot for my brother and I to do what we loved with our bodies. Almost every weekend, we would be at a swim meet or gymnastic meet. 

This is a video of my amazing younger brother Aaron (University of Michigan gymnastics team) performing his high bar routine at the 2007 Big Ten Championships in his senior year. After this routine, he became the 2007 Big Ten High Bar Champion. 

What a rock star! Still so proud of him!

Almost 10 years since I graduated from college where I swam competitively all through College, I still enjoy traveling to race....or I guess you could say that I LOVE to race to travel. 

So - for next season, Karel and I have decided on four key races to take our love of traveling to the next level as we use our active bodies to cross finishing lines in new places. 

MAY 4th, 2014 - Me and Karel

June 1st, 2014 - Karel (I will spectate/sherpa)

June 29th, 2014 - Me and Karel

September 7th, 2014 - Me and Karel 

Signing up for races is easy - you must have your credit card handy and hit submit after you fill out your registration. 

I find that many athletes jump the gun when signing up for races and do not consider the time, money and energy that it takes for participating in a race. Not only the effort that is needed to train for the race, but also the mental toughness that is needed for obstacles and setbacks.

But more than anything - you must pick the right races. You may never know if the race is exactly what you plan for it to be on race day but with a little thinking ahead, you can set yourself up for a great racing season to execute on race day and put all that training to good use. 

Here are my top 10 suggestions for picking your races for next year (in no particular order)

1) Decide on 1-2 KEY races within 6 months. It's suggested that these races are around 3-4 months apart so that you can peak appropriately for both of those races and recover properly after the first race.

2) Consider your personal short and long term goals for each race. Are you chasing a time goal or PR, an age group/overall place, a qualification to another race or something personal?

3) Consider anything that may affect your entire racing season (and training) and consider a plan B if something good/bad happens at before or after each race. Consider qualifying for another race (money, travel, time, recovery, etc.), recover/prep for races, work/life, traveling, injury/sickness, etc.

4) Think really hard about why you are registering for a race. DO NOT pick a race just because you are feeling the itch because you just watched an Ironman finish or a marathon on TV or because a race is "open for registration". Have your top 5-10 reasons for why you are picking a race (remember, the money, time and effort that is required to get to the starting line).

5) Save your best performance for your key race. Build a foundation if you choose to race more than your 1-2 KEY races and be patient with your fitness. You do not want to peak in May if your KEY race is in August and you do not have to train 20 hours a week in January because you are excited to train after a 4-8 week off season break.

6) After you have selected your key races, decide how you will best utilize your off season and execute the phases of your periodized training plan. Will you use a coach, a pre-built plan or put together your own plan?

7) Before signing up for any race, be sure you have thought about the support you need from family, the time away from work/family for racing/training as well as anything else that will have a positive (or negative) impact on your race day experience. It takes a team to build an athlete but also a great support system to keep you motivated and excited when times get tough.

8) Pick the right course, with the right weather at the right time of the year. Consider indoor vs outdoor training and make sure you can simulate race day in training (ex. pacing and nutrition) well before your race day. A few things to consider about your race, taking into account your weaknesses and strengths:
Swim - wetsuit legel, non wetsuit legal. Lake, ocean. Water temperature. Mass start. In water start. Beach/land start.
Bike - weather. Rolling hills, climbs, flat. Altitude, sea level.
Run - weather. rolling hills, climbs, flat. Altitude, sea level.

Also consider time needed to travel to your event, acclimating to weather/time change or anything else that may affect executing on race day with your current level of fitness.

9) Think again as to why you signed up for your races and be sure to have specific goals for each race that will keep you motivated to wake up every day to properly prepare your body for that race. Be willing to adjust your race day goals based on weather or any setbacks in fitness/training so that you can maintain good health before, during and after your race. Remember - unless you are a professional, training and racing for triathlons is not your job.

10) Have fun with the races you choose. Do not complain about a race that you signed up for and paid money to participate in. Do not stress about things out of your control. Do your research as to how you will get to the race, where will you stay, how long you will be at the race, the day of the race, possible weather for the race, competition at the race (if applicable) and how you will pay for everything. 

To summarize our season - three of our races are Kona qualifiers. 

It is a dream of Karel and I to be able to race in Kona together. 

We will race every race but we do not expect having the chance to Kona qualify at every race we do this coming season.

I realize that the IM distance is exciting but it does take a toll on the body. As an adult age group athlete, I have learned through experience in the past 7 years of racing in endurance races that longer distance races fit the physiology of my body. 

Karel really enjoys the Half Ironman distance. He is still learning about his body now that he has finished 1 full year of triathlon racing (after over 15 years of racing bikes) and has completed one Ironman (IM Placid in 10:03).

I recognized this year that my body did very well with racing two Ironmans close together (within 14 weeks) as oppose to only 1 Ironman a year. Any closer together would be a major strain on my body at this time in my athletic career. I also know I can not race a lot - my body and mind need breaks and time to recover. I want to execute at every race I do and that is why I do not choose to race a lot.

Because of our train smart philosophy, we hope that next year we will be able to execute at every race and recover quickly and after each race we will gain fitness. We don't believe in B races but instead, having a purpose for every race and taking it very seriously as training and racing is not easy, cheap or kind on the body.

Although all of our races are Kona qualifiers, we picked each race for a specific reason..... in addition to the amazing opportunity to travel somewhere exciting.

St. Croix - This race has been on my bucket list for years. We are finally able to make it happen and I couldn't be more excited to share this challenging/beautiful race with Karel and a few of our friends. This race is known as "beauty and the beast" and with our love for challenging courses, I think we will get our money's worth at this race. Our goal at this race is to race strong and leave it all out on the course. I don't mind hot weather and I love hilly courses.  Karel prefers cooler temps over the heat but also love hilly courses. This race will be challenging for us both and we look forward to sharing stories together after the race is over and enjoying a few days on the island to explore a new place.

Raleigh 70.3- Karel is looking forward to this race because he wants to stay sharp this coming season. With this year (June 2012- Dec 2013) being his first year of triathlons, he did not race a lot and would like to race a bit more next year for a solid block of racing and training. As a cat 1 cyclist turned triathlete and over 20 years cycling experience, Karel knew exactly what worked for him in cycling races and in cycling - your fitness is only as good as your ability to keep up with the person in the front of the race.

He would race almost every weekend with cycling, often 2-3 races in a weekend. Now, he is learning more about his body as a triathlete. Although he understands there will be risks taken in learning more about his body, he also knows when to back off.  We will both utilize our season to get as strong as possible with strength training and work on all the little things that will help us be consistent with training. I will not do this race because I know from experience that after we race hard at St. Croix, I can not recover in 4 weeks and race again. Karel will not race Raleigh all-out but instead, use it as part of training to build fitness since he will also need to recover from St. Croix properly to ensure good build after Raleigh for IM Austria. As always, the key to any racing plan is to reduce training stress and the risk for injury. It's easy to train hard but the focus is recovery. You are only as good in training as your ability to recover properly from races/training. This won't be a B race but instead, part of the big plan. The bike course will fit Karel very well and I have a few athletes racing which will be great to help them out. I love NC and I can't wait to see the city after the race.

Ironman Austria - Our first international race! Although one would think this would be a tough course, this race is fast. Similar to IMFL, this would be a great course for a PR. My goal at this race is to have a strong run off the bike as 6 out of 7 of my IM races have included hilly bikes and/or hilly runs. Both Karel and I will race this race as a KEY race. We also know this race is beautiful and we are excited about our first destination race. Lastly, we choose this race because it is 5 hours away from Karel's family and we secured an apartment already at the race venue for his family to come and watch us race (they have never seen a triathlon/Ironman before). We look forward to heading to Karel's home town in Znojmo, Czech Republic after the race. Also, as a coach, I love new experiences to better help my athletes. I'm really excited to traveling internationally for a triathlon and the stress/excitement that comes with it. I'm so excited to visit this part of Europe and take lots of pictures and see the sights for 140.6 miles. We do not expect to Kona qualify here because of the competition in Europe but we will give our best effort for two strong performances. We don't want to chase Kona at the expense of enjoying every training and racing journey so we will do out best and see what happens.

IMWI - This is the race that the entire season is building for. I raced IMWI in 2011 and absolutely LOVED the course which is very challenging on the bike and on the run. But, the crowd support is amazing!! Karel has ridden the bike course a few times during his travels to Trek headquarters and for Trek World and he also spectated with my parents when I raced so he knows the best places for beer, ice cream and coffee (not all together).
The wetsuit swim is perfect for Karel and the cooler temps are ideal for us both to race really strong and not be compromised by the heat. Also, IM 70.3 World Champs is the same day so we feel that this will not be a race where the the field will be super deep for Kona contenders (ex. like it would be for Eagleman, St. Croix and IMFL). That doesn't mean that the day will not have amazing competition (which we both love to help us discover new limits with our own fitness) but we feel like we will be able to race strong, not for a PR, but instead for a Kona slot. The entire season will have this race as the priority so we will be very careful to not peak too early and to also adapt with the least amount of training stress to ensure healthy bodies and mind all season. We love the town of Madison and can't wait to enjoy it with the 3000+ other athletes and thousands of cheering students and fans...many of which will be consuming beverages with alcohol in them :)
I have never repeated an IM qualifier race before so this will be the first time I have repeated a race. There were many IM's to choose from for next year and I love traveling to new courses but we both discussed our options after IM Placid and after long consideration, we decided that IMWI would be the best place for us to put everything together and race smart. We will race to the best of our fitness ability next Sept for a possible 2015 Kona slot.

There's not magic ball or perfect training plan so as I lay out our season, I can not predict the future. The number one goal is to maintain balance in life. Training is not my life but instead my lifestyle. I have respect for the body, I love dreaming big, I fuel off real food, I enjoy a wholesome diet and I enjoy a balanced training plan.

But....2014 will  be a year to remember not only for us.....

But also for our athletes.

The 2014 Trimarni Roster is almost complete and we have an amazing team with new and old athletes to be inspired by. We are so excited to use our knowledge and experience to help others reach goals and dreams.

We will also have new Trimarni services, camps, clinics and events so stay tuned over the next few months!

Kona; It's time

 
  

This will be my 3rd Ironman World Championship and my 7th Ironman starting line. 

The excitement is there, just like it was for my very first Ironman in 2006. 

My body has taken me to many places and some of the most amazing times involved sweat, obstacles, a fast beating heart, self-doubt and burning quads. 

I have enjoyed sharing this journey with everyone - ever since I openly discussed my goal of wanting to qualify for the 2013 Ironman World Championship at Ironman Lake Placid. I have savored this trip with many pictures and videos and I have enjoyed giving everyone a special pass to what it feels like to be at the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii. 

But now it is my time. 

Tomorrow morning requires that my mind and my body work together. I will channel the cheers from afar as well as smile at the ones I hear on the race course, but it is up to only me to find a way to cover 140.6 miles for the 7th time. There are no guarantees as to what the day will bring for each athlete on the course and I only hope that every athlete races his/her own race based on his/her own fitness level but welcomes the opportunity to discover greatness by being around so many inspiring athletes. 

I hope that every athlete is safe and smart for 140.6 miles. Remember that your dream helped you train hard to qualify for Kona and now it is time to enjoy the most amazing day of your life. 

And most of all, I want to thank my team - Gloria, the most amazing sherpa who gives me the best words of advice for any and all situations. A wonderful friend and person and I am so lucky that our paths crossed via the internet two years ago. Mom, dad, aaron and dana (and extended family) - words can't describe how much I love you all and how lucky I feel that you all  support my crazy love for endurance sports. Karel - you are my best friend and you make my life complete. You challenge me in life but in the best way possible. I will dedicate many miles to you on race day for it was your plan that got me here and your support that keeps me loving the Ironman distance. I can't wait to grow Trimarni with you by my side and I look forward to making memories with you for a lifetime.....and one day racing in Kona together.  Campy - you are the best furry child I could ever ask for! You never complain and have a smile for every situation in life. And most of all, you show me how important it is to love life and to never waste a day on earth. To the companies who keep me fueled, safe and happy - Oakley Women, 110% play harder, Brooks Running and Hammer Nutrition - thank you!
And lastly - to all the Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition athletes, fans, followers and supporters. It is because of each and every one of you all that I wake up every morning excited to see what the day will bring for me. You give me a reason to motivate, educate and inspire others to live a more balanced active and healthy lifestyle. 

Oh - and to my body. Thank you, thank you, thank you. After not running for 90 days in Feb - April, you did not have to let me race Ironman Lake Placid and experience what it feels like to "race" and have a 10 minute PR. You didn't have to let me qualify for Kona, recover so well in just two weeks and train flawlessly for Ironman #7. Body - you are amazing and I can't wait to share this journey with you tomorrow. You are going to hurt, complain and be super duper sore on Sunday but body, it's all going to be worth it for we become better at handling life because of what we are able to accomplish together. 

As Gloria discussed in her most recent blog post on it's time to go inward, this time next week, we will all be Ironman World Championship finishers. It's time to put the hard work to play and to savor every mile because months and months of training will all be for a one-day, 17 hour or else event.

For instant updates and live feed: Ironman.com
Bib Number 1933
Race start: 6:30am (professionals), 7am (age groupers)

And because I know that everyone will be motivated and inspired to train and workout this weekend (and after this weekend), don't forget about my Kona inspired contest.

Thank you again for your support.

See you at the finish line!

                         

Race Ready tips

Our bikes are making their way to Lake Placid, New York for Ironman Lake Placid on July 28th thanks to Tri Bike Transport!

Seeing that my amazing bike mechanic/hubby will be racing in his first Ironman

and not riding on his road bike, giving my parents updates during my race (pic below from Kona 2011), we will be using Tri Bike Transport for my 6th Ironman and not traveling with our bikes on the airplane. What a treat!

Are you race ready?

New shoes, new race wheels, new wetsuit, new outfit.

Athletes are notorious for race week shopping, whether it is online, at local small business stores or at the race expo. I feel there is a nice psychological boost to having new things, so long as they are effective and practical for the race for motivation increases when you have a drive to use something new.

But having new items does not out-weigh the 3 most important tips for being race day ready.

1) Skills

2) Confidence

3) Planning

To briefly break down my 3 most important tips for being race day ready, let's start with skills.

Running requires you to  move one leg in front of each other, quickly. If you don't want to run, you can walk. Although running requires good form, most people can run without having the proper skills to run. When it comes to swimming and cycling, skills are very important. From skills to keep your body safe in the water and on the road to skills to efficiently use your body on the race day course/terrain. I find that many athletes do the work by training hard and putting in the work but the lack of skills in training is overpowered by zone-training, high heart rates and social workouts. Be sure you put just as much time in your racing skills as you do in training your heart, muscles and lungs.

I love training knowing that I am working toward executing my current level of fitness on race day. Although it is completely normal and fine to have race week/day nerves and to fear the upcoming distance or course, you should never let your fears get the best of you. On the flip side, remind yourself the work that you put in to prepare for the race. Many times during a race (and before) you will have doubts, moments of "is this worth is" and even thoughts of "I can't wait til this is over." More often than not, those thoughts are temporary. Keep in mind that every negative thought comes before or after a positive thought. You just have to keep moving forward to catch those positive thoughts and hang on to them. When you finish a race, every negative thought will disappear and suddenly everything will be worth it, you won't believe it is over and you will be so proud that you did it. Don't let negative thoughts or energy fill your head when you can fill your mind with confidence and beliefs that you can race smart no matter what the day has in store for you.

There are many controllables when it comes to racing and lots of uncontrollables. You can't control your competition, you can't control the weather and you can't change the course. But you can control your race by planing your nutrition, your clothing, your pacing plan and your attitude. Consider these four very important components of putting together an effective, smart race day plan for racing is not about showing up to race day and hoping for a great race but instead, considering how you can be in control of your race day execution and knowing how to deal with situations as they come about (which they will).

A few other tips for racing:
-I am not a fan of racing "stimulants" - avoid the chemical boosters (ex. drinks, pills) for energy and do a race warm-up to get the blood flowing and the body ready for the upcoming effort.
-Do not sabotage your race day by worrying about your weight. There is no reason to restrict, control or stress about food, especially if it real food that has fueled your training or can help you properly taper for your race.
-If you are investing in new race day equipment such as cycling wheels, be sure to practice on them prior to the race (at least 2-3 weeks prior). Racing wheels can be difficult to get use to for many athletes and more often than not, they will make you look fast but if you don't have the right skills, they won't work as intended.
-Do not deviate from what has worked in the place. Athletes often second guess themselves on the days before a race, often trying new things, wondering how to fuel for the race, stressing about what others will think of their race day performance. Remember that you are racing with your current level of fitness so your body will perform how you trained it to perform.
-Race your own race. You will find a way to get to the finish line no matter what but to waste your entire race day pacing plan in the first few miles of a race will make for a very long race. There are no certainties with racing but to only trust yourself and staying within your comfort zone of your skills, nutrition strategy and pacing plan.
-Help out others. There is a special power in cheering on others, especially if you need a boost as well. Thank the volunteers, high-five the spectators and smile at the other athletes. Your worst day may be someone else's best day so if you have it in you or not, remember that everyone has their own reason for racing.
-Don't get stuck on time, paces and rankings. The best race day stories are not told by a piece of paper or online but instead, by YOU the athlete. Consider writing a post race blog report or writing about your day to share with others. Do not let your race day goals keep you from inspiring others.
-Have fun! If you don't love what you are doing, why do it? Unless you are a professional, you should be enjoying the journey of challenging yourself, overcoming obstacles and becoming a stronger, smarter and healthier individual. Whatever your sport may be, it is your lifestyle, not your life. Never stop being grateful for what your body allows you to do and thank your body many times during the race.
-Be prepared for race day. Review the course (or try it out), check the weather, consider outside variables that may affect you. Do not worry about doing something that "isn't cool", being different or unique. Be prepared for your day and don't worry about what others think of you as you are racing your own race and only you, your body and your mind can get you to the finish line.

Happy Racing!

Endurnace sports. What's stopping you?

 

 

 

Before every endurance event I do, I like to read my old race reports. I was recently reading my IMWI and IMKY race reports and I just laughed while reading them because I guess two and three years down the road, my mind still wants Ironman racing to be "easy".  I always think about a past race and somehow, my mind tells me it was "easy" back then and now I am really going to hurt. But it's funny that when I read my race reports, it was not easy and it was never easy. I guess the saying is true...

 I guess when it comes to thinking logically, the body and mind do not like to suffer. Not a good combination when it comes to endurance racing. Not sure how many times you look for that "easy" button but if you find it while training for an endurance event or while racing, I am not sure you will want to use it because if "it" was easy, everyone would be doing it.

You see, the great thing about endurance sports is that you get to become someone that you don't believe you can become. You must be patient and respectful of the distance but you must also be willing to work every day to make some kind of progress. You get to experience highs and lows and you get to learn how to work your mind and body in magical ways. You get to inspire and motivate others and you get to join a special group of individuals who seek challenges outside their comfort zone.

I love working with athletes who are new to endurance racing because the human body must be trained and fueled in a way that it resists fatigue and stays energizes and does the minimum amount of work possible to receive huge performance gains. Sharing this journey with Karel has been so much fun because I have seen his body and mind strengthen in many ways and as I share my 6th Ironman with him for his first Ironman, I can't help but think that we will both be going through similar emotions on race day....a lot of why's and hopefully a lot of why nots.

I wanted to repost a blog I did after my 4th Ironman, which meant so much to me because I really pushed hard and received the best prize ever....a rolldown slot to my 2nd Ironman World Championship. Talk about emotions....battling thoughts to get myself on the podium and then being so satisfied with my performance that I went to bed fulfilled only to find out the next day I was going to Kona in 2011.

So I wanted to share my post with everyone (again) as to why I love endurance racing and that I hope this post inspires you to do something that challenges you. Get started with something now without thinking about where you are now and where you need/want to be in the future. The part of working hard for your goals is reaching your end point and being able to look back as to where you were when you started.

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9-17-2010
This part of the report means so much to me. Not only because I finished my fourth IM since 2006 but I get to write MY report on behalf of all of the triathletes out there, who aspire to one-day sign-up and finish an Ironman. And even if you don't aspire to do a triathlon or an Ironman, or you have done an IM, this is for all of the people out there who have set a challenging, and perhaps, unthinkable, goal.

It is hard to describe the feelings that come with finishing an Ironman. For many of us, we devote a good 6-12 months of training to one event. That's right, an entire year dedicated to one event! And to make things even more nerve-racking, you pay a lump sum of money for the event.... 365 days before the race! For myself, this race was 4 years in the making and I sacrificed many other local races (and wants) to offset the expenses for this event.

For many of you, you are forced to put the hurdles and obstacles that you experience day in and day out, behind you, in an effort to train on most days of the week. On some days, your training may last most of the day. On other days, you may be up at 4:30am just to be finished before the sun comes up. But at the end of the day, you know your priorities and you quickly realize that only in your dreams would you train like a professional. That's right, no scheduled massages, no sponsorships, no free race entries, no purse prize. You have a family alongside work responsibilities and somehow, you are happy just make it all work. Why? Because you have goals. For many of you, perhaps your love for living a healthy life was taken to the next level and somehow, your goals became a lifestyle.
  
For myself, it was my choice to balance a dietetic internship and training. Just like you, I had ups and downs with my training and the rest of my life and just like you, I didn't always think it was possible to achieve long-term goal(s). You developed a support team and perhaps, there were some people on your team that bailed on you. However, by staying in the positive, you surrounded yourself with people who gave you energy, rather than take it away from you. Without a doubt, with IM training you are always searching for extra natural energy!!!

When I crossed the finish line, I was satisfied. I had given everything I had during the race and I couldn't have asked for anything better. For in an Ironman, every person who crosses the finish line is a winner. Everyone gets a medal, everyone gets a finisher t-shirt and every person becomes a member of a select group of people. Even for those who don't reach the finish line during an IM, they are still in a select club...for only a small part of the population even considers signing up for an IM. Reaching the starting line of an IM is one of the biggest accomplishments you can ask for. Finishing an Ironman is just the icing on the "healthy" cake.

Ironman training is tough. However, through following a periodized training plan, you should find yourself improving on a weekly basis. By allowing your body to recover through active recovery, weekly planned rest days and planned recovery weeks you should find yourself enjoying your IM training and enjoying the journey.
Ironman training is 10x harder than the Ironman event. In an effort to get to the starting line of an IM, you must train your body to complete a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run. Because you have 365 days to train for a 140.6 mile event, most athletes arrive to the starting line trained and ready to go. Sadly, many people arrive to the race overtrained and/or injured, so certainly, balance and a smart mind (and coach) may be necessary when planning for your IM journey.

It's hard to describe the emotions and feelings that flood your body at the IM finish line. Perhaps you want to envision yourself crossing the IM finish line but you may be asking yourself....will my body ever let me do an Ironman??

For those who like to swim bike and runANYONE can do an Ironman.

Here's how I can describe the Ironman journey.
Remember, it's a LONG journey with a one-day finish line.

Imagine yourself driving 140.6 miles on a daily basis. For the first few weeks, it probably seems really boring and you ask yourself "can I really continue doing this every day?"
After a few weeks, the drive gets easier and you become content with the drive. Maybe you even look forward to the drive because you are alone with yourself, your thoughts and feelings. Maybe you come up with new ideas and thoughts during your drive and feel inspired to change something in your life.
Certainly, some days do feel longer than others but overall, you are happy with your decision to do the drive.
Eventually, a group of your close friends tell you that they are going to ride with you during your drive to keep you company. The drive becomes much more enjoyable because you can laugh, smile and share stories with your friends during the long ride.
Down the road, you notice that thousands of other people are doing the same drive as you. Although they are in different cars (some nicer and more expensive than others) and drive at different speeds, they are all going to the same place as you. Some how, you look forward to the drive even more and you almost don't want the drive experience to end.
One day, you notice that there are lots of people on the road wanting to help you. They want to make sure your car is fueled, it is in excellent working condition and that you have everything you need to feel happy during your drive. It's amazing how special you feel during your drive and you feel compelled to tell your friends about the drive, almost as if you are motivating others to do the drive with you.
On your last drive, you notice that your closest friends and family are on the road waving at you. You couldn't be more excited to see them and they bring tears to your eyes because they are supporting your decision to drive 140.6 miles. They think you are crazy for doing it but they love you anyways and they want to see you finish the drive.
When you get to the finish of your last drive, you notice that there are thousands of people cheering you on. You tell yourself "but it's only 140.6 miles" but you know that not many people would make the decision to do this drive. A drive that you once thought was never possible and you finally made it to the finish line. Happy that you don't have to do the drive anymore, you are kinda sad and are ready to sign up for another 140.6 mile drive.

But because there are so many other people out there with you, wanting to reach the same finish line, you feel the need to help the people behind you, reach the same finish line.

When I reached the finish line, I was ready to see all of the future "IMWI" athletes cross the finish line. A line that once seemed impossible, was in close reality.

2% of athletes qualified for Kona at IMWI. That statistic is pretty consistent at most IM events. I'm guessing that around 8% of athletes are shooting for a Kona slot.
An amazing 98% of athletes at an Ironman are there to finish. 98%!!! If you feel as if you can't do an IM, you have absolutely no idea of what you are capable of doing. The body is truly amazing. Although many components play a role in finishing an Ironman, the Ironman event is very mental. With all of the training behind you, you are simply putting your training to the test and enjoying the day with 2500-3000 of your closest friends... a day that you have dreamed about for x-year(s).
If anyone has ever told you that you were "slow" for finishing an Ironman above the average IM finishing time of 13-14 hours or questioned why it took you 14,15,16 or 16 hrs and 57 minutes (that was the last finisher at IMWI 2010) to complete an Ironman....I give you permission to stare that person in the face and tell them "I am an Ironman and no one can take that away from me!"

Or
"I just swam 2.4 miles, biked 112 miles and ran 26.2 miles.....what did you do today???"

What to expect on triathlon race day - course check

This coming weekend is the Ocala HITS triathlon - a distance for everyone from sprint to Ironman. I was scheduled to do this race but with my previous hip issues and the opportunity to speak at an upcoming Oakley Women event, the cards were not in my favor for the race but certainly, the cards didn't mean I wasn't going to come out a winner.

Next weekend I will be able to watch 4 of my 6 athletes who are racing in the HITS Olympic distance triathlon and I am super excited to be there to cheer for everyone. Karel and my other athlete Chris will be racing the half IM on Saturday and although I will be super sad not to be there to support them, I will be flying home from San Diego after my quick 2-day trip to the west coast.

I can't complain about my life when I am in control of my attitude. There are many times in life when we have a choice to say "why now?" or "that's ok". I prefer the later as my worst day may be someones best day. There are so many opportunities in life and I think many times, we get stuck in the moment and forget to be grateful for future opportunities. I am really grateful to be asked by Oakley Women and Shape Magazine to give a nutrition workshop at the upcoming VIP Oakley Progression Sessions in San Diego (this Fri), Denver and Texas (May). Lucky for me, there will be more triathlons.

On Saturday morning, Karel and I made a 2-hour drive to Ocala (leaving at 6:15am) to check out the race course. Karel did his last hard brick on Wednesday (his day off from work this week, along with Saturday) so the race course ride was just steady. Knowing that we would be checking out the course for my athletes as well, there was no planned workout for the day. However, Karel is tapering, is in phenomenal shape and is mentally ready...so my bike ride was challenging...56 miles, sitting on Karel's fast wheel. OUCH!

After the ride, Karel ran one loop (~3 miles) of the run course and took a dip in the water. Throughout the morning, I took a lot of mental notes of the course to give a run-down of the course for my athletes. I typed up a full page of tips from everything I could remember about the course (swim, bike and run).

This got me thinking about how athletes approach race day for as we all know, racing is more than just putting a trained body on a course. There are so many uncontrollables and controllables on race day so it is up to you where you direct your energy. Not everyone has the opportunity to ride/run a course before race day, let alone drive it. Therefore, there are a few things you may want to consider before doing a race so here are my top tips for what to expect on triathlon race day.

-Race venue: parking, distance from transition to race start, bathroom location, layout of transition area.
-Swim: in the water or land start, quality/color of water, weather on race day morning, opportunity for warm-up in the water, location of sun rise (proper goggle lens), swim course, swim exit.
-Bike: condition of roads, elevation, location of aid stations, fuel at aid stations, closed or open course (Safety), wind direction, weather forecast.
-Run: terrain of course, location of aid stations, fuel at aid stations, shade or no shade.

Of course - from start to finish, make sure you have all your necessary gear, gadgets and clothing. Better to have the "just in case" items instead of wishing you had them for the duration of your race. 

Many athletes check out the course ahead of time and stress out. Why freak out when the course is out of your control? If you are worried about running in the sand, cold water, bumpy or hills roads, perhaps it is best to consider a different race? If you have a coach, discuss these concerns so that you can plan the proper race schedule to meet your needs. Better yet, plan for the course by preparing yourself on similar conditions. If you never learn to be comfortable riding "fast/hard" on bumpy roads and trying to drink from your water bottle on your down tube of your bike (let alone switch bottles from rear cage to top tube), how do you expect to stay fueled and confident on race day? If you never wear a wetsuit until race day, how do you plan on swimming efficiently and comfortably if you feel restricted? If you never practice running and drinking, how do you think you will fuel on race day?

A few things I noticed in Ocala (not as detailed as my notes to my athletes);
-The course is bumpy - rough roads. The course is not exciting but not boring. It is not technical, a few false flats and gentle rollers. The course can make it easy to forget to drink/stay fueled and because of the out and back course (which is not a straight shot), it can be easy to feel frustrated for 56 miles if you do not pace yourself properly. If your water bottles are not secured, you will lose them. As in any race, if you don't like what is on the course, bring your own fuel. Lucky for HITS athletes, Hammer Nutrition is on the course.
-The first part of the half IM (and entire Olympic course) is on the sand. Not beachy white sand but dark, trail sand. Some of it is packed, some is loose. My thinking is be prepared, don't stress. Consider wearing socks to avoid sand being caked in the shoes w/ water from the aid stations for cooling. There is little shade on the course, stay cooled with water and ice. This should make it easy to not go out too fast but on the bike, better stretch your hips and not stay aero the entire bike course. You will need your hip flexors to be strong and not fatigued on a changing terrain course.
-For the swim, the morning will be cool. Getting in the water for a warm-up is always a good thing for a nervous swimmer with a wetsuit but I recommend jog/walk warm-up first before getting in the water for the water start.

As you read the athlete guide before your race, check out the course or talk to other athletes (read forums), remind yourself that everyone races on the same course and is trained differently. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. As you know, I LOVE hilly, hard courses. I will take any obstacle that comes my way so I can be smart on race day...not always the "fastest" athlete. 

You have a choice to be the smarter athlete on race day or be the one that wastes energy on things out of your control. Your choice.
Race strong, stick to your plan and  remember, even if the cards are not in your favor, you can still come out a winner by being grateful for the opportunities ahead of you.

Happy Racing!