Do you really need to strength train?

Are you once again neglecting strength training in your cardio training?

As a triathlete, runner or any other type of cardio-focused athlete, strength training has an important role in your cardio-focused training regime. 

While you likely know that you should strength train, it's common for athletes to think that any time spent away from swim/bike/run (or your sport of choice) in order to strength train will slow fitness gains. But actually it's the opposite. By making strength training part of your cardio focused training routine in the early phase of your season (remember, strength training needs to be periodized, just like your sport), you are setting yourself up for big fitness gains later on, when your training advances in intensity and volume. 

As you integrate functional strength exercises into your early phase of training, you can improve your imbalances and weaknesses, which may otherwise come back to haunt you when you place added intensity and volume stress on your body in the spring and throughout the summer. Sadly, it's very hard to return to a foundation phase of training when you are in peak training.

Lifting weights just to be strong will be of little value compared to performing sport-specific movements that help improve mobility, stability and eventually power and explosive strength.

For many years, Trimarni has believed in the purpose of strength training for the main fact that I spent much of my higher education focusing on strength and conditioning (throughout college and during my Master degree program). Creating strength training plans is a passion of mine as I have been strength training since I was very young (around 12 years old) and have experienced great benefits of regularly strength training.

As you transition from your off-season to more specific power/endurance/speed phase of training, I encourage you to appreciate the role of strength training as a triathlete, swimmer, cyclist or runner.
 
Karel and myself, including our athletes, all perform a "foundation" phase of training immediately after the off season.

For many years, we have called this our "Transition" plan but this word is interchanged with foundation, as you are simply building a strong foundation to work from as the season progresses.

Because we find this phase of training so critical, we have continued to update our 8-week Transition plan every year to ensure that we are keeping up with current trends and methods of training.

If you are confused as to how to properly transition yourself from the off-season to your more specific triathlon training OR if you are susceptible to injuries and health issues and want to ensure consistency in your first 8 weeks of training (and onward), we have a new 2017 8-week Transition plan and we are offering it to you to help you build a strong body for your 2017 season of training and racing. 

You can learn more here, 2017 Trimarni Training Plans.

So, to answer if you really need to strength train....the answer is yes.
Chasing watts and speed is not relevant right now.
It's impossible (and not necessary) to maintain peak race fitness all year long.

While your swim, bike, and/or run cardio sessions are important, give strength training a high priority role in your early phase of athletic development.

A strong body now will better tolerate the added stress that you will place on it as your training volume and intensity increases. 

A body that stays weak, delicate or fragile as you progress into higher intensity/volume training, will slowly deteriorate with health and injury issues as the season progresses.

Check out some of my strength training exercises to improve your stability, posture and balance.

Thanks Men's Fitness​ for the interview.

The best leg workout for runners and cyclists.

Trimarni Training Plans - available now!

Do you have a triathlon goal for 2016? 

Are you registered for your first Olympic, Half or Full Ironman distance triathlon? 

Are you looking to improve your skills, endurance, strength and overall fitness throughout your racing season to see what you are capable of achieving at your key race? 

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If so, we created our (NEW) 20-week Trimarni training plans with YOU in mind. 

As 2015 Ironman World Championship finishers, we understand the physiological and nutritional needs of endurance triathlon training and racing.
But we don't just cater to top athletes.
No matter what level athlete you are or what event distance you are training for, we put a lot of thought and effort into our plans to ensure that you would feel physically, mentally, nutritionally and emotionally ready for your upcoming races. 

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Marni is a Board Certified Sport Dietitian (CSSD) and holds a Master of Science in exercise physiology. She specializes in sport nutrition and she is a certified USA Triathlon level-1 coach. With a great understanding of the physiological and nutritional requirements of training for endurance sports, she enjoys working with triathletes of all levels. She has coached fitness enthusiasts to become first-time Ironman finishers, has helped many age-groupers, with families and busy work schedules, reach personal best times and achieve life-long goals and has developed athletes to qualify for the Ironman World Championship.
Marni is a 10x Ironman finisher with a 10:17 Ironman PR (IM Austria), including 4 Ironman World Championship finishes. 

Karel is an experienced RETUL bike fitter with exceptional skills as a bike mechanic. Karel knows everything and anything about cycling. As an exceptional cat 1 cyclist turned triathlete, Karel has the ability to think like a one sport athlete but train like a triathlete in order to help Trimarni athletes learn how to train smarter. As a cyclist turned triathlete, Karel has had to learn the basics when it comes to training for triathlons, which has allowed him to better coach his athletes. Karel qualified for the 70.3 World Championship after his first half IM and finished his 2nd Ironman in 9:22 (Ironman Austria) with a 3:11 marathon.

Karel and Marni enjoy working together because they each have their own strengths and specialty areas when it comes to coaching athletes and performing as top age-group endurance triathletes. 

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We enjoy the developmental process of working with athletes and teaching our athletes how to train smarter in order to execute well on race day.  We provide great detail and attention to every workout which includes focus on strength training, daily and sport nutrition, pacing, intervals, mental toughness, recovery and learning how to adjust to life. We strongly believe in an educational component to our coaching so that our athletes know why they are doing what they are doing in every workout, with every phase of training.

Thank you for considering Trimarni Coaching to help you reach your short and long term triathlon goals. 

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2016 TRIMARNI TRAINING PLANS

Performance Team
If you are a triathlete who is interested in Trimarni coaching and being part of the Trimarni team but not interested in individualized-coaching this season, the PERFORMANCE team plan is designed just for you!
With the purchase of any Trimarni 20-week endurance triathlon training plan (Half or Ironman distance), you can feel part of a team by joining our private Trimarni Coaching Facebook page to socialize with your fellow Trimarni teammates, connect with us at key Trimarni races and camps, receive our weekly “check-in” emails (which will provide you with weekly education, information, tips, race results and support on topics like swimming, cycling, running, mental strength, sport nutrition, daily nutrition, strength training, race strategy/execution, motivation tips, etc) and receive sponsor discounts.
Instead of browsing the web and consulting with friends over and over again about your gear, training and nutrition questions, let us help educate you so that you can learn how to train and race smarter.
At check-out when purchasing your 20-week half or full Ironman training plan, select "Performance Team". After your purchased training plan is emailed to you, you will be part of the Trimarni team for only $50 a month (we will contact you regarding set-up for monthly paymnets). You can start/cancel your $50/monthly payment anytime. 
We look forward to having you be part of the Trimarni team!

Email us with any questions. 

Olympic, Half and Full Ironman plans
The Trimarni training plans are designed for committed, passionate, performance-seeking athletes of all fitness levels who want to train smarter to train harder. We keep our training philosophy simple - we want you to reach performance goals without compromising your overall health. Our training plans are designed to keep you in good health, as you balance everything in your busy life, as you take your fitness to the next level. We believe that our plans will keep you excited to train while minimizing burnout and risk for injury. Our plans provide the right mix of challenge and fun as you work hard to reach personal fitness goals. 

We have updated our plans which are all now 20 weeks and include 4 weeks of our Transition/Foundation plan. 

For more info on what is included with each plan: 

Endurance Plan - Half and Full Ironman distance

Olympic Plan

At checkout, you can add the option of the Performance Plan OR select 1-hour phone call if you'd like to set-up a consultation with me and/or Karel at any point throughout your season to discuss your race strategy, training or nutrition. 

Transition/Foundation Plan
Back by popular demand, our updated transition plan is designed specifically to help you develop the proper skills to progress smoothly throughout the year. Consider this the blueprint of building a strong house for your body.  It is important to appreciate the first phase of your training plan as the focus is not on speed, pace, heart rate and/or power but instead skills, form and neuromuscular control. We designed this plan to help you get stronger before you try to get faster or go longer. We consider this phase a necessary but often overlooked part of most  triathlon training plans. Every Trimarni athlete (and Karel and myself) follow a transition phase before we get into more specific training.
For more info: 
8-week Transition/Foundation Plan

Periodized Strength Training Plan
You know it's important but strength training is often the most neglected or confusing component of a triathletes training plan (and often the first to go in the spring when the training becomes more specific). 

We designed a periodized strength training plan that allows for smooth progression throughout your periodized plan. With swimming, biking and running as your primary focus, our strength training plan may make it easier to achieve better swim, bike and run results with a stronger body.
Our strength training plan is designed to help you build a strong foundation and then when you add more speed and power in your training plan, the strength training routine changes from simple, isolated movements to more complex and dynamic movements.
The Trimarni periodized strength plan includes videos for every exercise, including dynamic warm-ups, glute/hip/core focus and stretching links for your entire season and almost all exercises can be performed at your home, with minimal equipment. For more info:
Periodized Strength Training Plan

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GIFT CERTIFICATES
Yes - we have them! 

Trimarni Gift Certificates are available for the holidays, birthdays, special occasions and anniversary's.
Please send us a message via our contact page on our website before purchasing your desired plan so we know to include a gift certificate with your purchase to your favorite athlete in mind.

Thanks for supporting Trimarni.
We are excited to be part of your upcoming training and racing season!

Trimarni training plans - new and updated!!!!

At Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition, we realize that no two athletes are alike. We (as athletes) all have different health and fitness goals, we live different lifestyles (with different stressors, obligations and time constraints) and we all come from different athletic backgrounds.

When it comes to coaching an athlete, there is nothing like a personalized training plan with specific workouts and zones to support your individual athlete development. Even better is a training plan that caters to your every day life so that you never feel guilty about the 3 M's - missing workouts, modifying workouts and making-up workouts.

An experienced coach understands that preparing an athlete for a race is more than just being a great workout writer.
Depending on a coaches background or specialty area, coaches are often required to be experts in many areas or they bring in the other experts in for a "team" approach to coaching - sport RD, exercise physiologist, sport psychologist, counselor, motivational speaker and physical therapist.  As you can see, there is so much more to "coaching" an athlete than just giving workouts.

At Trimarni coaching and nutrition, we never want our athletes to feel as if training takes over their life or a nutrition journey is extreme, restricting or complicated. We want our athletes to feel prepared and confident with their training and nutrition so we love helping our athletes put in the work for positive results but not at the cost of poor health or sacrifices in life. 

What we feel is not effective in a quality training plan is a standard approach of training - simply having athletes check-off workouts just to get them done. We want athletes to get something valuable out of every workout. We never want our athletes to feel that a workout is only successful if a specific number of miles or minutes are achieved. 

We put great detail and attention into every workout and do our best to carefully monitor our athletes to help them stay balanced with training but also in life.  We also want to give you as much information (handouts) as possible so you understand the why's with your training. We place a lot of focus on strength training, daily and sport nutrition, proper pacing, race execution/planning, mental toughness, recovery and so much more and we want you to learn as you train so you can be a smarter athlete. 

The Trimarni training plans are designed for committed, passionate, performance-seeking athletes of all fitness levels. Yes - that's you!
Our training plans are designed to keep you in good health as you take your training to the next level. 

As a 4x Ironman World Championship qualifier and sport RD, I understand what it takes to train and fuel smart to excel as an endurance triathlete. Karel is a recent Ironman World Championship qualifier and with only 2 years as a triathlete (former cat 1 cyclist), he understands the importance of athlete development. Together, we have coached many athletes of all different levels and ages, who dream big just like us and are willing to work hard for short and long term goals. 

We feel confident that our training plans will take the guessing away from haphazard training and ensure consistent performance gains to help you feel physically and mentally "race ready". We want you to arrive to your race start line with your uninjured, strong and healthy body, feeling "hungry to race" and confident to do so!

If you are interested in a Trimarni training plan, here is what we currently offer to help you with your performance journey: 

Don’t miss our “spring training” special – receive 20% off a 1-hour phone (or skype/facetime) consultation with Marni and/or Karel with the purchase of your training plan now until March 31st!! This can be used to discuss all things related to training, nutrition, sport nutrition, gear or racing!

16-week Endurance plan - UPDATED

Half or Full Ironman

Training for an endurance event requires dedication and commitment. We can assure you that it is extremely helpful to have a training plan that will allow for gradual fitness progression and to help you reduce the risk for injury, burn out and sickness. With the help of our endurance training plan of your choice (half or full Ironman), we want to make sure that you absolutely love your upcoming training journey. And if this is not your first go-around with endurance racing, we are confident that you will enjoy the detailed, periodized workouts in our training plans with specific periodized strength training. No matter your fitness level, we can assure you that you will never get bored with our workouts and you will find yourself getting stronger, faster and fitter during your 16 week plan. 

Olympic Distance Triathlon Plan - UPDATED
Our 12-week plan includes periodized training with key workouts with specific main sets. We focus on all phases of training, including a proper build phase, followed by peaking, taper and race week. Just like in our endurance plan, you will receive a go-to guide to learn how we coach our athletes and how to use your gadgets properly. You will also receive a sport nutrition handou, foundation strength exercises, a swim technique handout, a Trimarni pace zone calculator – for determining pace and HR zones with testing and all workouts can be accomplished with RPE (ratings of perceived exertion) or you may use your GPS device with attached heart rate monitor. A GPS-device/HR monitor is highly recommended for better pacing and quality training. A power meter is not required for our training plans but can be used.

8-week transition plan - STILL AWESOME
Triathlon focused

The transition plan is designed specifically to help you develop the proper skills to progress smoothly throughout the year. Consider this the blueprint of building a strong house for your body.  Our transition plan comes with specific strength and skill workouts to help you get stronger before your more structured training. We do not want you to rush you into your structured training and have you training hard right from the beginning so this plan allows you to place some healthy stress on your body so you can properly adapt to your more specific race-focused training. If you follow the plan that you are given, you will realize that you have some weaknesses (we all do) and that is what we want to address before you advance with your training. Check out our website under the 8-week transition plan to learn more about what is included in your plan. 

Periodized Strength Training Plan - NEW!

For Triathletes, runners and coaches

No longer will you feel like strength training is a missing link in your training plan! Our periodized plan is designed for triathletes (and runners) to help you get stronger before you get faster so you can go longer.

Even though we know you love to train, we are not here to give you a strength training plan that is too advanced for your fitness or one that is haphazard and does not yield favorable swim, bike and run results. Our strength training plan is designed to help you build a strong foundation before you begin to add more speed and power in your training plan and then designed to help you become more powerful and stronger all the way until your A-race. We have personally created over 50 exercises AND videos featured in your strength training plan as well as dynamic warm-up exercises AND videos for swimming, biking and running. We also include specific glute/core/hip strength routines, specific routines for each of the 4 phases of training including recommendations for days performed, sets and reps and ALL strength training workouts are machine-free!
We do require a therapy band, stability ball and free weights (5, 10, 15 and 20 lbs) at minimum. If you have access to medicine balls, kettle bells,  plates and bars, you will have exercises that incorporate full body movements with the use of added weight. 

Don’t miss our “spring training” special – receive 20% off a 1-hour phone (or skype/facetime) consultation with Marni and/or Karel with the purchase of your  training plan now until March 31st!! This can be used to discuss all things related to training, nutrition, sport nutrition, gear or racing!

Our goal is to help athletes reach performance goals while keeping the body in the best health possible.
We train in a way that provides the most optimal performance gains with the least amount of training stress. 

Happy Training!

To learn more: Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

Strength training benefits - get stronger, get faster, go longer

When Karel and I were dating in 2006-2007, I remember the first time when I invited Karel to the gym with me to do my plyometric workout. As a cyclist, Karel didn't do much (if any) strength training as he didn't belong to a gym and didn't own any weights at home. All of Karel's training to get faster, stronger and more powerful was on the bike.

Although I met Karel with a fresh "Master of Science in Exercise Physiology" degree, my love for strength training (and knowledge) started when I was around 12 years old, when I started competitive swimming. Our coach wasted no time, even at a young age, for us all to belong to Gold's Gym where we would all do our 30 minute strength workout before heading back to the pool for our two-hour swim  workout. In High School, I continued to strength train and perform various plyometric and band work before workouts and then through college, the plyometric and strength routines became more complex as I found myself also swimming more yards each day/week than ever before.

The most important take away of this all is understanding that my swimming fitness came from a combination of being in the pool AND performing strength on dry land.

Here I am, 20 years later and I still value strength training as an endurance triathlete and it is an inaugural part of my cardio-focused training. 

When Karel did his first plyo session with me back in the day, he had very little balance and stability. Despite being super strong, anything he did on one leg or with a stability ball was extremely difficult for him. Also, he didn't have the upper body or core strength that matched his lower body strength so many of the exercises that required full body was rather difficult for him. Sure, he loved the intensity of the workout but the foundation wasn't there for him to really receive the benefits of plyometrics. I knew that I had to take Karel back a few notches before advancing with plyo's or else he would have gotten injured or experienced too much fatigue that the strength would not yield favorable results with his cycling performance and training.
(telling my crit-racing boyfriend that he needs to start at a beginner level was not easy!)

I realize that jumping off and on blocks or bounding on one or two feet can be a bit intimidating and it is isn't for everyone. But strength training is extremely valuable and it is one of the most effective ways to take your training to the next level all while reducing risk for injury. Considering that training for an event requires us to take risks to gain the competitive edge and injuries are quite high when you are pushing your body day after day, on the same environment (swimming = pool, cycling = trainer or outside, running = track, treadmill, trail, road), strength training is the easiest way to get fitter, faster and stronger with very minimal negative side-effects because you don't have to do it a lot in order to receive huge benefits. 

I often hear athletes saying that they don't have time to strength train despite doing over 10 hours of cardio every week. I hear athletes worrying about being sore from strength training but just love the soreness after a long run or brick session.  Sure, there is certainly a risk for injury if you are overambitious when trying any strength training for the first time and it's also easy to do too much if you are a lover of strength training so that is why it is important to periodize your strength training with your training plan. 

In my next blog I will share with you how we periodize strength in our training plans and show a few videos as well of our recent race-specific strength workouts. 

Trimarni 8-week Triathlon Transition Plan - Available NOW!

Why do I need the Trimarni 8-week transition plan? 

To improve next year's performance by making good use of the transition phase between 'off season' and your first phase of triathlon specific training.  The transition plan is designed specifically to help you develop the proper skills to progress smoothly throughout the year. Consider this the blueprint of building a strong house for your body. 

What makes this plan different than my regular base building triathlon training plan? 

Transition plan highlights:

-The swim focus is on improving your aerobic threshold, drills, kicking, upper body strength and form and improving your aerobic capacity.

-For the bike workouts, you will see some high intensity intervals mixed with skills/drills and cadence work. You will be doing single-leg drills, heavy leg drills and a little higher volume bike training on the weekends to improve aerobic threshold.

-The run workouts in this phase will be focused on form and improving your economy and efficiency as a triathlete. The strength training will pay off greatly in running improvements.

-The strength training will be periodized throughout the plan to ensure that you are strengthening key muscles groups that will yield favorable gains in swim, bike, run fitness.

-Checkpoints are determined in week 7 to establish realistic, current zones.

-Your first week of specific triathlon training (with bricks) takes place in week 8 to help you transition to your more specific training plan.

Remind me again why I need the 8-week transition plan?

This plan is vital to your season success. Because we do not build a roof before building the foundation of a house, we want you to think of this phase as the bottom tier of your season pyramid of training. Out of every phase of training, this is the most important, yet overlooked phase. We are confident that this plan will pave the way for a great season ahead!

Will I see Campy in your exercise videos? 

Yes!! But this one didn't make the final cut....

What do I get when I purchase the 8-week Transition Plan?

GO-TO GUIDE:

No training detail is left out of this plan. We created this plan as if you were a one-on-one Trimarni athlete. In this 10-page document, you will get the inside details on how we train and educate all of our Trimarni athletes.

Most importantly, you will understand why we have our athletes strength train throughout the entire season and what type of strength exercises are most appropriate throughout each phase of the season.

You will not only be instructed on what equipment we use when we train our athletes but also how to set up your gadgets for proper, effective training.  You will also learn how we (and our athletes) use Training Peaks to monitor training progress (Training Peaks is a FREE software program to upload your workouts for review).

In this plan, there are specific training details for swim, bike and run workouts that will help you better understand how to train smarter not only in the transition plan but also throughout your entire season. You will learn a lot in this guide, not only specific to the 8-week transition plan. 

FOUNDATION STRENGTH & DYNAMIC WARM-UP EXERCISES: 

Every strength workout includes specific exercises, sets and reps to follow. This will occur throughout your entire 8-week plan. You will have access to over 20 videos (corresponding to the strength exercises in your plan) in which Marni is demonstrating the strength exercise and giving important tips. As a bonus, you will also receive a very basic stretching routine as well as 7-9 videos specific to dynamic warm-ups for swimming, biking and running. We want to make sure you know how to warm-up properly before all workouts as well as for race day. We hope you enjoy the videos!

NUTRITION GUIDE (optional addition to your transition plan)

We do not believe in being extreme with your eating or modifying the diet only for a number on the scale. We also do not believe in any extreme use of sport nutrition products (or lack thereof) but instead, to use sport nutrition properly to support training demands and to keep the immune system healthy.

We want you to fuel smart and eat smart to train smart!

For 12 weeks, you will be given specific suggestions as a way to create a balanced diet, to develop a healthy relationship with food and to learn how to eat for fuel and for health.

To help you learn how to eat for fuel and for health (or to improve your knowledge), use the information in this guide as a way to help you reach your health, performance and diet goals.

The information in this guide is not a replacement for medical advice.  Always consult with your primary physician and registered dietitian before starting/modifying an exercise or nutrition regime.  

This guide is the beginning of a new way of thinking about food and your body. It’s time to learn how to create and maintain a healthy relationship with food and your body. We want you to appreciate a more real food diet and to eat the right foods that are timed appropriately with your workouts and lifestyle. There are no meal plans or off limit food lists but instead, every week you will have something specific to focus on or to address when it comes to your daily diet/eating routine.

As a bonus in the nutrition guide, you will also get a 30 minute hip/core workout and 30 min core workout that you can do anytime.

Can I see a sample workout? 

Sure!
Here is a bike workout from our transition plan that was featured on Triathlete Magazine online:
Transition Phase One-Hour Bike Trainer Workout

Are you excited to start the plan?

More information HERE