Get motivated

You’ve likely heard the saying “you won’t regret a workout when it’s over.”

Getting the workout started, however, is often the hard part.

It may seem like motivation is something that you have to find and either you have it or you don't.
When you have motivation - you crush your workouts.
When you don't have motivation - it's a struggle to get started and to stay committed to your workout.

Sometimes, the body has the energy to train but the mind has a dozen excuses to skip (or not finish) the workout.
And sometimes the mind is eager to accept the upcoming workout challenge but the body struggles to find energy with each movement.

If you agree with one or both of the statements above, you are normal.
Every athlete, from age grouper to professional, will fight for motivation at least a handful of times throughout the season.

To help you out, here are three simple ways to get yourself motivated when mind says “let’s go” but the body screams “heck no!”

A proper warm-up

Give yourself a chance to wake-up your body before you convince yourself that you are too exhausted to train.
To rev your cardio system as you transition from being sedentary to moving your body, allow 5-15 minutes of mobility and dynamic exercises to target the key muscle groups being used in your upcoming workout. Hip hikes, light foam rolling, walking lunges and leg or arm swings are a few examples of simple exercises that you can perform before your workout to slowly increase the heart rate and to improve range of motion.
This is extremely valuable for early morning sessions as well as when you workout after a long, stressful day of life.
Also, during peak season, you'll find that you need a bit more of a warm-up before you start feeling energized before a main set. Don't count yourself out of a good workout based on how you feel in the first 15 minutes of your warm-up. Give yourself 10-15 minutes more to get the endorphins flowing and you may surprise yourself.

Music
For an instant pick-me-up, there’s research to support that music can positively affect motivation and mood.  Don’t believe me?
Turn on your favorite jam before a workout and then envision yourself fist-pumping your way down your next race finish line.
Just like that - you have motivation.
Regardless if you prefer an enlightening or funny podcast to distract your brain during a workout or need the strong beats of techno, hip hop or alternative to get your heart pumping, the stimulating effects of music can help with many emotions, including minimizing low-spirited thoughts that often decrease the motivation to train.

Diet

It seems obvious that what you eat (or don’t eat) can affect your energy levels, digestive system and mood but with so much on your daily plate, nutrient timing, snacking and real-food meal planning can often be an afterthought for athletes.

To initiate a positive dietary change, always prioritize what you will eat before and after your workouts. By giving your workouts the spotlight, the effort is made to focus on food as fuel, which will help you train well and recover better. To ensure that you never train on empty, be sure to stock your workout bag with extra sport nutrition so you are always prepared. 
As for when you aren’t training, plan and prep a variety of wholesome real food options for easy meal prep so you can keep your body energized and in good health.  

Become a better triathlete - focus on the bike

It's hard to find me not smiling when I'm on my bike.
Especially when I'm riding in Greenville.

Views like this make me so happy to be outside, in the mountains, surrounding myself by nature, on two wheels. Yes, our riding is challenging and it's not easy to settle into a rhythm but it's impossible to get bored and there are endless cycling routes to choose from, with so much to see, on two wheels.

I feel SO lucky to live in Greenville, where our roads are bike friendly and the views are spectacular.

It's common that many triathletes assume that to be a better triathlete, you need to be a better runner. While there is some truth in this statement as triathlon is a 3-sport event, but far too many triathletes remember the last sport as the sport that was the "failure" when it's the bike that allows you to deliver yourself to a good run.

Far too many triathletes fail on the run simply because of what precedes the run....the bike.
Sure, some triathletes are just "better" runners than others but some triathletes are better trained and skilled cyclists than others, which makes for better running off the bike. 

Now I believe that this blog needs to have some context as it's easy to go off in several directions on this topic. While I am not saying that you should stop trying to be a better runner and put all your focus on the bike, there are a few ways that you run better off the bike, simply by becoming a better cyclist.

1) Make sure you are properly fit on your bike. This should a non-negotiable investment that you don't even think twice about getting done as soon as you get a new bike and then at least 2-3 re-fits over the next year. When you are fit properly on your bike, you are more comfortable riding at higher intensities and for longer volumes. Your fit will help you ride more efficiently, thus you can run with "fresher" legs off the bike. A proper fit will also help you ride safer on your bike as you will feel more "one" with your bike (instead of feeling like you are on a bike that doesn't fit you - imagine that logic).
While any bike fitter can call him/herself a "professional fitter" it is important to do your research to ensure that your bike fit specialist/expert not only has experience but also has consistent testimonials, among all types of cyclists, who would confidently recommend this individual as an experienced fitter.
Lastly, once you get your fit, you need to do your homework. Many triathletes get very comfortable with a bad fit and when they are properly fit, they go back to old habits (ex. sitting on the saddle in the wrong place, not rotating the hips when aero, putting too much tension in the arms while firmly holding the base bars, etc.). It is important that you recognize that it takes time to get use to a good fit, especially after you got comfortable with a bad fit.

2) Make sure your bike is in good working conditions - Imagine where all that sweat goes when you are training? Or what happens inside your bike when you ride in the rain. Now imagine what happens to the efficiency of your ride when all that rust builds up inside the inner-workings of your bike. Now think about how great your bike rode when it was brand new.....overtime, without keeping your bike in good working condition, your bike becomes more difficult to ride as you train for your upcoming races. Without realizing it, you have to actually ride harder and put forth more effort when your bike is not maintained. A detailed tune-up is more than wiping off your bike frame and lubing the chain. Not only will your bike be safer to ride when you keep it in great condition throughout the year but it will ride more efficiently, thus allowing you to expend less energy to go faster. Your bike is an expensive machine and you need to take really good care of that machine. Don't assume that your speed on race day is all based on your fitness - a tuned-up bike is a fast and safe bike.
(I am incredibly lucky to be married to one very detailed bike mechanic. Karel will spend over 2 hours taking apart almost every part of my/his bike to keep it in top-notch condition, almost once a month, every month throughout the year)

3) Always work on your cycling skills - For many years, Karel always told me that I would be a better all-around Ironman triathlete if I was faster on the bike. His approach to make me faster was simple.... improve my horrible cycling skills. This was years in the making but I can finally say that I have good bike handling skills and great management of the terrain when riding.
Understanding how to best climb, descend, pace yourself, how to change gears, when to break, how to navigate in windy conditions, how to efficiently stand or sit, how to position your hips on the saddle, how to rotate bottles on your bike, how to take turns, working on a variable cadence and riding comfortably on any and all terrain will not only make for more enjoyable (and SAFE) riding but you will find that you save a lot of energy when you ride, thus helping you run better off the bike. When you know how to ride your bike efficiently, you are not as fatigued when you finish the ride, thus it makes for better-feeling legs when you start the run. Sadly, for many triathletes, riding on the trainer or riding in a straight line, on flat roads, doesn't improve bike handling skills and terrain management. If you want to be a better cyclist to be a better runner, you have to ride outside a lot.
For any individual who did not grow up riding on a bike (which is most triathletes living in the US), it can often feel like your bike is a foreign object that you are sitting on (which likely doesn't feel good when you sit on it when you are not fit properly) and then you have to control this expensive and fast object when you are on the road.
When you ride scared or tense, you can't control your bike (thus "speed wobbles" - it's not the bike, it's you causing the bike to wobble).
It is important to feel one with your bicycle.
I will be the first to tell you that my skills have improved greatly BUT I am still working on my cycling skills. I have improved tremendously in the last two years, since moving to Greenville as we have little flat terrain and a lot of different types of roads to ride on.
For most triathletes, working on cycling skills will pay off more than checking off your "long" ride workouts or thinking that running longer will make you a better triathlete (or more prepared). These long workouts are great for your confidence but they may falsely validate "readiness" before a long distance triathlon IF your skills are not up to par.

4) Have trust in your fueling/hydrating plan - A poor bike fit, coupled with a bike that is in poor working condition, combined with not-so-good cycling skills....sorry, but no amount of sport nutrition, even from the best sport nutrition expert, will ensure success on race day.
As you continue to work on tips 1-3, it is important that you continually work on your fueling/hydration plan in training to build confidence for race day. There is no reason why you should arrive to race day and have no idea how to fuel as you have months to practice, practice and practice. Above all, sport nutrition should be tolerable but you don't have to love it. Sport nutrition serves a function whereas real food in your diet is what you should love.
To ensure that your fueling plan works, I encourage you to include some race-prep workouts (around 3.5-4 hours for Ironman athletes and 2.5-3 hours for half IM athletes), which help you test your current fueling/hydration regime on the bike to see if your pacing and nutrition will set you up for a good run.

5) Make every ride a meaningful ride - Have a purpose for every ride and ride a lot. You are allowed to ride your bike for more than just a workout. When was the last time you took your bike outside and just explored a neighborhood without a Garmin to clock your speed and miles?
How about taking your bike for a spin (outside or trainer) to get warmed up before a run? How about riding your road bike for an EZ spin or just simply ride your bike for 20 minutes to work on your cycling skills? Are you riding to gain fitness, strength, speed or endurance or are you riding to improve your foundation and to work on weaknesses and skills? You can do both!
If you are always riding to check off workouts, in order to reach x-miles each time you ride, you are not riding with a purpose. At the end of the day, everything that you do in training should be designed to help you perform better as a triathlete on race day. If you are chronically underperforming on race day on the bike or always running far below your potential off the bike, ask yourself if there is something you can do in training to help you train smarter. Sadly, running more isn't the answer to being a better triathlete.

For any triathlete who wants to be a better all around athlete, take note of the middle portion of a triathlon (swim BIKE run) so that you can ride your way to a successful triathlon performance. 

What we can learn from Paralympic athletes

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I don't believe that life is perfect and that you always need to be happy to live a good life.
But I've always considered myself a positive person, trying to see the bright side in every situation.

My dad was always happy - he never seemed to have a bad day. Nothing ever bothered him. It was truly remarkable how he lived his life, which was sadly cut short due to cancer at the young age of 67. 

Now more than ever, I try to live with a mindset similar to my dad's, where I always try to wake-up excited for another day of life and look to experiences, nature, travel and other people for inspiration.

As you know, I am extremely passionate about sports, specifically swimming, cycling, running and triathlon. 

I just love watching the human body in action.


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I'm not sure if you are following the paralympics, as there is little TV coverage in the US (aside from NBC sports) but I strongly encourage you to watch and follow these incredible athletes in action.


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Sadly, you won't see many of these athletes interviewed on TV, in magazines or in a commercial because most of the press supports able-bodied athletes.
It's as if a disability discriminates against what it means to be a true athlete, thus the lack of attention from the media on the paralympic athletes in Rio.


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Athletes are always a source of inspiration because of their hard work, dedication and ability to overcome the odds.

But I can't imagine a better group of deserving individuals to look up to than the paralympic athletes (or any athlete with a disability for that matter).


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The world does not cater to disabled individuals. It can be hard to find accessible ways to get around easily and safely and it can also be very costly to be a disabled individual.

For the disabled or impaired individual who is also an athlete, it can be very difficult to find access to coaching, therapy and other services, not to mention the cost of specific gear, clothing and travel.

But, as we all know, sports are an outlet for many individuals and for the disabled, sports have shown these incredible human beings that there is ability within a disability. 

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I feel that this world needs to witness more amazing sporting achievements by paralympic athletes. I feel our world would be a better place. You watch an athlete swim without arms and suddenly, your "bad" swim workout isn't really worth complaining about.
Or, you complain about not having energy to train yet imagine how much work it takes a swimmer, with no arms or no legs, to not only swim but get to the pool and dress for swim practice.

The next time you find yourself complaining about something meaningless, stressing over something small or worrying about something that is not important, I consider you to think about the athletes who have learned how to rise up from hardship with focus, determination, a positive mindset.
It doesn't matter who you are as an athlete, but you must have the strength to move forward in life, without excuses for what could have or should have been.



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Paralympic athletes push the limits as to what is humanly possibly by the human body.
These athletes are living life to the fullest because they are not willing to settle.
They have goals and you better believe they find a creative way to reach them.
They are overcoming disabilities in order to live very productive, meaningful and happy lives, all while inspiring others in the process. 

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When an individual becomes an athlete, he/she gains self esteem, determination, courage and confidence. 

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For those who are missing a limb (or three), are visually impaired, have brain or nerve damage, cerebral palsy, MS or have a learning or movement disability......

We must remember that these athletes are human.
Even if an athlete has physical or mental impairment, we should treat them with the same respect, attention and notoriety as the able-body athletes.


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The next time you are having a bad day or you feel like nothing is going right, I encourage you to change your perspective of your current situation.
Is it really the worst day of your life?
Is everything really going wrong right now?
Do you really wish that you were not alive right now?


It's ok to be mad, upset or frustrated but sometimes it doesn't hurt to think a bit differently and remember the people in this world who may not have the easy life that you are living, yet refuse to give up on making the impossible possible. 

12 Race ready tips

You are probably hoping that I am going to write about how to plan your sport nutrition for race day or what percentage of your FTP you should hold while you are on the bike, how to swim fast in open water or the best way to run strong off the bike without your legs hurting.

While having a plan can ease mental worries for the athlete who tries to predict/control a race day outcome, it's important to recognize that being race ready is more than just checking off workouts and having a strict plan for race day.

Two years ago, at 2014 Ironman Wisconsin, something incredible happened.
Karel and I both qualified for the 2015 Ironman World Championship.
Although our goal was to both qualify, our results could not have been planned nor predicted.

Karel: 9:44, 3rd AG (35-39), 9th overall male amateur.
Marni: 10:44, 3rd AG (30-34), 6th overall male amateur.

To the minute and the exact same podium spot, we both excelled to the best of our best ability on race day.

The outcome of race day was not just a result of hard work in training and great luck on race day but it was also from a processed-drive mindset that kept us moving in the right direction, for 140.6 miles.
The plan was to Kona qualify - that's it.

It's been two years since this special race day and we can both agree that we have learned SO much more about endurance racing and what it takes to bring out the best in you on race day. 

Whether you are trying to qualify for Kona, hoping for a podium spot or a personal best or looking to have an all-around enjoyable race day experience, here are a few race ready tips, not involving metrics or nutrition, that have helped us excel in endurance triathlon races over the past few years.

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1) Be realistic with your race day goals but don't sell yourself short. Although you are racing with your current level of fitness, you must believe in yourself, that your training has given you the mental and physical skills to race smart and to excel.

2) It's completely normal to have race week/day nerves - nerves mean that you care about your performance.  Whether you fear the upcoming distance, the unknowns of the race course or weather worry you or you feel pressure from yourself, friends or family, you should never let your fears, worries or nerves get the best of you. Visualize yourself succeeding before race day so that you can turn some of that nervous energy into excited energy.

 3) Keep your mindset positive before and during the race. It can be performance destructive to have conflicting thoughts before the race - like negative energy about your readiness, powerful doubts about your worthiness as an athlete, uncertainties about if you are cut out for this event and maybe even thoughts of "this isn't worth this pain" or "I just want to get this over with."
It's important that you care throughout the entire race - this means keeping your mind in a place where you always care about your performance and no matter what obstacles come your way, you stay focused and mentally strong to put forth the best race performance possible by your body.

4) When racing, remember that thoughts are temporary. Every negative thought will precede and follow a positive thought. We often call these highs and lows of racing and we all feel them. You just have to keep moving forward so that you can catch those positive thoughts  - and try to hang on to them for as long as possible. 

5) 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 planning your sport nutrition, your clothing, your pacing plan and your attitude. Racing to your best is accepting that you can not control everything so you must remain processed driven.

6)  Do not sabotage your race day performance with your body by worrying about (or trying to control) your weight. There is no reason to restrict, control or stress about food in the days leading up to the race, unless it is to help you maximize performance (give you energy), keep you hydrated and reduce risk for GI issues on race day (low residue/fiber diet). 

7) Do not deviate from what has worked in training. Avoid seconding guessing yourself and don't worry about what other athletes are or are not doing.  It's your body and your race.

8) Embrace your  competition. Racing brings out the best in athletes and often, competition will push you to perform better than you thought was possible. But this means that you can't doubt yourself - if you find yourself saying "I'm so slow, everyone is so much faster, I don't belong here" you won't rise to your abilities. Always race your closest competition and let others bring out the best in you.

9) Help out your fellow athletes. If an athlete is having a great day or if an athlete is struggling, give him/her a cheer. There's great power for you and the other athletes in spreading energy through a cheer, high five or a smile.

10) Don't chase times, paces and rankings. You must stay present at all times - processed drive, not outcome focused.

11) Be more than just be physically prepared. Review the course in great detail, review the weather, read the athlete guide, attend the athlete briefing and do anything else possible before the race to feel mentally prepared. Nothing brings more confidence than feeling prepared.

12) Have fun! After your race, you go back to life. Let's be honest - racing is fun and for just one day, you get to do something for yourself and by yourself. In some crazy way, tell yourself that no matter how much it hurts on race day, you don't want it to end. Enjoy your special day and be grateful and thankful that you can do what you can do with your body. Be yourself in every way possible.

Breakfast tacos

Yep, that's right.

Tacos for breakfast.

Or, as a recovery meal after a long workout.

And maybe even for dinner too!

There's no overthinking breakfast tacos.

1) Take your favorite omelet ingredients and scramble them all together in a skillet.
2) Stuff inside a taco (or two, or three).
3) Top with your favorite omelet/taco toppings - gauc, cheese, sour cream, salsa.
4) Yum

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On Saturday afternoon, after a 4 hour ride, I was suddenly in the mood for something savory and crunchy. Although my post ride pancakes were super delish, tacos sounded amazingly awesome while watching the live stream of the Ironman 70.3 Ironman World Championship.

I sauteed kale in a skillet and added mushrooms and onions. When my veggies were cooked, I scrambled together 2 eggs and combined with my sauteed veggies.

I then took taco shells and slathered the inside with smashed avocado, sprinkled on the shredded cheese (so that it would melt on the shell when I added my hot ingredients) and I stuffed each shell with my veggie and egg mixture.
There was some overflowing of eggs and veggies, which wasn't a problem until I needed to take a picture....thus the far-away picture of messy overly-stuffed tacos.

I encourage you to break away from any food rules or repetitive eating habits that are keeping you from enjoying a healthy and fun way of fueling and nourishing your body.

Breakfast tacos anyone? 

Are sport nutrition products healthy?

Sport nutrition products are designed to enhance performance, specifically during prolonged activity when glycogen depletion and dehydration can compromise energy metabolism. Therefore, a major goal of sport nutrition companies is to formulate a variety of products, in all types of textures, flavors and forms, to help athletes train and compete with optimal power, speed, strength, stamina and mental focus. 

There is great research showing that carbohydrate-based fuels are the predominant energy source at high intensities and during long duration, to postpone fatigue. Because a decline in muscle and liver glycogen (stored carbohydrates) can greatly limit endurance performance, sugar, the primary ingredient in most sport drinks, can be absorbed quickly to help maintain steady blood glucose levels.

Unlike the untrained athlete, a trained athlete has a favorable response to sugar during exercise, not to mention that the sport nutrition has a clear need and reason for consumption - when your body is asked to perform, you give it energy and electrolytes to meet metabolic needs.

Because sugar remains to have a very negative reputation in society, it's understandable why you may feel great confusion, as a health-conscious athlete, whether or not sport nutrition products, which contain a hefty dose of some type of sugar (sucrose, dextrose, maltodextrin,  fructose, can sugar, etc.), have a place in a “healthy” diet.  

Certainly, overconsumption of sugar is not healthy for the human body.
But if you are starving your body of fuel during a high intensity or long duration workout/race, with the intention of wanting to stay healthy, you may be doing more harm than good.

The sugar found in sport nutrition drinks, chews and gels, consumed at specific frequent intervals during long duration or high-intensity training sessions and races, should not receive the same unhealthy reputation as the sugar found in donuts, cereals, soda and candy bars, especially since most individuals who are "addicted to sugar" are consuming heavily processed foods, rich in sugar, while being sedentary or when exercising at a very low intensity.     

As you train to maximize your fitness, the sugar found in sport nutrition products can actually help to keep your body in optimal health. However, not all sport nutrition products are created equal. 

Select your sport nutrition products wisely.

If you are passionate about where your food comes from, you should feel the same way about the ingredients found in your favorite sport nutrition products. Sport nutrition products do not need fancy ingredients. Keep your products easy to find, easy to consume and easy to digest. 

What works best for you? 

Depending on your sport or activity, intensity or duration, every athletes will have his/her preferred fuel type, specific to consistency, texture and flavor. But in order to find what works for you, you have to practice, practice, practice. Now more than ever, sport nutrition companies are aware that regardless of the type of product, athletes desire real ingredients in sport nutrition. 

There are a variety of products that cater to your needs as an athlete.
Do you prefer the ease and convenience of liquid calories (sport nutrition powder) to meet energy and hydration needs or the simplicity of a concentrated dose of energy (ex. blocks/chews or gels)?  Athletes who desire a more real food texture will often look to bars to please the palate while keeping the tummy satisfied. 

Regardless of what fuel source you favor during training and racing, it’s important that your body can properly absorb and tolerate the food product of your liking, in repeated intervals, throughout your entire workout/race. Above all, don't choose a product simply because it is giving you calories (or energy). A sport nutrition product must be well-formulated, which means that the concentration of electrolytes and carbohydrates are mixed well with a specific amount of water to empty from the GI tract to be properly absorbed by the working muscles. If you are a random sport nutrition user, with no rhyme or reason as to why or when you fuel, you may find that when you do take in sport nutrition, your calories are not being digested, but instead, they are simply sitting in the gut, causing a host of GI issues (vomiting, diarrhea, bloating, cramping, sloshy stomach), not to mention increasing the risk of dehydration, fatigue and nausea.

If you want to reach your performance goals, appreciate sport nutrition products (and the sugar found in them) as they are designed to support your energy, hydration and electrolyte needs to keep your body functioning properly as you train hard to maximize performance. 

As a health conscious endurance athlete who believes in a real food diet, I am a firm believer that sport nutrition has it's place in my athlete "diet" as I consume sport nutrition products during key workouts and on race day to support my physiological needs.

In other words, sport nutrition products keep me healthy and performing well. 

Discussing sport nutrition to my athletes at the 2016 Trimarni Greenville camp.
Campy was really interested in the talk, hoping I would mention about the importance of fueling for an all-day session of napping (which Campy excels at). 

Confused by your appetite? Break the hunger cycle

Mmmmm, homemade pancakes for breakfast.

Are you one of the many athletes who feels that something is off with your hunger?


-You don't feel hungry before a workout OR you feel starving before a workout but you stop yourself from eating "too much" because you don't want to feel too full during your workout
-You feel really hungry in the middle or toward the end of a workout
-You have little appetite post workout OR you are starving post workout
-When it's time to eat your meals, you don't feel hungry enough to eat but in between meals and in the evening, you are starving

If you are an athlete who knows that there are times when you should/shouldn't be so hungry, but you just can't seem to understand or fix your hunger, something needs to change.

I've worked with many athletes, just like yo,u and it's not just an annoying feeling to be hungry during your workouts and during snack time but have no appetite during meal time or befor/after workouts, but it can also be performance limiting when you are not eating appropriately before, during and after your workouts, as well as throughout the day.

In my experience, for the athletes who are stuck feeling hungry at the wrong times, it's very common to eat/fuel too much during a workout because the hunger is too much to handle when training. While there is nothing wrong with eating a little something to satisfy hunger while training, if this is happening often, it's hard to:

1) Fine-tune your sport nutrition strategy to meet metabolic needs.
2) Fuel properly. You may end up overfueling, thus eating more than your body can digest and absorb.
3) Break the cycle. You are making your cycle worse because every time you eat too much during a workout to satisfy hunger, this causes you to not feel hungry after the workout, thus enabling this cycle to continue.

If this is you, your appetite/hunger cycle needs to be fixed.

To help break this cycle, it would be most beneficial to work with a sport dietitian who can analyze your current daily diet and sport nutrition regime. Sometimes, all it takes is better meal planning (ex. more balanced meals), betting timing of meals and snacks or a different fueling regime around and during workouts.

If you think you can break this cycle on your own, I suggest to spend 72 hours during the week (when you are training consistently in the morning and/or at night) and make yourself eat similar meals, at similar times throughout the day (even if you aren't hungry). If a workout is more than 60 minutes, use some type of sport nutrition during the workout and make sure you eat before and after your workouts with a small pre/post workout snack. 

After this temporary period of being consistent with your eating, you should notice that your body is more in sync with your workouts and you are hungry at the right times during the day (with less hunger, during your workouts).

Ultimately, the goal of timing your appetite appropriately with your workouts is to help you best fuel and refuel from workouts, stay nourished with healthy food options during the day and to feel energized during your workouts without feeling limited by intense hunger. 

No pressure training

I may not have a triathlon race on my schedule but I'm training for Kona!

Well, not as a participant this year but I am Karel's official training partner in the pool. Yes, that means that I will be doing every swim workout on Karel's PPF training plan, with him, between now and IM Kona race day.

Teammwork makes the dream work...or Karel's case, misery loves company....as in the case of our main set of 8 x 300's (descend by 2 from 70% to very strong effort) this morning (4500 yards total swim).

I'm also joining Karel for his easier workouts on the bike (Tri and road bikes). 

And for his easy runs.

And, I make sure his post workout snacks and meals are always ready for when he finishes a workout.

It's a tough job but my reward is a 2-week trip to the big island of Kona in a few weeks!

But it won't be all play in paradise as we have two Trimarni athletes racing their first IM World Championship (Justine and Leigh-Ann) so race week will be all about my athletes, as I will be going over nutrition and pacing strategies once last time with them, taking them through visualizations and training with them on the race course (and going over every detail of that race course).

You'd think that Karel would be mentally and physically exhausted right now, after racing two Ironmans in 8 weeks, and now with his third Ironman this season in just five weeks, but Karel is in a great place mentally and physically.
He is so excited for his second Ironman World Championship and every day he looks forward to training.
Despite some obstacles this season, he has gained a lot of fitness this season and a big reason why is his no-pressure approach - he just loves the process of developing.

Now that I finally feel recovered from the Lake Logan Half, the 4-day Greenville Purple Patch Camp and spectating at Ironman Mont Tremblant, I'm back training again with absolutely no pressure to perform. After Kona, I'll be participating in the Hincapie Gran Fondo, where I plan to ride hard for 80 miles on my road bike, on an extremely difficult course and that will officially conclude my 2016 racing season.

While I feel it is always good to train with a purpose, this last week had me thinking about how much pressure we (athletes) put on ourselves when we train for a race. Yes, pressure is good as it means you care and you want to get better but too much pressure can be a bad thing.

Pressure can be exhausting - mentally and physically.
Too much pressure on yourself can also wear out your training partners, friends and family (ex. spouse/significant other). 

Although my training is loosely structured right now, I am still focused on getting the most out of my body for every workout. I can tell you that my mind and body are working really well right now as I am only focused on the task at hand without expectations as to how I need to feel - no pressure training.

I find that I perform my best when I don't put a lot of pressure on myself.
But as you may agree, it's much easier said than done, especially when an important race is on the schedule.

To make sure that pressure doesn't get the best of you, here are some tips to bring the fun back into training:


Running through lava fields is FUN! 

1) Training is your hobby, not your life. If you aren't having fun training, you may want to reconsider why you are training in the first place.
2) Don't compare yourself to others or a past version of yourself.
3) Don't overthink the workout.
4) Go into your workout with no expectations instead of low expectations.
5) Be ok with modifying a workout for a better outcome when you are tired, fatigued or you have a niggle.
6) Always listen to your body.
7) Forget about perfectionism. You will never be perfect. Life will never be perfect.
8) Do the best you can with the time you have. Don't assume tomorrow will always be better.
9) Be processed driven, not outcome focused.
10) Understand the workout purpose.
11) Be ok with making mistakes.
12) Allow yourself to have a bad workout every now and then.
13) Stop telling yourself that you are too slow or that you should be somewhere else with your fitness right now. Be ok with where you are - you are exactly where you need to be.
14) Focus on your individual development.
15) It's never going to get easier. You just learn how to train smarter.
16) Don't be afraid to suffer.
17) Consistency goes a long way. 

18) Don't take yourself too seriously. Adjust the standards you put on yourself.
19) Always bring a can-do attitude to your workout. When you don't have the energy to train, just exercise.
20) See challenges as opportunities to improve.

Behind the scenes - IMMT

Travel: 

-Traveling to and from Mont Tremblant was fairly easy for us. We flew from Greenville, SC into Montreal (Newark layover going, Dulles layover returning), rented an SUV and drove 130km (~1 hour and 40 minutes) to Mont Tremblant. There was a little traffic around Montreal but around 40 minutes into our drive, the scenery changed to trees and hills and it was a beautiful drive into the village of Mont Tremblant.

-It's very easy to rent a car at the airport as the rental car kiosk is right across the street, in the parking garage. I would strongly advise to rent a car from the airport and not off-site - it's just too easy to get the car right there, even if you save a few bucks off site.

-The customs process did not take long for us when we arrived, however returning home, the customs at the Montreal airport (to fly into the US) took us over two hours to get checked in, go through customs, go through security and then to arrive to our gate (and the airport is not that big).

-If you do not have a US passport, review the requirements for getting into Canada. Karel is a US permanent resident (not US Citizen) so he had to get an Electronic Travel Authorization (he paid for it before our trip). 

-We had a few athletes drive to Mont Tremblant from the East coast and they did not experience any issues.

-You can exchange your money (ex. USD) to Canadian dollars (with a service charge) at the airport as the kiosk is right by the baggage pick-up. You can also use your credit card but be sure to check if you are international to see if Canada accepts your credit card and to review the fees for international use.

-I started making our travel arrangements in October of 2015, specifically for a house that could accommodate our large group (13+). I reached out to Francois at Experience Tremblant (email: info@experiencetremblant.com) and he was great to work with. Most of the houses are up on the hill, surrounding the village (it's only about 1-1.5 miles from the race venue but get your climbing legs ready) so if you want to make your race experience extremely simple, book a hotel at the village (there are plenty). There is no parking at the village and it can be tough to drop off athletes near the race venue but the shuttle service from the houses (our street had a shuttle service) on the hills and around the area runs often and they are very timely and easy to access. There is also off-site parking with a shuttle service.  

-Depending on your cell service, data rates may apply. We have Sprint and we were able to use our phone as normal except call were $0.20 a minute. We left calling to emergency situations as text worked just fine. 

-Everyone speaks French in the Québec region. Although many people speak English, you will find that depending on where you go, some people would prefer if you speak their language of French as they do not want to speak English to you. Many people switch back and forth from English to French. We found Mont Tremblant to be English-friendly but in route to Mont Tremblant, in Montreal, they would not speak English to us at the gas station.

Race Venue


 -Comparable to IM Lake Placid, the village is very cute and it's easy to get around. You really feel like you are in a story book with all the brightly colored buildings. There is only one transition which makes it easy on the day before the race to drop off all gear. If you plan to eat at restaurants and stay in a hotel at the race venue, you really don't need a car during your stay (try to carpool to get to the village if not renting a car).

-There are plenty of places to eat and shop and the town is also very kid-friendly and pet-friendly.

-There is a lot to do for your non-racing friends/family members and you'll find it easy to train on the race course on the days leading up to the race.

-Expect to walk if you want to get anywhere because it's hard to get around by car in/around the village. 

-The race venue is incredibly spectator friendly. Just be sure to review the race courses ahead of time as the logistics of getting to and from places are not easy due to the barricades and crosswalks on the streets and sidewalks. While this makes for a safe race for the athletes, it does make it hard to navigate your way around, easily, during the race.

-The town 100% welcomes the Ironman and supports the triathletes. Karel had so many congrats from the spectators after the race - they made him feel very special after the race, which is something that you DO want to see at an Ironman race venue.

-The race course is challenging. Expect that you can't expect what the weather will be like on race day. But the experience of the race venue is worth the challenge of racing in Mont Tremblant. 

Food: 

-There are plenty of places to eat at in the village. As to be expected, some restaurants do raise the prices on the menus on race week.
We ordered out pizza for our team dinner from Yaoooo.
We ate at Casey's grill Bar after the race (burgers, fries, beer, salads)
We ate at La Diable on the day after the race.
We didn't eat at the La Maison de la crêpe due to long waits but it looked amazing.
For great ice cream and pastries (croissants), we went to Oh La Vache!

-You will need to drive to the grocery store, which is about 15 minutes away (IGA grocery). There is an in-town grocery with a small selection of items. The food prices (Canadian dollar) are comparable to what I would pay (USD) in Hawaii (as a reference). Since we had a big house, we split the groceries among everyone in our house which helped to save a lot of money. Aside from ordering out pizza, Karel and I didn't eat out until after the race.

I put together a video from our trip at IM Mont Tremblant. It was a special trip for us, not only because Karel qualified for IM Kona but we were able to share it with so many of our athletes, who raced and cheered.
We absolutely love seeing our athletes in action and spending time with those who are closest to our athletes (family members, spouses, friends). This is why we offer Key Trimarni races to our coaching team, so that we can share race day experiences together, as a Trimarni family.

IMMT race recap - running to a Kona slot

In the short time that we were back in our team house, I was doing a lot of calculations, with the help of a few tracker apps (thanks Ryan), to determine where I needed to be, and when, to cheer for our athletes on the bike. Luckily, our house was close to the 12-mile out and back section on the bike  which made it easy to walk to where I needed to be.


Karel starting the bike before the rain started.

However, once I got changed into dry clothes and ate some food, I realized I needed to hurry up to get down the hill to see Karel coming back from the out and back, before starting his second loop.

I ran down the hill with my umbrella, in the rain and sprinted my way up the hill to a spot where I could see Karel coming down the hill to my right, but also I could asee the other Trimarni's starting the out and back to my left.

Despite the pouring rain, there were spectators out cheering for the athletes.




Knowing Karel's riding style, I spotted a flash of orange and knew it was Karel.  I gave him a big cheer. He was stretching his back, out of the saddle, while slowing down to make a right hand 90-degree turn before heading to the 180-turn to start the 2nd loop. He later told me that he didn't hear me, even though I was cheering loud.

My first thought was that his back was bothering him and just like in Austria, he would not be able to feel comfortable on the bike for 112 miles. But then I remembered that Karel knows how to deal with situations when they come about so I just hoped for the best that he could get through the bike and do some damage control on the run.

It was hard to tell how Karel's race was going due to the rain but more so, because the tracker was not always updating in a timely manner.

Karel later told me that he was very cautious to not take any risks in the rain (as there were several crashes on the bike course) but he was giving the best effort he could, on that day, for all 112 miles. Seeing that Karel rode the entire loop of the course on Thurs, he said that knowing the course was extremely helpful as he knew where to take smart risks and where he should stay controlled.
Of course, all of this was dependent on how he felt, in the moment as he is very in-tune with his body when he races.

Karel didn't mind the rain, except for when it rained so hard that it felt like needles on his skin. Oh, and there were times when he couldn't see because his dark visor was covered with water. But other than those instances, the air and rain temperature was not too cold for Karel and with the effort he was pushing, he felt comfortable all day. Sure, the rain was a bit annoying as it rained the entire bike ride but Karel loved the bike course and he wasn't going to let the rain keep him from trying to reach his race day goal of Kona qualifying.



Karel consumed 5 bottles of sport nutrition on the bike (each with ~250-280 calories, he started with 3 bottles on his bike and then grabbed 2 in special needs). Karel would have used on course nutrition for the 2nd loop of the bike but he does not like the Gatorade Thirst (it makes him thirsty - go figure) which was offered on the race course. Karel doesn't mind Gatorade Endurance but it is not sold in Canada, thus not on IM race courses in Canada.

Karel consumed a few Clif bloks ("gummy bears"), an Enervite sport bar and a Hot Shot on the bike - all items that he had in his fuel pouch, mounted on his bike. He didn't grab any extra water on the bike that he can remember.
Aside from his liquid calories, Karel does not have a set fueling strategy for the "extra" nutrition that he consumes on the bike. He just take in what he thinks he need, when he thinks he need it - no overthinking needed.

Karel said that he felt good on the bike and pushed it from start to finish. Even though Karel comes from a cycling background, he has learned that his strength is running off the bike. He is extremely good at managing his effort on the bike, with great cycling skills, holding an effort that is at the tip-top of his endurance threshold, where it is uncomfortable but sustainable for 112 miles. The other thing is that Karel can never push as hard in training as he can on race day. Although he doesn't use gadgets for pacing in training and on race day, after he reviews his files from an Ironman, he sees watts much higher than what he sees in training. It's true to say that Karel always saves his best efforts for race day.

Karel does not go by any metrics, like power, when he races and he doesn't wear a HR monitor. He doesn't like the idea of having a pacing strategy when he races as he never knows what the day will bring, at each mile of the race course.
No expectations needed.
Karel is a true racer.

When Karel races, he knows what he wants to feel and he remains present. Even though he is competitive, he's not out to beat athletes but to bring out the best in himself.
Through the high moments and the low moments, he is focused on giving his best effort. He always hears his pre-race music and he is laser focused on being in the moment.

Is Karel capable of biking faster with his extensive cycling background?
Perhaps.
But what he is doing right now IS working and he doesn't overthink things or expect more out of himself at this point in his development.

After cheering for all Trimarnis out on the bike for the out and back section, we made our way back to the house to change out of cold, soaking wet clothes, before making our way to the run course.



This was my last time back at the house and it only lasted about 20 minutes - enough time to dry off and change into dry clothes.....before the rain came down again on the run.

Trimarni athlete Angela looking fashionable in her rain gear

Rain or shine - we will cheer!

All the Trimarni spectators from our team house made our way to the first hill on the run, about 1/2 mile from the transition area. This was the perfect place to see the Trimarnis from a distance but also, to give them a boost of energy in the early part of the run.



Thankful for a portable cell charger (we never travel without it - it's perfect for race day situations when you are without a plug), I was able to track all of our athletes as they made their way to T1. I was so relieved to see bike splits for everyone...which meant everyone was still moving forward, on their bikes!


After watching the pros come by, I made sure to notice the male age groupers ahead of Karel and by how much.
The first place guy in Karel's AG (Stefano from Italy) passed by me and he looked good. At that point, I started my stop watch.
Five minutes went by.....10 minutes went by....no Karel.

This had me a little worried but then again, I didn't want to make any assumptions as the Ironman gets real around mile 20 of the marathon. That's where races are typically won or lost.

I waited and waited and waited as I knew Karel would be in transition soon and finally, after a refresh on my phone, I was super excited to see that he finally entered T2 AND was in 5th place off the bike.

Karel passed 17 guys in his AG , 101 males and 140 total athletes on the bike.

We guessed that there would be 4 Kona slots in his age group (Karel's 40-44 AG was the largest AG with 400+ starters and there were 5 slots at IM Austria with 500+ starters in his age group) so all he needed to do was to move up a few slots (Karel knew that 3rd would secure the slot but 4th may be a gamble).

OK - time to commit Karel!!!

With this being my first time spectating Karel for an entire Ironman, I had to decide what information I would give Karel in the 10-20 seconds that I could run with him up the hill. I also had to think, what questions he ask me in the start of the run.

I guess it takes an athlete to know an athlete.

Here's how our conversation went on the hill.



Karel - "How far am I behind first place"
Marni - "14 minutes and 56 seconds"
Marni - "But don't worry about him, there are three athletes ahead of you that you can catch"
Karel - "What place am I now"
Marni - "5th place age groupu - you are doing amazing, just stay steady."
Karel - "Oh wow, ok."



I was relieved that his first question was about 1st place in his age group because it confirmed to me that Karel was on a mission. Knowing that he has no hip/back issues when he runs, I knew that he could get himself into that metronome-style running that works so well for him - he simply becomes numb and just runs with his only focus on form.

Although Karel never paces the run according to his Garmin, this time around, he had no splits because his multisport function got set-off in his warm-up (jog and swim)  so in the end, he had 140.6 miles of swimming (haha).
This run was 100% by feel.

Going by RPE as always worked really well for Karel. He doesn't like to have expectations or anticipated paces when he races. Never has Karel said "I'd like to hold x-mph or finish in x-time".
Karel likes to stay in the moment when he runs so when he starts the run, and for every mile thereafter, his only focus is on his form and taking care of himself to maintain energy.

Karel always runs with his 4-flask fuel belt (3 flasks filled with different sport nutrition powder and 1 flask with 3 caffeinated Enervite Cheerpacks) and then uses coke/red bull and water when his flasks are empty. The great thing about having a hydration belt is that he can drink when he wants to drink.

Not always does your mind/body want nutrition at an aid station and depending on your running pace, you may only hit 5-6 aid stations per hour whereas faster runners can hit 7-8+ aid stations per hour (thus more opportunities to pick and choose what and when they want to drink, to get in calories and fluids).

Around mile 22 of the run, Karel felt a sudden loss of energy. He couldn't feel his feet on the ground and he was starting to get shaky. All signs of a bonk in the making.
Luckily, this happened right at an aid station so Karel stopped to take care of himself, drank some coke and then restarted the run when he felt normal again.
If you were tracking Karel with an app, you'll notice that this bonk incidence caused a slow down in his pace but other than that, he maintained great tempo for the entire 2nd loop of the marathon run.

Because Karel has always suffered from muscle-related cramping (well before his triathlon days, when he was racing bikes), he has found great relief with Hot Shot.
Karel took a Hot Shot at the start of the run and then around mile 18 of the run (he took a total of 4 Hot Shots throughout the race, with one consumed before the swim and one on the bike).

Our spot on the hill was fantastic as we could give a big cheer to all the Trimarni athletes as they started the run. None of them expected us to be there so it was so fun to see their faces.

And I could give out free hugs - like to my friend Ange, who I had not seen in several years but we have known each other for 9 years. She dominated her 45-49 AG by winning with a 10:25.1 finish time and placed 10th overall female!

The rain continued to fall but it was on and off.
For many athletes, this made for heavy shoes and lots of sore feet.

I continued to track Karel and the 4 guys ahead of him. Stefano (the first place guy, nearly 15 minutes ahead of him) and Karel were running the same paces. My eyes were on David, Tim and Adam (based on the tracker) who were ahead of Karel coming off the bike.

I paid close attention to the bib numbers (which were mostly turned around to the backside of the athletes) as the body markings had washed off many of the athletes.
Apparently, everyone who was watching me had a good laugh as it looked as if I was checking out the male butts (for bib numbers) and calves as the athletes ran by me.


Just doing my job of "checking out" the athletes ahead of Karel.
 I know ladies, it's a tough job :) 

I saw Stefano and then the bib name "David" who had passed by me so at this point, I knew that Karel had moved up into third place after 13 miles. I walked up the hill and spotted Karel.
I ran back to our spot and found a good place where I could communicate with Karel on his place.



I told Karel that he was in 3rd place and I could tell that he was relieved that he was moving up as he was in a world of hurt. I could tell from his face that he was giving everything he had and leaving it all out there.
This time around, no questions were asked by Karel and he gave no feedback. I think I got a slight head nod that he was still committed.



The course had several hills but it was a great course for Karel to find his rhythm. He had his music playing in his head throughout the entire run and he was able to put himself into that deep dark, painful place, where he is able to get the best out of himself.

We continued to give a lot of cheers to the Trimarni athletes who were passing by in each direction and as Karel was coming back, I knew that this would be the last time I would see him before the finish.


Karel running through the crowd to start his 2nd loop.
Although I know that the marathon is long and in an Ironman, anything can happen in those later miles, I always stay very confident in Karel's ability to run off the bike.

He is remarkable at not slowing down and he is great at suffering. Many times, he gets stronger as the run goes on. This is not because he runs a lot or runs fast or runs long in training (there's no magic formula) but because he saves his best effort for when it counts and he can put it all together - swim/bike-run - on race day.
(But to be honest, he does train hard - he keeps his easy sessions easy and his hard sessions are hard)

It's truly incredible watching him run and I was so happy to be on the sidelines to watch him at Ironman Mont Tremblant....running to qualify for his 2nd Ironman World Championship

I started my watch when Karel came by and gave him a big cheer before he quickly passed by us. Based on his run splits, I figured I had about 50 minutes before I had to make my way to the finish line (I wasn't sure about the crowds and how long it would take me to get to the finish line bleachers)


GOOOOOO!
I was having so much fun cheering for our athletes but when my watch told me that 50 minutes had passed by, it was time for me to make my way to the finish to see Karel.



The Ironman Mont Tremblant staff did a great job with the race course as it was extremely spectator friendly but it made it tough to get places quickly (or at least for me to hurry my way to the finish to see Karel).

Although the athletes received lots of cheers as they ran through the village center to start the 2nd loop, the downside (for the athletes) was running right next to the finish chute before starting the 2nd loop.

The rain was still on and off but it cleared just in time for Karel to finish.

Fist pump! 

6x Ironman finisher!!



After Karel finished, he told me that he hurt so bad...from the effort.
After a few minutes, he asked what place he was and I told him 2nd AG. Instantly, he felt better :)
I also told him his run split was 3:08.21 and he was shocked - he said he couldn't believe he ran that fast on that course.

Karel ended up passing Stefano (who had a 15 minute lead on Karel) and only David was ahead of Karel...by just ~2 minutes.

Pure exhaustion. 

After Karel collecting himself and got in some calories and fluids at the athlete food tent, Karel changed in the registration bathrooms (and put on dry clothes) and we waited around the finish line for Trimarni athlete Adam to finish (he was next to finish, in 11:08!).

Yippee! A medal well-earned!

The rain was on and off but eventually, it did stop!

We found the perfect spot to eat and to cheer on the other Trimarni athletes to the finish.
Karel happily enjoyed his post-race burger and beer.

Let the celebration begin!
The hard work paid off!


Karel is off to his 2nd Kona in 6 weeks!

IMMT race recap - pre-race and swim

Karel came to Mont Tremblant with one goal.

To Kona qualify.

This wasn't a goal that came after his 9th place at Ironman Austria but instead, this was THE season goal, which was established last November, when we planned out our 2016 racing schedule.

Although Karel had a phenomenal race at Ironman Austria, just 8 weeks ago, Mont Tremblant was always the race where his training would lead him to peak appropriately on August 21st, 2016.

Ironman Austria was a bit of a shock for Karel, in terms of his overall time and place, especially considering his back and hip issues in the weeks leading up to the race. Additionally, his coach Matt Dixon did not structure his training to "peak" for IM Austria so he was still in the early phases of his development, without getting into the meat of IM specific training.

Karel is not one to make excuses or assumptions when it comes to training or racing, and although he was carrying great momentum from his previous 3 overall race wins in April and May, Karel has been dealing with some body niggles, requiring some modifications in his training.

Unless you are a very close friend of his, you will likely never hear from him that something is wrong or that things are not going well because Karel loves to train but even more, he absolutely loves racing.

Of course, as his wife, I have all the insider details on his training and like any athletic couple, we both have our share of good and bad days/workouts. But I will say that Karel is not one to complain.

Although yes, setbacks are frustrating for him, he always has a great sense of calm that either everything will work out or he will do the best he can and if things happen, he will address them when they happen.

All things said and done, after we went to the roll down at Ironman Austria, when Karel realized that he missed qualifying for Kona by 3 places (it rolled down to 6th place and he was 9th) and it was only less than 2 minutes separating his 9th place finish from 6th place, Karel told me that he had no idea if he could go through the pain and suffering that he felt in Austria. As much as he was looking forward to IMMT, it was a bit of a let down knowing that he was so close to Kona qualifying at Austria.
In all honesty, at that point, he just wished the Kona qualifying was accomplished at IM Austria so that he could race IMMT without pressure.  

Well, it didn't take long and after a few weeks in Czech with his family, filled with lots of beer, momma's home cooking and pastries, Karel returned home to Greenville, motivated to achieve his season goal of Kona qualifying at IMMT.

There were some setbacks and niggles along the way but with a great coach, a hard working mindset, patience and a controllable ego that never gets in the way of smart training (flexibility is key to consistency), alongside frequent massages and PT to keep his body in good shape (we learned that Karel's body needs help in this area), Karel found himself arriving to Mont Tremblant with several weeks of quality training behind him, a healthy body (minus a few niggles requiring kinesio tape, epson salt baths and manual massaging) and excitement to give it his all, once again this season, for 140.6 miles.

I'll cover all the details on traveling to IMMT, and showcasing our amazing Trimarni athletes in action in IMMT (and all of our fun workouts, yummy meals and pictures from our huge team house) but for now, I'm skipping to the insider details of Karel's race.
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On Saturday morning, I rode with a few of our athletes for their 45-75 minute bike warm-up and then continued on with Trimarni athlete Elizabeth (not racing) to give us 2 hours on the bike.

Karel went out in the morning for his own for a pre-race swim and bike and before he came home, I started on his first of three meals for the day (I prepared all his meals on Saturday), which was French Toast, eggs and fruit. He had that with coffee (of course) and a recovery drink of milk and Clif recovery powder. I knew our athletes would need a satisfying carb-rich breakfast after their pre-race workout so I made enough for everyone. 

We could not wait to watch the women's Olympic triathlon so we all crowded in the TV rooms (basement and upstairs) to watch the coverage (a mix of English and French as we were switching the channels during commercial breaks).

The morning was very low key which was good for our athletes. Everyone just did their own thing and relaxed until it was time for bag and bike check in.

 Around 1:30pm, our athletes made their way down to the race venue (only ~1 mile from our rental home, but this walk/drive includes one long hill to go down/up but the hill sits directly on the bike course (near the overhead walkway).

Karel packed his gear bags after the conclusion of the women's triathlon race (way to go Gwen!) and I made him lunch as he was resting in bed, listening to his pre-race play list.
For his second meal of the day, I warmed leftover pasta (from our team pizza/pasta party on Friday night) with some diced chicken breast, cheese, marinara sauce, tomatoes, a few bread slices with butter, from a fresh baguette.
Karel only ate half of his lunch as he was still pretty full from breakfast.
Although, he did have room for 1/2 of a chocolate stuffed croissant after lunch :) 

Karel rode his bike and gear bags down to transition and I walked and met him down. He was "in the zone" so there wasn't a lot of talking by Karel. Although it's hard for me at times because I like talking with Karel before a race, I respect Karel's pre-race routine and I let him do his thing and I am just there if/when he needs me.
Of course, when we both race, Karel is certainly more available to me as I need him much more than he need me. 

At the mandatory pre-race meeting on Friday evening, the race director discussed the possible 3 situations that may occur due to the predicted storms, rain and fog. I commend the race director for having this plan ahead of time and discussing with the athletes. Although many athletes were concerned about the 100% chance of storms all day, this made for less stress and anxiety for those "what if" situations that may occur on race day. The biggest fear was cancelling the swim (or shortening it) due to fog on the lake (which luckily, wasn't an issue come Sunday morning). 

Karel was able to bypass some lines as an AWA athlete which made it very smooth for getting himself in and out of the transition and transition tent.
Ironman did an incredible job with the race set-up, this race venue was not only beautiful but easy to access (you can either walk from your hotel in the town, take a bus or walk from a house up on the hills surrounding the town). 

After Karel finished his to-do's at the race venue around 2:30pm, we walked back up the hill to our team house.

Karel used the rest of the afternoon to relax and to continue to get into his zone.

To help enhance his race day performances, Karel does a lot of visualization before his race. Not only does he see himself succeeding before the race but he also needs a lot of time, visualizing, to get himself ready for the hurt that he will feel on race day. He puts himself IN the race before the race. This requires a lot of alone time and good music but it's a critical part of his pre-race routine. Incorporating this visualization into his pre-race routine has really helped take his performances to the next level this season. 

For Karel's last meal of the day, consumed around 4:30pm, his pre-race dinner meal, I made him a plate of basmati rice and a chicken breast (small one) and tossed it together with marinara sauce and cheese. It's a simple meal and easy to digest, and it's a typical meal for him on the night before his races.
Of course, there were a few cookies and a glass of milk consumed after dinner to satisfy his sweet teeth. 

As for me, the Trimarni spectators and a few Trimarni athletes, we sat outside, told stories and laughed a lot until it was time for dinner. 

Occasionally, Karel would pop out from our bedroom door, on to the balcony and make us all laugh (he has a great sense of humor!).

Here's one of the songs that had us laughing - it was not on his playlist but just a funny tune

You can do it

Although Karel spent a lot of time alone before the race, he was also very available to our athletes, as we had course talks every evening, we ate most meals together and we socialized together throughout the day.
Karel even did some bike mechanic work to make sure our athletes all had good mechanical luck on race day.

I just love these moments with our athletes. Trimarni family time. 

Every evening, I, along with Elizabeth, Taylor, Amy and Angela, we would prepare  a meal for our athletes (and us). This made it easy for our athletes to feel nourished and fueled but it also took the stress away from "what should I eat." Food was always ready and our athletes didn't have to worry about pre or clean-up. 

And Taylor (Adam's wife), who is also a great photographer (along with Trimarni athlete Ryan - thank you both for so many great pictures!), made our house smell incredibly yummy with these M-dot cookies.

Of course, a few "accidentally" broke so a few of us had to take care of those pieces before the race (including Karel.)

Karel went to be very early (around 7:30pm) but I stayed up to watch the Olympics, until 10:30pm. It was a different feeling for me to not be racing so although I was nervous for my athletes and Karel, I wasn't able to fall asleep until around 11pm. 

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The athletes woke up around 3:45am to start the coffee and to eat their pre-race meals. I woke up around 4:20 am to start my shuttling services at 4:30 am, to take a few Trimarni's (and spectators) to the bottom of our hill to cut back on walking time.

Karel had all his bottles ready (3 on his bike, 2 for special needs on the bike and 4 flasks for the run) so all he had to do was eat and make his morning bottle to sip on in transition.

For breakfast, Karel had a few sips of a Bolthouse protein drink (vanilla) along with his typical pre-race meal - a fresh croissant topped with jam. He also had some MUD, along with coffee.

For this race, Karel did almost everything the same as his prior races as it worked before, so why change it now.

Karel wore my dad's favorite had for good luck and continued to listen to his music throughout the early morning hours. 

I gave Karel a big hug and a kiss and told him to be safe and to enjoy the day. Karel has never had a bad Ironman performance so I never worry about his race performance but instead, I just always hope that he can race to his full potential -it's a long day and anything can happen. 

After everyone was out of the house, Elizabeth, Ryan and I walked down to the swim start (and met up with Trimarni athlete Mike, who was not racing and his girlfriend - who both came to cheer on his teammates).

So far, the weather looked good but with the dark clouds moving quick, it was only a matter of time before the rain came down. Thankfully, no fog on the lake, so the race was to go on as planned.
The weather was comfortable (air and water). The pros had a non wetsuit swim and the age groupers could swim with wetsuits. 

It was an incredible sight to see all the athletes and spectators walking to the swim. 

We met up with everyone (all 7 Trimarni athletes) at the swim start for a few last minute good luck wishes. 

Elizabeth, Taylor and I made our way to the swim start to see our athletes in the corral, before crossing the chip mat to start the swim. 

I was able to see Karel one last time which made me relieved that I could give him one last hug. I was SO nervous for him and all our athletes but I knew everyone was ready.

We found the perfect spot right at the fence to see the athletes so we were able to cheer for every Trimarni athlete, in his/her wave.

I was not able to see the swimmers start in the water so after we did a head check of all 7 Trimarni athletes, who we saw in the swim corral, we made our way to the swim exit.

Because of the extremely long run from the swim exit, to the transition tent and then to bike out, 

us Trimarni spectators split up so that we could see the Trimarni athletes at various spots from swim to bike. We set up a group chat (via text) on our phones ahead of time so that we could let each other know when x-Trimarni athlete was coming. 

I had predicted my athletes swim splits ahead of time just to have an idea of when they should be finishing the swim but when I didn't see Adam (first wave) and Karel (5 minutes after Adam, at 6:48am) in the times that I had predicted, I figured it was a slow swim.

Although we swam on Thurs in very calm water, race day provided very choppy water for the athletes, which resembled the waves you would experience in the ocean.

Karel told me that he felt great the entire swim and felt extremely strong in the water. When he saw his swim split of 1:06, he didn't get worried that he was going to have a bad race because of the slower than anticipated swim time (we were thinking he would swim 1:03-1:04)  but instead, his first thought was "well, I guess it was a slow swim for everyone."

Although the swim time may have been "slow" for Karel on paper, this was actually his best swim placement in an Ironman (22nd AG, 155th male). Typically, he is is at least 60+ place in his age group after the swim (in Austria, he was 63rd AG out of the swim and 319th male).

This is why we always tell our athletes to never make assumptions and to not let a swim time affect the rest of your race - when you see your time after the swim, it's time to forget about it and move on (a main reason why I don't wear a watch for the swim when I race - my swim time will not tell me how my race is going). 

After seeing all 7 Trimarni athletes, it was nearing 9am when we started to walk back to the team house. Elizabeth and Ryan were by the round-about to catch the athletes to start the bike.

Karel told me that he was determined to go through T1 as quick as possible. He wasted no time and transitioned from swim to bike in less than 5 minutes. He said he treated it like he was on the track and ran as hard as he could from the swim to the changing tent, in order to pass as many people as he could.
Transitions are free speed!

While walking back, we felt a drizzle of rain which eventually turned into a rain shower by the time we got back to the house. We knew the rain would be coming and my only thought was that all Trimarnis would be able to safely finish the bike with good mechanical luck. I knew the bike times would be affected because poor weather conditions don't reward great fitness levels but instead, those who are smart and avoid taking risks.

After a quick breakfast (my spectating diet consisted of several PB and J sandwiches, fruit and Mojo, Clif nut butter filled bars and Kits organic Clif Bars) I changed my clothes for the cooler temps and rain, grabbed my umbrella and made my way down to the bike course, out and back section, with Mike, Erin and Taylor to cheer on the Trimarni athletes in action. 

2017 Trimarni camps and key races

Pre-race visualization at Ironman Mont Tremblant

Karel and I believe that our coaching company is more than a business.
We coach a team of amazing, goal-oriented, hard working and focused athletes. 

Each athlete welcomes us into his/her life and we feel incredibly lucky to be part of a personal athletic journey. For most of our athletes, we do not spend just one season training for races but instead, we have many athletes who have worked with us for several years.

If you are a triathlete, we know that you are in an individual sport, but we want you to be part of something that is bigger than yourself.

As a Trimarni athlete, you are not just one athlete.
Every athlete brings something very special to our team, which is also your triathlon family. 

We know that training can be unmotivating when you are always by yourself and sometimes your family doesn't "get you". We also know that it can be tough to dig through those low moments in a race when you do not know anyone out on the race course (who doesn't love cheers from friends?). 

That is why we feel that it is important to provide our Trimarni athletes with several opportunities to train and race with Trimarni teammates.
Training and racing with your teammates brings out the best version of you on race day as you can always dig a little deeper, stay a bit more mentally strong and have a lot more fun when you are with others, versus when you are all by yourself. 

If you are interested in joining the 2017 Trimarni triathlon coaching team, we will open our coaching application in the next 2 weeks (before September 10th). Stay tuned - I will announce on my social media channels and on this blog, when you can apply for coaching. 

We officially start 2017 Trimarni coaching in December - however some situations may require that we begin your coaching service in November. 

Our coaching application is not used to help us decipher between fast or slow athletes. We coach ALL fitness levels of athletes and we specialize in endurance triathlon coaching (half and full Ironman).
Our coaching application helps us understand you as an athlete but also what you need from a coach/training plan. It's important to us that Trimarni is the right fit for you as we believe in a healthy coach/athlete relationship. 

In the mean time, we have selected tentative dates for our training camps and key Trimarni races for next year so that you can start planning your 2017 season.  
While it is not required that you attend a Trimarni race, we strongly encourage you to experience what it is like to race with your teammates and have full access to your coaches, before, during and after the race. 
Additionally, we strongly advise attending a Trimarni camp in 2017 so that your coaches can see you in action to assess your individual strengths and weaknesses, to help you improve your swim/bike/run/skills and to train with your like-minded teammates, who will help you stretch your individual limits. 

2017 TRIMARNI CAMPS AND RACES

TRIMARNI PRIVATE TRAINING CAMPS:

Location: Greenville, SC.

Length of camp – 1-3.5 days

Focus: Specific skill work, daily/sport nutrition help, RETUL bike fit, swim/bike/run training. Come train with us in the mountains - we have a perfect training playground!

Email Marni to discuss possible dates and pricing to book your private camp in advance.

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TRIMARNI GROUP TRAINING CAMPS

All Trimarni camps are open to the public. You do not have to be a Trimarni athlete to attend a Trimarni camp. If you work with another coach, we would be glad to speak to your coach before/after the camp to ensure that your needs are met. We also welcome other coaches (who are athletes) to attend our camps to learn from us.

There will always be a max limit at our camps for safety reasons and to ensure the best possible one-on-one experience for our campers. Trimarni coaching athletes will not only receive a camp discount but will also get first priority for camp sign-up.
Expect all Trimarni camps to sell out quickly so be sure to purchase when they come available, early this fall. 

Location: Tucson, Arizona

Type of camp: Skill-focused triathlon camp

Length of camp: 3 days

Dates (tentative): March 17-19th

The focus of this camp will be on nutrition and swim, bike, run skills. Campers will have three days to learn from coaches, in a group environment, to improve swimming, cycling and running skills. All fitness levels invited. There will also be discussion on race tactics/execution.

Location: Tucson, Arizona

Type of camp: Advanced triathlon camp

Length of camp: 4.5 days

Dates (tentative): March 22-26th

The focus of this camp will be to help athletes absorb a good amount of training stress over 4.5 days, to catapult fitness in the early part of the season. There will be focus on skills, nutrition and race tactics as athletes train together, with challenging workouts, to help athletes step outside their comfort zone. This is an experienced camp, please email coaches to see if this is the right camp for you.

Location: Greenville, SC

Type of camp: Skill-focused triathlon camp

Length of camp: 3 days

Dates (tentative): May 26-28th

The focus of this camp will be on nutrition and swim, bike, run skills. Campers will have three days to learn from coaches, in a group environment, to improve swimming, cycling and running skills. All fitness levels invited.

There will also be discussion on race tactics/execution.

Location: Greenville, SC

Type of camp: Advanced triathlon camp

Length of camp: 4.5 days

Dates (tentative): June 22-26th

The focus of this camp will be to help athletes absorb a good amount of training stress in the early part of the racing season. There will be an endurance theme to this camp, with focus on skills, nutrition and race specific workouts. Athletes will have the opportunity to work on swim, bike and run skills but there will be a heavy emphasis on cycling. This is an experienced camp, please email coaches to see if this is the right camp for you.

Location: Greenville, SC

Type of camp: Endurance focused triathlon camp

Length of camp: 4.5 days

Dates (tentative): August 30st – Sept 3rd

The focus of this camp will be to help athletes absorb a good amount of training stress over 4.5 days, to prepare athletes for a late season Ironman (or half ironman). There will be focus on skills, nutrition and race specific workouts. While this isn’t an advanced camp, athletes should be resilient, healthy and fit for this camp and should endurance that this is an endurance-focused camp.

2017 TRIMARNI KEY RACES:

(Dates will be confirmed when the race organizer updates website with 2017 dates)

Ironman 70.3 St. George – St. George, Utah

May 6th

Half or relay options

Mountains to Main Street Half Ironman– Greenville, SC
May 21st (tentative)

Half, Aquabike or half marathon options

Lake Logan Multisport festival – Lake Logan, NC (close to Asheville)

August 5-6th (tentative)

Half, international, sprint options

Ironman Chattanooga – Chattanooga, TN
September 24th

Consider coming as a spectator if you are not racing

Hello from Mont Tremblant!

Well, I'm about a week late on this post due to a very slow internet connection in our IMMT rental home combined with looking after and helping 7 Trimarni athletes (+1 former Trimarni athlete) who raced Ironman Mont Tremblant. 

As we pack our bags and say good-bye to this beautiful, cute, triathlon-supporting town within Québec, Canada, we can look back on race day and confidently say that all our athletes had a very successful race.....despite 9+ hours of rain. 

All of the Trimarni athletes accomplished what they came here to do.....
Finish Ironman Mont Tremblant. 

There was a lot of determination, focus, grit, hard work and perseverance out on the race course for 140.6 miles. With rough waters during the swim, pouring rain and cool weather temps on the bike and on and off rain during the rain, alongside a challenging bike and run course which can to be difficult to master in terms of pacing and execution, we could not be more proud of our athletes.
And for me, as a spectator in Mont Tremblant, I absolutely loved watching my athletes in action.

I'll be sharing more about the race, including Karel's race recap of the race, but for now, I will leave you with the exciting news that Karel is heading to Kona for the 2nd year in a row after placing 2nd in the 40-44 age group.

This all comes just 8 weeks after a PR race at IM Austria (9:13, 9th place).
Now Karel gets to do this all again in 6 weeks in Hawaii for the Ironman World Championship.

What it looks like to dig deep and run the fastest amateur male run split of the day. 

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Here are a few pictures (in no particular order) from the race to show our amazing athletes in action.
Despite the suffering, there was no shortage of smiles on the faces of the Trimarni athletes!

Adam on the bike

Adam on the run - on his way to run a 3:43 PR marathon

Go Adam!

Adam finishing

Next day celebrating. 

Post race celebrating

Freddy - run for the beer!

Go Erin!

Looking good Freddy!

Paparazzi - there's Freddy!

Post race food - spectators are just as hungry as the athletes!

Some of the Trimarni athletes with coach Karel at the awards

Go Jeff and Trimarni nutrition athlete Adam (who just finished his first Ironman without GI issues)

Go Justine.....6 more weeks until you get to do this again in Kona!

Justine before going through the IM motions before Kona in 6 weeks (qualified at IM Maryland)

Karel starting the bike...before the rain came down

Go Katja! A smile all day!

Great work Katja!

Karel on a mission.

Karel in 5th place off the bike - time to run down his competition.

Karel on loop 2 of the run, now in 3rd place. 

Karel off the bike in the first 1/2 mile of the run. I told him he was in 5th place - time to commit! 

Wet and cold but happy for our athletes! Thank you Taylor for being awesome all day!

Cheering for Karel after loop 1 of the run. Keeping him going despite the world of hurt that Karel was experiencing in his body.

Congrats Adam for finishing your 2nd IM in 11:08! You may live in flat FL but you trained smart to execute on a very challenging and hilly race course. 

Cheering squad out on the race course! So grateful for all the Trimarni spectators who braved the rain to cheer for the athletes. 

Simple sport nutrition tweaks for hot weather training - run

RUN

I feel many triathletes need a constant reminder that they are not runners. Certainly, runners do not need to be reminded that they are not triathletes.

Runners absorb a completely training stress than the multisport athlete. Furthermore, the race day effort of a triathlete is based on the race distance, which determines what time of the day a triathlete runs and what type of mechanical fatigue the triathlete brings to the run. Thus, the pacing and fueling strategy for run training and running are very different than the single sport athlete.
(Note - even for runners, I still find it valuable to set up aid stations or bring nutrition and hydration with you during long runs)

For the triathletes, you can not think like a runner when you train for triathlons.

For example, if you are doing a brick run, you can not think of your run off the bike as "only" a 20-minute run. I see it all the time - a triathlete is out on his/her bike for 3, 4, 5+ hours and then comes the run off the bike and no fluids are consumed during the run.  If you ride your bike for 3 hours and run 20 minutes off the bike, you are completing a 3 hour and 20 minute workout - you can not think that you are "only" running 20 minutes. Sure, a solo 20 minute run does not need calories or fluids but your body still requires and deserves fluids, electrolytes and calories to finish off your workout.

Once this new fueling strategy is ingrained into your head, you will notice that you are running better off the bike (not barely surviving or suffering), you are more energized and thinking clearly during a run off the bike, you are protecting your health (allowing you to train more consistently), you can reduce risk for injury and you can reduce your overall training stress, thus allowing you to recover faster. I can't tell you how many athletes that I have worked with who consistently underfuel and underhydrate while running all because it doesn't seem natural or needed to bring nutrition and hydration on a run.  By fueling and hydrating properly, not only do you build confidence for race day, train your gut and improve performance but you protect your health AND you can function better in life (your family can thank me for this advice).

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-There are many hydration belts and packs on the market so take your pick. Just please carry something with you that allows you to run with good form (I advise to not carry anything more than 6-8 ounces in your hand as it can throw off your gait and cause muscle tension in the neck/back). A hydration pack/belt allows you to hydrate and fuel consistently when YOU want to fuel and hydrate. Yes, it may feel uncomfortable at first but just like running with a HR monitor, wearing a hat/visor, running with a watch or wearing an ankle strap or race belt around your waist, you can get use to it.

-In hot weather, you need to plan for 1 x 10+ ounce flask with 70-100 calories of a hydration based sport drink with at least 250-400+ mg sodium for every 30 minutes of running - this is for any length brick run or long run. If you run on the treadmill, the same strategy applies but you can use a sport bottle instead of a flask.

-You also need to plan for 1 x 10 ounce flask of cold water for every 30 minutes of running for any brick run or long run. This will be a lifesaver as you can now use this cold water for sipping and for cooling to help control core temperature. 

-Plan your run routes accordingly so that you can make quick stops for easy refilling of sport nutrition powder (ex. baggies or single serving packets) and use water fountains or bottles for water. Many sport nutrition companies (ex. Scratch, Tailwind, Clif Hydration, EFS pro) provide single serving packets so you can carry refill powder with you when you need to refill. 

-To reduce the risk of GI upset and to optimize digestion and absorption, I suggest to sip your drink every 8-10 minutes and as needed. Never ration your hydration when you run because you don't want to stop or your  next stop isn't for an hour - sip when you want and when you are finished, refill. It's ideal to best understand when you prefer to drink.

-If you are using a hydration beverage (ex. sport nutrition product that provides calories and sodium, which is recommended), you will reduce the risk of overdrinking on plain water, as it is typical for athletes who run without a sport drink to either overdrink on water when they stop or get to a water fountain/gas station or only consume water during a long run (or after a long bike) thus depleting sodium stores.

-If you prefer gels or chews over powder, you still need to carry water with you. However, you can replace a sport drink powder with bloks/chews but it's important to still consume your calories consistently (and make sure your gel/chews contain sodium).

-If you prefer gels, use a gel flask (1 gel mixed in water in a small flask) for easy sipping. It's recommended to use a gel flask instead of consuming a gel every 45 minutes as a gel is properly digested and absorbed with 12-16 ounce of water. Using a gel flask dilutes the gel for easier digestion.

-Incorporate walk breaks into your run training regime to get more comfortable consuming fluids and calories when you are running. It can take up to 6 weeks to train your gut if you are not yet comfortable (or tolerating) consuming nutrition when you run. 

Example; If you are running for 30 minutes off the bike, bring 80-100 calories of sport nutrition in a     10-ounce flask and a 10-ounce flask of ice cold water.

If you are running for 2 hours, start your run with 1 flask of sport nutrition and 1 flask of water and refill your flasks every 30 minutes.

(This is recommended for hot weather training).

IMPORTANT - Please DO NOT ration your sport nutrition or water because you don't want to stop or because you think it is cool to underfuel.

You will gain fitness, train more consistently, build confidence in your sport nutrition plan for race day and protect your health by fueling and hydration adequately.

TIP: To prevent taste bud fatigue, vary your flavors of sport drink throughout your long rides and runs so that you are not always consuming lemon-lime flavor (as an example) every time you train.

Also, if you feel that your mouth gets tired of the "sweet" taste of a sport drink, have a sip of a carbonated drink, consume something sour or take a bit of a savory bar (ex. peanut butter, chocolate, bacon-flavored, etc.) to excite the taste buds so that you can return back to your routine fueling regime. 

Simple sport nutrition tweaks for hot weather training - bike

BIKE

It's unfortunate but many athletes underfuel in training and overfuel on race day.
Why do triathletes do this?

Underfueling can be from many reasons - fear of gaining weight, wanting to lose weight, trying to be more "metabolically efficient," not knowing how to fuel, not feeling that (more) calories are needed, thinking sport nutrition is bad/unhealthy, not bringing enough energy/fluids, not planning stops accordingly, poor planning/feeling rushed to get in a workout or not knowing how much energy/fluids are needed. Certainly, underfueling does not enhance performance and consequently, not meeting energy and hydration needs can sabotage health. 

Overfueling on race day is often out of fear of not having enough energy. Sadly, no amount of calories on race day can make the body perform at an intensity that was not established in training.  And if you are an athlete who underfuels in training, not only are you missing an opportunity to boost fitness in training but a body that has been underfueled in training will underperform on race day. Additionally, an overfueled body on race day can increase the risk for GI issues which is often more performance limiting than lack of energy. 

In peak training, your longer workouts require calories, electrolytes and fluids. If you are performance minded, you can not be scared of consuming calories when you train.

Every time you just "get by" to check off a workout to say you did it, these are the workouts where you are not training smart. Consecutive long workouts where you just get by will not make your body prepared for race day. 

Yes, you may be checking off workouts thus making you think that you are getting yourself ready but you are not becoming physiologically prepared for race day.

If you feel limited by your bike fitness, do yourself two favors.

First, learn how to ride your bike.
Get a good bike fit from an experienced fitter, improve your bike handling skills, learn how to sit on your saddle properly, ride comfortably and relaxed and improve your posture. By doing all of this, you will ride more efficiently, thus expending less energy.

Secondly, learn how to fuel for your longer workouts. Your body will thank you by giving you great health in training and a fitter, faster, stronger and more powerful body on race day.
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-In cooler temps, you will find it easy to meet energy and fluid needs. In the winter months, you will find it super easy to digest and easily absorb almost any type of solid or sport nutrition food. But come hot weather, your gut becomes much more sensitive to what you put inside the belly (substance, volume and concentration) as the muscles and gut are competing for the same blood (and most of the time, the muscles win). Most athletes will find it necessary to consume less calories than normal in hotter temps but in order to ensure a steady effort, pacing must be appropriate. 

-The first tweak in regard to summer fueling/hydrating is more of a change in routine than a change in habit. And boy oh boy, I know that triathletes do not like change. With the hotter temps, you will need to stop more frequently to refill bottles. Rationing your fluids so that you don't have to stop during a 5+ hour ride (because it takes times or will affect your overall speed/pace) is not ideal, yet time and time again, triathletes don't make the effort to stop. Limit your stops to no more than 10 minutes as you do not want your body to switch to recovery body. Make your stops quick - bathroom, refill bottles with sport nutrition powder/ice/water and then get back to doing work on two wheels. Be sure to plan your routes accordingly  - if there are no places to refill bottles (water fountains or gas stations) consider loops or out and backs. 

-The second tweak is making sure that you have enough easy-to-reach cages/hydration systems on your bike. There are many different set-ups as to where to place your cages but no matter where you put your bottles on your bike, you should have one primary bottle that you use to meet your fluid/energy/electrolyte needs (rotate bottles to keep this primary bottle stocked). Every triathlete should be skilled enough to grab, sip and rotate bottles (if this scares you - practice in a safe parking lot, not on the trainer, until this skill is mastered). If you are resorting to a straw-based hydration system because you are not comfortable grabbing bottles - you still need to know how to grab bottles to refill your straw-based hydration system. Grabbing bottles should be a skill that every triathlete is comfortable with in training, well before race day. You need to carry your nutrition with you so be sure to invest in 3-4 cages on your bike.  

-Although I have seen all types of haphazard fueling strategies by all types of athletes, here is the most simple of sport nutrition advice to help you meet your needs during workouts over 90 minutes (or intense workouts over 60 minutes): 
-->Bring 1 bottle sport drink for every 1 hour of riding. This could be anywhere from 150-300 calories depending on your hourly needs - be mindful that the concentration, carbohydrates in a specific volume of water, is extremely important in hot weather - less concentrated = easier digestion but this may require you dialing back your effort so you don't run out of energy too soon. As you may know, I prefer and advocate sport drinks/powders over solid food + electrolyte based-bottles for optimal digestion and absorption and a more simple execution. 
-->Each sport drink bottle should have at least 400-600+mg of sodium. While there are several ways to monitor your electrolyte needs (pre/post weighing, sweat rate, urination, etc.), many athletes fall short on electrolytes (specifically sodium) by either taking in too much or too little but not always staying consistent. You can simply add salt to each bottle (1/8 tsp salt = ~290 mg) to increase your sodium intake, without a large bolus of salt being consumed all at once, per hour. Salt tabs may have a place but should be discussed with a sport dietitian on proper usage. Also be mindful that there are good salt-based electrolyte tabs/sticks on the market but also some that are not used properly by athletes due to being misinformed on how to use them. 
-->Lastly, you need to add 1 bottle of ice cold water to your bike for sipping and cooling. Whereas in cooler temps (or the fall/spring) you may be just fine meeting your hydration needs each hour by finishing a 24-26 ounce bottle of sport drink each hour, in the summer heat, there's a good chance that you need up to 32-36 ounces of fluid per hour (this additional fluid does not have to be calorie-based fluids - water is just fine). Adding in the extra water can make a huge difference in terms of how you feel, absorb nutrition and hydrate during a workout. When you finish your water, this is typically a sign that you should be stopping soon to refill your bottles. 

Example: If you are riding 3 hours, bring 2 bottles sport drink + 1 bottle ice cold water. Sip every 10-15 minutes, 3-5 big sips at a time. If you fall short on this or your terrain doesn't allow you to follow this regime, you can also do 2-3 sips every 7-8 minutes but never overchug to "make up" if you go too long without fueling/hydrating. Slowly catch up. Plan to stop around 2 hours to refill bottles to last another 2 hours. 

-Your best fueling and hydrating plan in the summer is one that can be easy to execute, over and over again in training - hour after hour. Simple is best! Don't make your fueling and hydrating more complicated than it needs to be. Frequent and consistent intake is extremely important for optimizing digestion and absorption. In the case that your stomach is not accepting a drink, stop consuming calories for 10-15 minutes, sip occasionally on water throughout the next 10-15 minutes and back down on your effort/pace to let the gut settle. 

-Tip: To prevent taste bud fatigue, you should have multiple flavors of your sport drink each hour. If you like eating a little solid food as you are training/racing, compliment the sweetness of a sport drink with something savory, like a peanut butter, chocolate, bacon or rich and bold-based food as opposed to something sweet, on top of your already sweet drink. 

Simple sport nutrition tweaks for hot weather training - swim

Hopefully by now in the season, you have dialed in your fueling and hydration regime to help you adapt well to training and to keep your body healthy. 

While there can be several pronounced and noticeable symptoms to let you know that you are not meeting your energy, electrolyte and fluid needs during your longer or more intense workouts, like headache, not feeling the urge to urinate during a long workout or for hours after the workout, nausea, bloating, fatigue, muscle aches/throbbing and dizziness, you may notice that even without a health or performance-related issue, with the intense summer heat, something is still off with your fueling and hydrating strategy.
Important note: the symptoms I mentioned are not "normal" just because you are an athlete, training hard, wanting to get faster or leaner or training for a long distance event.

Over the next few blogs, you will learn a few simple tweaks that you can make to your current fueling and hydration regime.

As a Board Certified Sport RD, if it takes you more than a few weeks to put together a solid fueling and hydration plan or you are constantly struggling to get through workouts due to improper fueling/hydrating, reach out to a dietitian who specializes in sport nutrition, to help.

SWIM

-Simple enough, always have a bottle of water on deck. Although many triathletes train in a competition pool where the water temperature is cool, most pools (ex. YMCA) are not cool...they are warm or even hot. Regardless of the water temperature, you are generating heat and sweating in the water. Sip fluids between sets.

-For newer swimmers who are building endurance and stamina in the water and find that form falls apart as the workout continues over 20 minutes, consider adding 50-100 calories of a hydration based sport drink to your bottle. While you are burning way more calories than you are consuming, keep in mind that the purpose of sport nutrition is to help delay fatigue. If you train with poor form, you will keep swimming with poor form. A sport drink during the workout may also help your appetite post workout as many athletes finished a swim extremely hungry and tend to overeat after the workout is complete (or notice extreme carbohydrate cravings later in the day).

-If you are a believer that you shouldn't have a water bottle on deck during a swim practice because you can't drink during a triathlon, this is not smart training. Why do you train? You train so that you can be as fit, fast, strong and resilient as possible on race day. In training, you are doing anything and everything possible so that come race day, you are in the best shape possible with a healthy body.
Remember, you are also not a competitive swimmer - you are a triathlete. This means that you are likely not swimming more than 2-4 times per week so every swim workout counts. Plus, you are bringing fatigue to your workouts from a previous run or bike session. The better and more consistently you can train, the better you will perform on race day. It's likely that you do a dozen or more things in training that you don't/won't do on race day (and vice versa) so you have permission from me to have a bottle on deck for all swim workouts.

-If you tend to feel nauseous when you eat before a swim, you'll benefit from having a sport drink during the swim (if swimming on an empty stomach) to ensure that you are well hydrated throughout the workout but also using those calories to help postpone fatigue (~50-120 calories in a bottle will work just fine for a 60-90 minute workout).

-Many triathletes complain of cramps in the legs when they swim. From my experience, this is less related to sodium/dehydration but more related to muscle tightness (especially when a swim follows a run or a hard bike workout). If you tend to suffer from cramps in your legs when swimming, use neoprene shorts or a buoy to take the stress off your lower body. Additionally, avoid using fins when you run/bike before a swim (or when you feel a cramp coming on). Lastly, be sure to start your swim workout with mobility work on dry land to loosen up the ankles, calves, hips and hamstrings (ex. dynamic stretching, light foam rolling). Although having a hydration beverage when you swim is recommended, tight calves, hamstrings and ankles while kicking are often the source of cramping when swimming.

2016 Purple Patch Fitness Greenville camp

I have a Master Degree in Exercise Physiology....but I don't know everything about exercise physiology.
I am a Board Certified Sport Dietitian....but I don't know everything about sport nutrition.
I am a 11x Ironman finisher, including 4 Ironman World Championship finishes, but I'm really not that great of a triathlete.

I don't lack self confidence but I have self awareness that to be an expert in anything, you have to focus on personal development, continuous education and the understanding that there is always someone smarter/better than you.

As a coach and sport dietitian, I learn every day. Whether it's from an athlete, a research article or another expert, I am constantly learning. I hope that I never stop learning.

Regardless of my educational background and professional experiences, it's simply not possible to know everything about what I do.
And I'm cool with that.

The reality is that sports are constantly changing, especially endurance sports when there are so many variables and factors that make for a "great" race day performance.
Research changes and the training, diet and lifestyle habits by athletes are constantly changing.

In my field, endurance sports (specifically triathlon and running), can be complicated and rarely is there a "best" approach to be applied by the masses. It's only when an athlete figures out what works best for him/her that he/she knows exactly what will work.

I believe that every expert needs another expert as a mentor. I feel the same way about athletes who are coaches - every coach needs a coach.

Having a mentor, or another expert, who you trust, who you believe in his/her philosophy, who is passionate, educated and committed to his/her practice and shares a similar vision as you, is important. But what's more important is that this mentor/expert has more experience than you, a slightly different set of skills and can say/do things that are new to you.
While you don't have to agree with everything that your mentor says, suggests or does, your expert/mentor should challenge you to think, in a good way.

When you are a professional/expert, there is great benefit of having an expert like this in your life because it keeps you having fun - you are constantly challenged to think, learn and devote yourself to your practice.

And with this extra dose of devotion, you become more successful.

I have been a long time fan of coach Matt Dixon of Purple Patch Fitness because I believe we share a similar philosophy in how we coach our athletes. Certainly, with him having an extensive record of successful age group, professional and even Olympic/Elite athletes that he has coached, his methods also work.

Even though Karel and I are coaches, and we take our coaching business very seriously (it's our full-time, 24/7, 365-day a year job), learning is extremely important to us. We are constantly reading, listening to podcasts and studying the training methods and approaches by other coaches (and athletes) but Matt Dixon has been a continued resource and mentor for us at Trimarni.

Although Karel is technically the athlete who is coached by Matt, by default, since I train with Karel and Karel oversees my training, I feel that I am also coached by Matt.

For the 4 days, not only do I get to learn from coach Matt Dixon in Greenville, SC but I get hands-on experiences with coach Matt (and Paul - the "bike whisper") and I get to see how he interacts with other athletes. With many other PPF athletes in attendance, there is constant education but also a nice push to make me work hard.

Learning, working hard, having fun.
This is my recipe to being successful.

Always keep yourself learning.
Always be willing to work hard. 

And above all, have fun. Lots and lots of fun. 

Lake Logan Half - Race Report

Karel and I arrived to the race venue around 5:30am. My pre-race meal of a waffle sandwich with peanut butter, maple syrup and a banana digested great and I was only dealing with a few pre-race jitters.  I still get pre-race nerves but I feel like everything starts to feel more at ease when I arrive to the race venue on race day morning. And of course, once I get into the water for my pre-race warm-up, I feel relaxed, the butterflies subside and I become super excited to get going.

After body marking and getting my chip, I racked my bike on the OPEN division rack in the front of the transition area. I spotted several Trimarni athletes and other Greenville triathletes which was fantastic to see so many familiar faces. I'm the type of athlete who enjoys being around other athletes and having others make me laugh before a race whereas Karel likes to do his own thing without anyone else around.

Around 6am I walked back to the car with Karel and started my warm-up with dynamic stretching and a light jog with a few pick-ups. Around 6:30am, I walked to the lake with my wetsuit, cap and goggles to start my pre-race swim.

I stayed in the open until it was time for the open wave to start at 7am.

1.2 mile swim Time: 26.06

Give me a mountain view, calm lake water, a group of fast swimmers, my (new) favorite goggles for open water and the fastest wetsuit that I've ever swam in and you know I will be swimming happy.

The clockwise swim (keeping buoys on the right) made for an easy to navigate swim course. I was able to sight far in the distance on the tree line to also keep me on course.
The water temp was comfortable, semi-clear and calm.

At 7am, we were off!
There was a strong group of around 15 swimmers who started off fast for our in-the-water start. It almost felt like Kona to have so many strong swimmers so close together until the first buoy (well, minus the colorful fish, sea turtles and crystal blue waters).  We all stayed close together until the first buoy and as I found myself with a few swimmers until the second buoy, I kept my eye on one girl next to me who was swimming really strong. We swam close together until the last buoy before the turn buoy and I found myself swimming away from her and closer to the group of guys in front of me.

I wasn't sure if any females were ahead of time so I just focused on the guys in front of me.
The group of guys in front of me were swimming strong and I tried my best to catch them but it seemed like every time I was about to get them they picked up the pace. It was on the way back to the finish when I started to inch my way closer to the guys and finally was able to get some draft from the other swimmers.
Still keeping the buoys on our right, I kept a straight line directly to the bridge so that I didn't swim any more distance than necessary. This provided a straight shot to the bridge where I was greeted with ice cold water just under the bridge. It was refreshing to feel the cold water and nice to see the spectators above me but I was also ready to finish up this swim and get on my bike.

I felt really good throughout the entire swim and really tried to not resort to my comfortable Ironman effort but instead, I tried to go for a slightly harder, uncomfortable, yet sustainable effort.

I was able to catch a few guys in the final few minutes of the swim before getting out of the water, up a ladder and on to the dock.

I ran into the transition with a few guys and quickly grabbed took off my wetsuit and put on my socks, bike shoes, helmet and sunglasses. I felt like it was a quick transition (free speed!) and I was in and out. I started up my Garmin 810 as I was running out of the transition.

56 mile bikeTime: 2:40.05

I spotted Karel as I was running my bike to the mount line and he gave me a look of confidence and told me that I was first female out of the water. I'm not sure if he said anything else because I was so excited to get on my bike and tackle this difficult course with over 3500 feet of climbing in 56 miles (the Training Peaks elevation correction told me I did 6040 feet of climbing - which sounds super epic - but I think it was closer to 4000 feet).

I had planned to drive the entire course the day before the race with my athlete Jim but due to a hard downfall of rain, which made it impossible to see the arrows on the course and street names, we had to turn around after 15 miles. Ever since my bike detour at Rev3 Knoxville, I've been a overly nervous about staying on course at my races so I wanted to do everything possible to make sure I knew this challenging course, which included a lot of technical sections and lots of turns.

I reviewed as much as I could online, over and over again, and felt confident going into this race.
Despite never seeing an average speed over 17.5 miles per hour on my rides here in Greenville, I felt like this was going to be a good bike course for me to go hard (fast is all relative on challenging courses). 

I did not wear my heart rate monitor and I did not use my metrics to help me pace my race. Instead, I kept my focus on the road ahead and hitting my lap button every 25 minutes so that I only focused on pacing 25 minutes at a time.

The first few miles were fast after climbing a steady climb out of transition. Being the leader of the women's race made me ride scared but that's also how I have been racing over the past few years. In the past, I was typically passed on the bike within the first 20-30 minutes by other fast ladies but thanks to a lot of cycling work, I'm riding stronger (and happier) than ever before.

I found myself with a group of 5-6 guys in the first 10 miles of the bike and staying draft legal helped me ride strong and steady. I had an official by me several times and I never received a look that I was doing something that I shouldn't be doing. Karel has helped me understand exactly how far I need to be to stay draft legal in a race which has helped when I am in-the-moment, racing hard.

But it was only a matter of time before the guys would ride away. Even with a 54-39 front and 11-28 rear cassette, I was loosing ground on the downhills and was unable to make up the ground I needed on the uphills to keep these guys within my reach.

After around 5 miles, we had a good 5 miles of extremely twisty turny, up and down roads, which was a lot of fun but it made it difficult to manage a steady effort. I found myself trying to chase the guys and after about 45 minutes, I had to remind myself that this is not a bike race but instead a triathlon. But as much fun as I was having, I needed to settle into my own rhythm and race my own race.
For the next 25 miles, the course continued to meet all my expectations - it was absolutely beautiful and what an amazing location to suffer on two wheels. Creeks, trees, farms, animals and a nice fog making it perfect weather for riding. The course was well-marked with arrows before every turn and plenty of police officers to help with traffic control. The course was open to traffic and there were some sections with gravel on the road but I never felt unsafe on the road.

For the rest of the race, I lead the women's race and had no other cyclists in sight. Similar to Lake James 50 and Ironman Austria, I found myself in a race by myself. I was riding as hard and strong as I could for 56 miles but this over 2.5 hour time trial effort was not easy. I love the idea of having competition around me as it brings out the best in me. I always feel like I can go harder with other people around so I rode as if the other girls were right behind me so that I would keep myself going.

After a long steady and steep climb around mile 40, I found myself a little tired but on the downhill from the climb, I felt a reboot and I was back to my riding business.

The course was filled with lots of punchy climbs and it was never boring. I was riding so happy despite giving a sustainable strong effort throughout the entire ride.

Never looking at my Garmin to tell me how well (or not well) I was riding, I went all by feel for 56 miles. 

I fueled well throughout the entire ride and (almost) finished 3 full bottles, each with around 230-240 calories per bottle, each with a pinch of salt. 

As I was finishing the bike course, with less than 1.5 miles to go, I made my way up the long climb (about 1/2 mile) before a slight descend into the finish.

I made sure to never think about the run when I was biking because the way I was riding as if I was not running off the bike. But after 10 years of endurance racing, I've learned that if you want to win, you have to be willing to fail. I was taking risks for 56 miles and I wanted to give it my all to finish as the overall female winner.

For the number guru's, here are my 25 minute splits from my Garmin (I went all by feel):

-166 NP (Normalized Power), 87 cadence, 23.8 mph
-189 NP, 88 cadence, 22.3 mph
-164 NP, 88 cadence, 21.6 mph
-170 NP, 88 cadence, 19.9 mph
-181 NP, 83 cadence, 18.3 mph
-159 NP, 87 cadence, 21.5 mph
-Last 1.5 miles - 172 NP, 80 cadence, 15 mph


13.1 mile run
Time: 1:43.15

Photo credit: Nicole R.
When I approached the dismount line, I spotted Karel. He snapped a few pics and told me great job as I ran my bike to the transition.
It took me an extra second to put on my Garmin 235 (for the run) but I tried to make transition as quick as possible as I put on my visor, run shoes and race belt. I did walk through the transition area as I put on my Nathan hydration belt and once I stepped over the timing mat, I started running.
The first few minutes did not feel good on my legs but I'm all too familiar with this feeling so I just ran with it.

I didn't see Karel for a while so I figured he was waiting until the next few girls came into transition area to let me know of my lead. Karel was on his mountain bike to cheer for me and all the other Trimarni and Greenville athletes (and everyone else) out  on the course.

I was really excited for this course because it suits my strength of running on hills. Seeing that my running style is more of a glider versus than a gazelle, I do best on terrain that let's me power my way up hills with my quads than to push off the ground with my feet (not sure if that makes sense but that's how I feel when I run hills).

I felt really strong running the first 3 miles, which were all uphill. It was a gradual incline, nothing too steep, but it certainly required a bit of work to get to the turn around. I had one quick stop to shake out some kinks in my running form but other than that, I ran to the turn around without any additional walk breaks. Karel rode up and gave me a cheer and told me that I had a good lead, about five minutes. But he told me to not give up and to keep my effort going.

I sipped on my Clif hydration flasks (about 100 calories) every mile and a few times in between the aid stations and grabbed a little water at the aid stations for sipping. Although the course was a little shaded, I was getting a little warm so I used the water to cool myself. The volunteers were great and everyone on the course was giving me a lot of motivation - seeing my athletes, Bryan, Thomas, Al, Leigh-Ann (and eventually Jim - who had a mechanical) was a great energy booster.

When I approached the turn around, I took a quick breather, shook out my legs and a few deep breaths and exhales and made my way down the hill. 

Mentally, I looked forward to the 3 miles downhill but it wasn't easy. I was still having to work on the downhill and I had to focus hard on my stride to keep good form. I did feel strong throughout and told myself that all I needed to do was to get up the hill again and it would be all "downhill" to the finish.
I found myself constantly playing mind games and talking my way  to the next destination on the course as I was experiencing far more low moments as I was running than highs. Never did I let my Garmin tell me how good/bad I was running so I didn't look at my Garmin for the entire run.

When I made my way back to the transition area, it was a great energy booster to hear my name from the spectators and to run on the gravel (which I loved) and the grass (which I loved) as the first female. I took one quick walk near the transition area to shake out my legs and to stretch my back before heading back out  on the run course and back to climbing for the next 3 miles.

At this point, I saw the ladies behind me once again and they looked strong....they also looked very close to me. It was a mile or so later when I saw Karel and he told me that I was in a good position to win the race but to not give up because the girls behind me were looking good and running strong. Hearing this from Karel was a great push as it made me not hold back. Although I wasn't able to run any faster, I was not giving up even though I was feeling more and more fatigued as the race went on. I kept telling myself that I am healthy and this is exactly what I train for and I can rest when the race is over. As much as I was hurting, I was loving every step as this is exactly what I love to feel when I am healthy - a body that can endure the pain that comes with racing hard.

I had told myself that the last 3 miles would be all downhill but the miles did not come quick. The last 3 miles were actually my hardest as it seemed like it was taking forever to get to the next mile marker. As I passed mile 10, I just told myself, ok 3 more miles - that's nothing.
Then as I passed mile 11, I told myself that all I had to do was to get to mile 12 and then I would be able to enjoy the last mile as I ran to the finish as the overall female winner. But in order to keep my spot, I had to push hard.
Thankfully, a guy was running the same pace as me (on his first loop) and he was really helping me out. Actually, his pace was faster than mine so I tried to stay with him. He was exactly what I needed. 

He asked me what lap I was on and I told him that I was on my 2nd lap. He then asked what my goal time was for this race. I responded "No goal time, I just want to win."
He was fired up by my response and really pushed me to the finish. He was an awesome running partner and I told him to keep up his pace for the rest of the race and I would see him at the finish.

As I made my way to the gravel section, I was so relieved to see the finish line and as I ran to the finish chute, I heard my name as the first overall female winner.



Karel was already at the finish to see Trimarni athletes Drew and Al finish ahead of me and when I crossed the finish line, I felt equally accomplished as I did exhausted.

It didn't take long for me to hobble my way to Karel and before I knew it, I was finally resting my legs as I collapsed on the ground.



Oh ground, you feel so good.



I've had a lot of ups and downs over the past 10 years. I've had many successful races and I've had a lot of setbacks. I've accomplished many things with my body and my body has encountered a lot of obstacles.

This year has been extremely special because I've worked really hard and my hard work is paying off. But above all, I'm having so much fun training and racing.

I've called myself a triathlete for 10 years and I find myself loving this sport as much as I did when I started. 

A big thank you to Karel, the Trimarni athletes, the spectators and the Greenville community for the cheers and support at the Lake Logan Half.

You all reminded me why I love to push my body as race day gives me the opportunity to put my training to the test and to raise my limits and challenge myself. 

Lake Logan Half - quick recap

My body is in a good place right now.
I feel healthy, resilient and strong.

Well, in all honesty, right now I am exhausted, tired and sore and I've gathered just enough energy to ride my road bike for an hour (Sunday) and swim 1500 yards (today) in the last 48 hours.

On Saturday, I checked off another race in my 10th year of endurance racing and I couldn't be more grateful to my body as it did not let me down when I asked it to go hard (like really, really hard) for 70.3 miles at the Lake Logan Half . 

For the past ten years, I have been developing my fitness and skills as an endurance triathlete. 

Over the past three years, I've remained injury free.
Over the past nine years, I've remained illness and sickness free.
Over the past three years, I have raced better than I've ever raced before since starting endurance sports at the age of 23.

This was not by chance but through hard work, education and focus to make sure that my love for endurance sports was never greater than my passion for keeping my body in good health as an endurance triathlete.

When you are healthy, your body can perform amazingly well.

And now, it seems as if it's all coming together as I have never been happier training and racing as a endurance triathlete.

You may wish that there was a simple answer, a perfect training plan, a few must-do workouts or a list of magic foods that have helped me achieve race day success over the past few years but I believe that making mistakes, being open to change, developing and learning has given me many opportunities to find a better way of training and racing.

The more I fail, the smarter I become as an athlete.
I have failed a lot.
I have learned a lot.

After every race, I find myself reflecting more on the journey to get to the race start line rather than picking apart and over-analyzing the race itself.
Like many athletes, I could easily critique my entire race day effort and think about all the things that didn't go well or what I could have done better but instead, I like to first put my energy into what I did in training which helped me excel on race day.

Swimming: 

Give me a mountain view, calm lake water, a group of fast swimmers, my (new) favorite goggles for open water and the fastest wetsuit that I've ever swam in and I'm at peace in the water.  But in order to swim fast on race day, I have to be super diligent with my swim training. Even as a life long swimmer, I still need to train a lot. I am in the water a lot (4-5 times per week) and all of my training is alone (with Karel occasionally in the lane next to me doing his own workout). I do believe I could swim faster if I sawm with others. My swim workouts are never boring as there is a lot going on with every workout, lots of toys to use and a nice balance of intensity, volume and recovery with an extra emphasis on race specific sets in the few weeks leading up to a race. What's helped me the most on race day is feeling like I am doing a better job taking my pool fitness to the open water and not being afraid to go hard from the start.

Cycling:
The evolution of me as a cyclist has been a long time in the making. Karel has tweaked my fit year after year and I'm in the most efficient, yet powerful, position on my bike than I've ever been before. Plus, this is the first year that I am sitting on my saddle correctly (thus putting my hips in the right position so I engage my glutes and don't overwork my quads) and I just love my Adamo saddle that has helped me ride so happy (so comfortable!). But, I'm sure this is not the last of Karel dialing me on my bike.
I have super speedy Alto Cycling race wheels (56 front, 86 rear), a great bike mechanic who keeps my bike clean, safe and in great working condition all the time, I race with a a 54-39 cassette in the front and  a 11-28 rear cassette which helps me climb and descend with constant chain tension, I love my S-Works Women's Evade tri helmet and I love my Di2 shifting.
But take away the fancy gear (but keep Karel) and you have a girl who knows how to finally ride her bike. Not only do I love riding my bike but I feel at one with my bike. I am constantly working on my skills to make sure I am always safe on the road but I've done a lot of specific trainer and outside work to help me ride stronger and more efficient outside. I've trained smarter on the bike than ever before with a lot more specificity in every workout. I ride on the trainer about 75% of the time (long rides I ride outside) and that has helped me tremendously to improve my steady efforts and to improve my variable cadence. Oh, and I love hilly terrain so nothing makes me happier than selecting races that are very challenging. A flat bike course would take me way outside my comfort zone and would actually make me more nervous than a hilly bike course.

Run: I use to feel the constant need to be a better runner but Karel has always reminded me that if I want success in triathlons, I need to be a great triathlete. As I have discussed before, trying to make myself become a faster runner is risky and I will likely lose more than I can gain as there is a great risk for injury with my body if I try to train long and fast. I am taking a year off from Ironman training/racing next year to safely add a little more intensity into my training but I can't be upset with my running this year because in all honesty, I don't do a lot (if any) specific "speed" work to give me a competitive edge on the run on race day. I am ok with this as this has been our strategy in helping me become a faster triathlete. My run training includes hill work, strength training, frequency running and brick runs which has improved my resilience in the later miles of an endurance triathlon. Whereas before, I may have been a faster runner off the bike, I have always slowed down. Now, I am running more steady throughout the entire run and this is after biking a lot harder than I've ever biked before on race day. I know I will never be a gazelle-style runner so I have created a running style that works for me which also keeps me injury free. I'm not trying to run like anyone else but instead, myself. Also, an improved position on the bike keeps me legs working hard when I ride but I can still run well off the bike, without feeling like my quads are exhausted. In my mind, I may not be running faster off the bike but I am running stronger than ever before (I can also tell this from my running form which stays the same throughout the entire race vs in the past, my form would get ugly in the later miles).

Gadgets - They are there when I train and race but I don't use them on race day. I go entirely by feel. This gives me so much more freedom, less pressure and more engagement with my body and mind. I don't chase time goals, a finish time, watts or paces but instead, I just race. I do use my gadgets in training as it helps me stay accountable to efforts but I am always adjusting the effort based on how I feel.

Mindset - I love training and racing. I don't do it for anyone else but myself. I love the process of training and developing and I am fired-up that I am still improving. I also love competition - it brings out the best in me when I can race against strong, fast athletes. I am constantly working on my mental skills but luckily I have a great sport psychologist who I can also call my best friend. 

Nutrition:
I love working on the race week eats as I feel it's something that must be mastered in training, well before race day. I feel super confident in my pre-race low fiber/low residue nutrition plan in the 48 hours before the race. I am learning that I need to keep myself calm by staying relaxed with visualization to reduce any chance of any pre-race nerves upsetting my tummy. Also, I need to be careful with time zones - in looking back at the 3 Ironman races when I had tummy issues (never in a half), I've also had a 6-hour time difference.

Sport Nutrition:
Despite racing at a higher intensity in a half vs in an Ironman (and a much shorter race), I need to be careful with the concentration of my sport drinks on the bike and the run. While this may increase a chance for bonking, I consider myself a very efficient athlete (10 years of endurance sports has helped!) - I have never suffered from dehydration or a bonk in a race. For this race, I did dial back my hourly caloric intake by about 60 calories compared to what I did in Austria and it worked really well on the bike - I took in ~240 calories per hour with 26 ounce fluid (3 bottles) and I stayed on a strict schedule with drinking every 15 minutes (and the occasional as needed drink). On the run, I took in 100 calories per flask (sipping every 5-8 minutes) to finish a flask every ~45 minutes instead of 130 calories. While it may seem like small changes, sport nutrition is all about the little tweaks that make a big difference on race day. Practice, tweak and keep on dialing it in. Even sport dietitians need to keep tweaking their sport nutrition!

Thank you Lake Logan for the beautiful views, the challenging terrain and the great community/crowd support. Plus, you gave me so many animals to look at throughout the race and nothing makes me happier than furry friends out on a race course (Shhh, don't tell Karel - he tells me to focus when I race and to not say hi to animals.)

I lead from the start of the race and felt empowered by the ladies behind me to give it my all. While it can be fun to be in the front of the race, it's not an easy position to be in when you have no idea what's going on behind you in the race.
They raced as hard as I could as I couldn't give up until I crossed the finish line.

With a lot of energy expended at Lake Logan, I crossed the line as first overall female and with a new 1-minute half Ironman PR.

Above all, thank you to my body - I'm having so much fun with you in training and on race day.

Swim: 26.06
Bike: 2:40.05
Run: 1:43.15
Total: 4:53.47

Race Results

Stay tuned for the full race recap.

Thank you 2016 Trimarni sponsors.

BE LIKE AN OLYMPIAN

 

Starting tomorrow, for 16 days, the most extraordinary athletes from around the world will be racing in 306 events, in 28 sports.

As you marvel over what an athletically fit and trained body, with a powerful mind, can do on race day, keep in mind that this select group of the population is not unlike you.

Olympic athletes are not superhuman.
They are not machines.
They do not have magical powers or special talents that cannot be trained or obtained.

They are normal people with an immense drive to pursue athletic goals, backed by a little good luck and good genetics on their side.

Olympic athletes have characteristics that help them excel and these qualities can be attained by anyone who wants to excel in sports and in life.  

While the Olympics are a great source of inspiration as to what the human body can do, the Olympics remind us all that it is possible to turn your dreams into a reality.

Becoming an Olympic athlete is more than just training hard.

Olympics athlete must get into the best physical and mental shape possible AND have great technical or mechanical luck, train and compete with a mentally strong mind and  successfully manage a roller coaster of emotions appropriately, all while not getting injured, overtrained, burnt out or sick.

Life is full of distractions and setbacks and being an athlete is not easy.

Despite the risks, Olympic athletes believe that anything is possible to go "faster, higher, stronger".

Let’s look at some of the many qualities of Olympic athletes so that you can decide if you carry these characteristics in your own pursuit for athletic success or if you need to make a change in how you physically and/or mentally prepare for your sport.

1. Perseverance
Sometimes it can feel like the odds are against you and nothing is going right. Perhaps you are in a string of constant bad luck.
Olympic athletes know how to deal with difficult situations and see setbacks as an opportunity to explore something new – the opportunity to overcome the odds.
Sure, it is easy to maintain a positive mindset when things are going well and to get upset when there are obstacles in your way, but Olympic athletes know how to stay incredibly focused, even under the most stressful and frustrating moments in life and in sport.

2. Focus
It’s easy to assume that Olympic athletes are only focused on winning. While a competitive spirit is extremely important, winning isn’t everything. If winning is the only way to be happy, it’s easy to lose focus on other important components that define “success.” Often these small details, when achieved, bring winning moments. When Olympic athletes are "in the zone" in training and racing, they are not focused on the outcome but simply, staying focused on the process.
Olympic athletes maintain great composure, win or lose. 
And regardless of personal problems, fatigue, lack of motivation or difficult unforeseen circumstances, successful athletes find ways to stay focused (often with the help of sport psychologists) to maintain good excitement and energy to simply do their best, without only obsessing about the outcome.

3. Commitment
Genetics, time and money can only take you so far in sports. If an athlete wants to excel to a high level, she/he has decided to make success a priority. Commitment extends beyond suffering in training, being strict with the diet and checking off workouts but it includes focusing on all the little things, like nutrient timing, mental strength, proper gear and smart training, to ensure that every little detail is not overlooked.
Olympic athletes know that one person doesn’t make the athlete. It takes a team approach to when creating world class performances.
Olympic athletes do not want to be good at what they do but instead, they want to be great. Olympic athletes live this commitment daily and are willing to put in the work, for as long as it takes, to get to where they want to be.

4. Relax
Olympic athletes know how important it is to train the mind, just as hard as they train the body.  An Olympic athlete has visualized success dozens and dozens of times, well before race day.
It’s very easy to get distracted when you are an athlete. Olympic athletes know their sweet spots as to how to best get into the “zone” in training and on race day. Whether it’s before and during a very hard workout or before the most important day of their athletic career, Olympic athletes know how to stay mentally strong but physically relaxed and to avoid distractions.
Olympic athletes draw attention as to what is within their control, can easily let go of distractions, they do not dwell on the not-so-great workouts and they know that the next workout is the next best opportunity to improve.
When it comes down to it, the only day that really matters is race day and because of this, Olympic athletes keep a sense of calm, no matter what is thrown in their way in training.

5. Internal motivation
While Olympic athletes may feel pressure from coaches, teammates, friends, family, the community and sponsors, a true champion trains and competes only for him/herself. Motivation, drive, direction, passion and focus all come from within.
When an Olympic athlete has a goal, she selects this goal because it is exactly what she wants to achieve and is willing to work for that goal.
And when an athlete has a setback, the athlete herself is the only one who can decide if putting in the work to rehab is “worth it”.
Seeing that motivation comes and goes, setbacks will occur, injuries will happen and low moments can make it hard to train, many athletes use sport psychologists to work through the emotions and external pressures to be “the best” as there is constant pressure to perform, even during the most difficult of days.


6. Courage
Olympic athletes know that there are many consequences when taking risks, especially as it related to training the body. It takes courage when making sacrifices in life, when training when tired or fatigued and when training among the toughest competition, when everyone is watching.
It takes courage to stick to your plan and to not focus on what everyone else is doing and it takes courage to believe in yourself, even when you encounter obstacles.
Above all, it takes courage and confidence to push the body and Olympic athletes are brave - they push the body, mentally and physically, to test limits and to break through personal physical and mental barriers.

7. Love for the sport
Olympic athletes dedicate years, if not a lifetime, to a sport. To accomplish anything of value, in sport or in life, it is necessary to love what you do.
When training becomes a chore or something you check off just to make others happy, it's time to evaluate if you are really in-it to win-it.
When passion subsides, training becomes a chore and distractions make it more difficult to stay focused and consistent with training.
Many times, a setback or obstacle reminds you how much you love your sport and being an athlete. Never take a day for granted as there could be a time when you can’t do what you can do with your body.
Wherever you place your attention, your energy will follow.

Although Olympic athletes have their low moments, with a drop in motivation, body and mind exhaustion and poor focus making it difficult to train, there’s always a hunger to excel, with a fire that fuels their passion, to be the best athlete that they can be.