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Showing posts from August 2, 2015

Feed me...I'm training for an Ironman!!

How much food does it take to fuel two triathletes training for the Ironman World Championship?  A lot!! With almost 9 weeks left until Karel and I use our bodies for 140.6 miles on the big island of Kona, the training is getting a lot more specific....and a LOT longer.  There is a lot to juggle every day with work/business, training and the rest of life and a lot of food must be consumed to keep our bodies healthy and well fueled.  As for our weekly staples (we make at least two grocery trips per week): Milk Eggs Cheese Yogurt Deli meat/meat (for Karel) Tempeh/tofu Irish butter Cottage Cheese Veggies - all kinds Mixed greens Fruit - all kinds Potatoes Waffles Oats Fresh bread - all kinds Saltine crackers Pretzels Rice cakes Cereals Maple Syrup/honey Peanut butter Jam Soup Rice Whole Grains Coffee I think that's it for the weekly staples and there are always "extras" based on what we make for meals, what we are craving and what is accessible a

The traveling endurance athlete

In 10 days, Karel and I will be traveling to Boulder, CO for 10 days of swim, run and primarily cycling fun. Yay for a real train-cation!! We will also be watching the  USA Pro Cycling Challenge .  Not only are we super excited for our vaca (I can't remember the last time we took an actual vacation - not for a race, not for supporting our athletes who are racing, not for a camp and not for business - a real vacation!) but this will be Karel's first time to Colorado.  Whether you travel for work or for fun, it's important that you remember to meet your energy and fuel needs when you are away from your home environment.  It's very easy (and highly recommended) to establish a routine when it comes to eating, hydrating and fueling in a way that supports the demands of your training (as it relates to performance and health). And this starts at home.  The food you eat helps you meet your energy needs, specifically as it relates to protein and carbohydrates as

Kona mindset

It's all getting a bit more real right now for me and Karel.  The weekly training hours are increasing, we are always eating (seriously - always eating!), we need to restock our sport nutrition supply more quickly and sleep is much more of a priority.  Can you believe it? Only 67 days until the 2015 Ironman World Championship!!!! Every morning I wake up with excitement to train my body for my 4th IM World Championship and my 10th Ironman. I love the journey that I get to share with my body in training for an Ironman.  Every evening I go to bed and think about racing for 140.6 miles on the big island of Kona and staying mentally strong for all of those miles just to be able to run down Ali'i drive in order to cross the epic IM World Championship finish line.  For the past few years, I have learned so much about mental training from my best friend  Dr. G. (Gloria). To many athletes, mental strength means being tough and pushing through. I agree that b

IM Lake Placid - behind the scenes part II (Race day)

As athletes, we have a few ways of defining a great performance.  Often times, it is a time goal that signifies that one race was better than another race.  Certainly, chasing a time goal is doable when it comes to the shorter distance races because much of the race performance is based on effort, good luck and the ability to push hard. Of course, sometimes a longer/short swim course, tough course or weather can slightly affect the overall time but in short distance racing, athletes often find it easy to chase a time goal and often times, can train and race hard enough to beat that goal.  As for the longer races, there is so much out of our control on race day that it is a disservice to the human body to chase a time. Sure, it can be done and sometimes it is doable but in the case of racing for 140.6 miles, the time on a piece of paper doesn't tell the entire race story.  Athletes often get frustrated if a time is slow on paper in a long distance race. Well let me te