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Showing posts from September 18, 2016

Happy 40th Birthday Karel!

It was an interesting summer in 2006 as I was very much into my routine of working and training and I didn't want anything to get into my way of training for my first Ironman. I was living with my parents but I was only there to sleep as my life revolved around training, working and training. I resisted the invitation to meet a "talented cyclist, from Europe with a sexy accent" as a training partner of mine described, as she wanted to set me up with a nice single guy. A few weeks went by and I finally accepted the opportunity to meet him.  It was 10.5 years ago when Karel and I were set-up on a blind date on a group ride. We met on my birthday, May 31st, 2006. The next few months were rocky because as I mentioned, all of my energy went into training. The thought of balancing a boyfriend while training for a 140.6 mile event was overwhelming so I entertained the idea of getting to know Karel as a training partner and possibly we would become good friends. At

Making peace with your body

Today is International Day of Peace, which is " devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples." The theme for this year is “The Sustainable Development Goals: Building Blocks for Peace." In honor of making peace, I thought it would be appropriate to talk about making peace with your body. Ultimately, when you are at peace with your body, you are a better human. When you hate your body, you may find that you also hate life. This is not the way that you should be living. Accepting and appreciating your body will improve your quality of life as you are not spending your days trying to fix yourself, but instead, you are focusing on doing things that really matter in life - like your career, your hobbies (ex. sports), your close friendships, your family and personal life experiences (ex. traveling).   Here are a few tips to help you make peace with your amazing body. 1. Figure out your internal dialogue - Every day, we have t

Trimarni pre-workout pancakes

Yum - Trimarni pre-workout pancakes with nut butter, cinnamon, syrup and bananas) A common struggle among athletes is eating before a workout. Many athletes have no idea what to eat (often due to confusion - how much, what, when, why) but a large portion of athletes struggle to properly digest food before a workout, which causes GI issues during the workout and thus, even the thought of eating before a workout is a scary thought (which is even more scary when it comes to race day and an athlete feels he/she can't eat before a race). Here are a few of the benefits of consuming a pre-workout snack:  -Fuel your upcoming workout -Help with delaying fatigue during the workout -Giving you energy for your workout -Helping you think more clearly during your workout (focus, attention) -Helping you stay satisfied (and not hungry) during your workout -Reducing the  risk of dizziness, lethargy or shaky feelings, due to low blood sugar -Prevent overeating after the workout -Reduc

IM KONA training - 3 weeks out

After Ironman Austria, Karel wasn't sure if he would ever be able to go that hard in a race again. With only 8 weeks between IM Austria and IMMT, Karel was able to fully recover from IM Austria (thanks to his mom's cooking and lots of IPA and pastries) and return home with excitement to train again to achieve his season goal of Kona qualifying. At IMMT, Karel went "there" again for 140.6 miles. After Kona qualifying at IMMT, Karel was extremely sore and once again, he questioned if he had anything left for a third Ironman, within 15 weeks. But after quickly physically recovering from IMMT, his body was in a good place to train again. And most importantly, his mind was in a really good place. Not only was Karel excited to race on the big island for the 2nd time but he was excited to train for 5-6 more weeks before dropping down the volume before IM Kona. There are several things that Karel has done right this season which has helped him take his fitne