Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

This last weekend was really relaxing. However, I didn't feel very rested. Fri and saturday night didn't make out for a good nights rest but thank goodness I could lounge around during the day. Sunday morning Karel rode with some of his non-Gearlink cycling buddies and felt strong on the bike. He did 100 miles, starting at the suncoast trail and 54 and rode up to San Antonio and did the sunday morning San Antonio ride as well. What a workout for him and I thought he would be exhausted. I guess his training plan from his coach Adam B. (from the NTC) is working out great cause he said he is feeling really good on his new Cervelo. I had pancakes ready for him when he came home and we spent the rest of the day watching a movie. We watched Crash which was excellent. A great movie to really make you think about how crazy life is sometimes. The movie is so real and features stereotypes and how you can hate one person one minute and honor them the next moment. I really recommend it if ...

Everyone has one. You wake up and everything goes wrong the rest of the day. You start off a workout feeling "poopy" and it just doesn't get any better. You're having a great day and all of a sudden 5 things go wrong to turn the day upside down. Well, I had one of those days when it just started off "poopy". I stayed with my parents last night so that I could take them to the airport early this morning. They are off to New Orleans for the weekend to catch a ship for their cruise on Sunday. Now, about my bad day. Last night I had a hard time going to bed and it was late when I finally did fall asleep. The alarm went off at 4:40am but since I went to bed around 11pm I was a bit on the sleepy side. My leg is bothering me again (for the past 3 days) so I've been taking it easy with the cycling. Just walking on the treadmill to keep things stretched out and if it is bursitis in my groin, it feels great to walk and swim. I debated about not riding this mornin...

This morning I went to the Clearwater Y to swim. Rather than going to my normal 5:30am outdoor swim team practice at the Palm Harbor Y, I decided to stay indoors this morning since coach Matt is out of town. There is a small group of guys who swim Tues, Thurs, Friday morning at 6am so it is always nice to try to keep up with these fast guys. At the Palm Harbor Y for the SwimFit practice, I usually swim in my own lane with my own cycle (and own sets during racing season) but I absolutely love being in the pool at 5:30am with so many other people. There are usually around 10-20 people swimming and it is a great group of newbies to veterans. With a lifetime of competitive swimming, I'm use to not getting much rest with touch and go sets and a bit of distance and yardage. But other than that I am no different from all the other triathletes. We all have goals and we all have reasons for being there. As i was swimming I was wondering what each of the guys (5 others) were thinking. For me...

I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday! My family and I are Jewish so Hanukkah was celebrated on the 5th of December. Karel joined in on the festivities and we lit the menorah and exchanged a gift with my family. Since Hanukkah isn't a big holiday for us it is often compared to Christmas, hence the giving of presents. I am a big present giving and it is really hard for me to keep things from people so I have to wait as long as I can to buy gifts or else i will just ruin the surprise. This year I did well with keeping things secret for Karel's christmas. Since Karel's family lives in Czech I have really tried hard on learning about his Christmas and bringing in his traditions and family customs. Well, in part of the czech christmas we exchange gifts on Christmas Eve and have a nice dinner before the gift giving. After a morning run and swim I got going on the cooking and I was on my feet all day. I absolutely love cooking but part of my job of the Czech Christmas dinner was b...

Saturday morning was a little cold starting off. However, it was the good chill which you wear arm-warmers and you are comfortable wearing them during the entire ride. Karel has a recovery week so he was taking his time getting ready. I fixed the coffee and had some toast and PB and I was out the door around 7am. I saw lots of people out exercising and the majority of the people were running. As I was warming up I saw lots of Gearlinkers riding. I was looking forward to the bridge repeaters and it's always nice when there are lots of people to keep you going. The plan was 12repeaters and although it was like the past weeks I felt great on them. The wind was blowing strong (south to north) so on the longer side of the sand key bridge, I struggled as I was climbing. Around #5 I saw Karel on his sharp new cervelo and he was matching in all red and black. Oh, the things that I notice as I am riding :) karel joined me for 2 climbs but I could tell that Karel wanted to be around the othe...

I've been smiling a bit bigger this week. I can finally run and I'm feeling really good about it. Unfortunantly, I think my position and components on my road bike needs to be fixed so Karel and I will work on that this weekend. My crankset is a bit different than my tri bike and old Blue so Karel is going to swap his Cervelo crankset with mine.....or something like that. Not sure what he does with my bike but I trust him 100%. He is the best mechanic in my opinion and he is a true perfectionist only because he is so passionate about bikes. I think my groin bursitis is not healing as quickly due to the bike so I've been laying low on the cycling this week. Luckily, it is working and I can run!! I'm planning on riding with the guys tomorrow but I think just resting my leg a bit and not riding as much is helping a lot! Anyways, yesterday I thought it couldn't get any better. After a 3,000 yrd easy swim workout I jumped on the treadmill and started walking. After 5 min...

I haven't been on my bike since Sat. but I've been running and swimming to keep myself feeling some kind of burn. I love my road bike but sometimes I get bored riding the same routes all the time. Unfortunantly, I'm not blessed with hills or open roads in the clearwater area. I'd love to get to Georgia, Clermont or Colorado so that I can get some good climbs on my bike. For the people stuck in freezing weather, snow drifts and ice I am sure that my complaining about 70-degree winter weather and no climbs is pretty inconsiderate of me. I know I have talked about my start in triathlons but I wanted to talk about my love for spinning (spin class). When I heard about a triathon which involved swim, bike and run I thought that would be a lot of fun. However, I've never really biked, only for fun. I had almost finished my Junior year of college and was getting burnt-out of competitive swimming. I had so many back problems from swimming 200 butterfly, 200 IM and 100 breast...

Since I usually write about myself on this blog I'd like to feature Karel and his up and down weekend. As I mentioned in the last blog, Karel forgot his key on sat. morning. He headed out for a 3-hour ride and it was one of his hardest workouts this season. 87 min. tempo ride just below threshold. Since he uses his power meter he usually stays in the lower 200's (I think around 230W) for his power. I'm not really sure exactly but I know he always comes home beat up when he has to hold his wattage for almost an hour and a half! Not only that, he has already trained for 4 days, including the weight training that we are doing right now. So I am on Sand Key bridge doing repeaters and around 9:15am I see Karel climbing over the bridge on his way home. I give him a quick smile and a 2-finger wave (the kind where you are holding on to your bars but you can kinda raise 2 fingers for a wave) as I am climbing up. NO talking for me as i am climbing but as I am descending and about to ...

Last night was early to bed like usual. As for this morning, I had one of those mornings. I wanted to ride but I just wasn't feeling it. The wind was blowing (not in my favor), the ground was wet and I was alone. I usually ride an hour alone before Gearlink rides and since we were doing bridge repeaters today I wanted a nice spin before those "climbs". I guess I had a lot on my mind cause it was just one of those mornings where I debated about going back home and calling it a morning. I wish I could run cause I really wanted to be outside. I stayed on my bike because of that reason and I'm glad I kept riding. I met the group at 8 and completed all the repeaters at my effort and finished the ride with 50 miles. Karel has a Tough workout today...87 minutes at tempo pace (according to a certain power) with a total of 3 hours on the bike. Actually, he was out for about 4 hours since he forgot his key. Poor thing..he didn't bonk during the ride but he bonked so bad Aft...

Training for a Marathon: When planning your training for a marathon or any road race, use a training plan. Not only are plans designed to help you improve your fitness and help you reach your running goals but the plans keep you scheduled so that quality workouts are not replaced with junk mileage. If you have minimal running experience or you are coming from a background in another athletic sport, give yourself 2 months to build a running base before specifically training for your marathon. During those 2 months, focus on running skills, drills and economy and fall in love with running. Even if you are a vetran in the sport and you are planning on running 1 or more marathons a year, give yourself a chance to enjoy the art of running and exercise for fun without actually training. For newbies, run for time (not distance) for a 4-6 weeks and once you feel comfortable running between 45 min and 75 min, start increasing the speed through intervals and try to cover more distance in that de...

The talk this evening went great. I was so super nervous. I always get nervous before I talk but once I see the crowd and know that I have the chance to help people, I get really excited. I had a big turnout at the American Running Company (great shop!!!) and I just loved the enthusiasm of everyone in the room. This was one of the few talks I have given to only runners, but when it comes to sports nutrition I always have useful tips and advice for all athletes. Tomorrow I will post some of the info that I discussed this evening. I handed out a lot of business cards so I'm hoping that I get the opportunity to help more athletes with their nutrition. I am happy to say that I am jogging now, without pains or weird feelings in my legs! I did 4 miles on the treadmill with the first 30 min. of walking at 6% grade at 3.8 mph. I was reading over my talk for the evening so time just passed by. I was feeling really good on the treadmill so I decided to bump up the speed. Wow baby...6.1 mph a...

NUTRITION TALK TUESDAY DECEMBER 11, 2007!!! Marni Rakes, MS- Exercise Physiology,certified sports nutritionist, and Hawaii Ironman Come out and listen to our local sports nutritionist. She will be speaking on topics such as: Marathon fueling. Running efficiency. Nutrition for all different types of runners/walkers. How to get ready for a workout of different lengths. How to recover properly, to allow you to continue your workouts. DETAILS: FREE Tuesday, December 11, 2007. 6:00pm - 7:00pm Dunedin Store (1689 Main St, Dunedin) Hot Chocolate Served. Bring friends, family and co- workers welcome. http://americanrunningcompany.com/newsletter.html

Last night karel and I went to a holiday party. We met a lot of people and saw many familiar faces. I love socializing and chatting with people and the ring on my left ring finger never gets old as a great conversation starter :) So, many people ask me for advice for holiday party's and how to not overdo it with the food. I simply tell people to enjoy times with friends and family, try to eat small portions, avoid the "bad" stuff and eat a small meal before the party. Apparently I didn't realize how hard it is to not want to try EVERYTHING at a holiday party!!! All that wonderful food and when there is no cooking prep or clean-up, eating is at its best! I will use this blog as a resource for beating the weight gain during the holidays. Mission: Go to a holiday party, eat and socialize and leave without feeling grossly stuffed. My first step for the party (which I knew of in advance) was to eat foods during the day which I assumed I would not be eating in the evening. ...

I thought I knew what was coming today. The smell of coffee woke me up around 5:50am. However, Smudla crying woke karel up around 5:15am. Apparently, Smudla (our cat/alarm clock) needed some attention so she jumped in a tall laundry basket and couldn't get out. Don't feel sorry for her..She is spoiled, always needs attention and well, we love her to death so we have no one to blame but ourselves. Instead of oatmeal I had toast w/ PB and a few walnuts. In addition to my water and coffee, I needed something super easy to digest before today's workout. I said bye to Karel around 6:30am as he head out the door for his 3 hour solo ride. He had 72 min. of threshold work to do at a given power range. Although some days are better than others (he was super tired last night), I am just impressed with his effort and determination on the bike. I headed out for an easy hour warm-up before I met the guys at CVS. I always say "the guys" because Gearlink is mostly made up of mal...

It's no surprise that I love triathlons. During graduate school I wanted to become a strength and conditioning coach. I wanted to work with pro athletes, mostly working with football or basketball players. During my last semester of my masters I took a nutrition class with a free space in my schedule. I absolutely loved the class and since then I knew I wanted to do something with nutrition. I started running more and by then end of my Masters I had completed a marathon without knowing a lot about sports nutrition. After bonking for 5 miles of the Miami marathon in 2005 (miles 18-23) I wanted to learn more about sports nutrition. Since graduating with my masters in exercise physiology I have found a deep passion for sports nutrition. I am currently in the proces of getting classes together in order to go back to school and get my dietetic degree. I know the road will be a semi-long one but the next couple years will be worth it. Once I finish my dietetic courses and do my internshi...

Ok- major plug for BeginnerTriathlete.com but I just love that website! I don't know how it is all done but there is so much info on that page. I have several articles for Performance Members only but I've also completed several nutrition and exercise videos. You don't have to be a beginner triathlete to take advantage of the many tools, info and forums on that page. I love doing nutrition consultations as well and I've gotten to know many people in an effort to help others reach their racing and nutrition goals. Check out the videos and let me know if you have any questions! Feel free to leave your comments on the BT.com site or on my blog! Enjoy! http://beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=1058 http://beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=1318 http://beginnertriathlete.com/cms/article-detail.asp?articleid=1319 http://beginnertriathlete.com/cms/index.asp?catid=100 (strength training exercises) http://beginnertriathlete.com/cms/ind...

I'm not really stressed as much as I am constantly thinking ALL the time. I've realized that life is very uncertain and you have to live one day at a time. Last summer my life was triathlons. All I wanted to do was train and work on nutrition consultations. I desired to become a Pro triathlete, not for the money but for the status to let me mentor and train other athletes. Now that it has been nearly 3 months since I ran (not counting the marathon in the Ironman) I get so sad about my future in the sport. I think I am most sad that I don't have running in my life anymore. I have been a runner for the past 4 years and I find so much joy and stress relief in running. I just love to run. I did jog today but I have to be careful with every step. It is more a fear I have of re-injuring myself but I completed 3 x 4 minutes of jogging w/ 3 min. walking in between. I did it all outside today and running with the ocean in my view just made everything so peaceful. I miss that in my l...

I was on the NBC broadcast of the Ironman. I will be signing autographs on Wed. Haha-just kidding. How crazy is this! Karel and I have no idea what happened to our HD recording on the IM but some how it got messed up. My Kona get together was great and we had a great time with some of our friends. Smudla (our cat) was the center of attention towards the end of the night, but that is expected from a spoiled cat. I was looking forward to riding with Karel on Sunday morning but I should have known that I would be riding his pace and not mine. Although I've been feeling great on my rides, I've been averaging around 16 mph on my road bike. I think I reach lactate threshold around 18 mph!!! :( Oh well, I'm enjoying riding my bike and I do pick up the pace for intervals, riding with the guys and for longer rides. When we headed out to Landsbrook to meet the group for the 7:30 ride we were a little pressed for time since we left at 6:55am and not 6:45am. therefore, Karel picked up ...

So I heard.... I was in ft.lauderdale on thurs afternoon until Friday mid-morning and I was able to get in a 45 min. walk/jog. My mom and I took my grandparents down to my aunt and uncles house at Lighthouse point. Beautiful area and going back to south florida brought back lots of memories of graduate school. I was anxious to get on my beautiful bike and today's workout for the Gearlink team was bridge repeats. I remember last summer when I was super scared to descend down the sand key causeway, which is a little shorter but a little steeper than the memorial causeway. I didn't have a road bike last fall/winter so my bridge repeaters with the guys were on seduza. Kinda hard with aerobars. Well, now i am feeling super strong and I absolutely love climbing! Karel had a 2 1/2 hour workout w/ 1 hour of tempo riding at a power of 204-245W so he was on his own for the morning. The group and I ended up with 10 bridge repeaters (5 climbs on each side) and you had to stay seated in th...

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Getting back to normalcy after the Thanksgiving holiday. I enjoyed staying away from the computer (a little) over the weekend but now it's back to nutrition write-ups. Lucky for me, people tend to gain weight over the holidays/off-season and people need my help. I've been getting great feedback for my videos on BeginnerTriathlete.com and I'm working on a nutrition video for 2+ hr workouts. I've been riding my bike in the later afternoons and although it is really windy, I enjoy riding as the sun is setting. There's something about starting a ride when it's bright and sunny out and coming home w/ the bike lights on and my arms feeling the cooler air. I had one of those days on Tuesday. You know, when you just enjoy being outside and you don't want the workout to end. For me, I'd hardly call what I'm doing a workout but I was totally enjoying riding my bike. I planned on riding my normal 20 mile out and back route along the pinellas trail but I decided...

Spending time with my family is always great. Now that we have a new edition to our family, it is great having Karel around to share our laughs and fun times together. My parents, bro and grandparents came to clearwater on sat. to see our place and afterwards we all headed to Columbias at Sand Key beach for dinner. We had a gorgeous view of the ocean and the food was great. Since I'm semi-obsessed with bread (ok, very obsessed) I loved it that each person had their own loaf of bread. Yeah, mine was gone in about 5 seconds :) My grandpa is a great photographer but most of all, he loves taking pics of the family. So after lots of pictures we headed back home. Karel had his typical sweet tooth so we searched for ice cream in Dunedin and came across a cute ice cream and candy shop right on main street. Too cute! Sunday I wasn't really feeling a long ride since i've been riding a lot lately (part of my active recovery for my almost healed leg) so I headed out for a nice 35 mile ...

Dinner was absolutely yummy! I know a lot of people feel that Thanksgiving is an unhealthy holiday but we have so many vegetarian entrees that I don't think our meal could ever be unhealthy. My mom's friend Carol made me the best Zucchini boats w/ almonds, veggies and other things inside. They were really really good and the presentation was awesome! My dad always makes me stuffing outside the bird (yes-we do have a turkey and roast for the carnivores) and my mom makes her great sweet potato casserole w/ marshmallow's on top. Actually, she makes it a lot and it is a great way to prepare sweet potatoes for a crowd. Carol also made a roasted pepper, corn and onion salad which was great. MY mom's friend Linda made super fluffy mashed potatoes and I know my dad, Karel and Carlos (my good friend who races w/ me) loved those potatoes. Linda's hubby Jack made homemade pumpkin pie and I enjoyed the crust which is my favorite part of pie. I also put together a fruit salad fr...

The best way to start Thanksgiving day is with some sort of exercise. I feel strongly about getting a good workout in before the "big" meal and it's usually a Turkey Trot. I remember my first TT, which was in 2003 and I convinced my dad and brother to do it with me. I had just started running and it was raining that morning. Since i was in Lexington, Ky at the time, the weather was cold and it was a chilly morning. My family that was in town thought we were crazy and I guess since that run, I've always been considered "crazy" with my choice of activies (specifically the distance). I planned on doing the group ride with some of the gearlink guys but I jumped on bike before the ride in order to check out the scene at the St.pete times turkey trot. Seriously, you'd think people were walking to the stadium of the superbowl because there were SO many people! Since i was on my bike riding on the road, there was no way I'd be able to spot anyone but I did h...

I am super excited for Thanksgiving. One of my most favorite holidays! Not only is it a great time to spend with family and friends but there is great food and lots of it! I always start my Thanksgiving Thursday with a Turkey Trot but this year I won't be running. I am happy to say that in about a week I will start running again. I feel 99% and I've been walking a lot on the treadmill. I bump up the incline and I have no limp in my leg. Although it took a while, I can finally feel good about my Kona race and I'm looking forward to next season. Swimming is going GREAT and I'm feeling really strong in the water. Cycling is great as well and I plan on doing lots of it this weekend. Later this afternoon I'll be going on a group ride with the Gearlink guys and having dinner with my grandparents, karel and parents afterwards. My bro comes in this evening. I know Karel rode this morning but I am not sure what his plans are for the evening. Although I am a big planner, when...