Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

It was nice not to feel rushed in the morning. We spent around an hour eating/working between 7-8am and then got ourselves ready to leave. We prepared everything the night prior (food, sport nutrition, gear, etc.) in addition to our hydration packs (2 each), which we kept cold in the fridge. We left around 8:20am and arrived to Pleasant Ridge (event venue) around 20 minutes later. I had a cinnamon raisin bagel w/ peanut butter and jelly at home and then had a Chobani cherry flavored yogurt in the car. I sipped on water in the car and had another bottle of Skratch to sip on at the venue. Karel had oatmeal at home and ½ bagel w/ peanut butter in the car. Compared to Friday weather which was warm (70) and sunny, Saturday was much colder – in the upper 40’s. With a lot of outdoor riding in the cold, we both had an idea of what to wear, with most of gear removable (ex. leg covers, arm warmers, jacket, etc.). After we arrived, we set up our area in the “loop” section of the course. We us

  On November 15th, Karel asked me if I wanted to ride his old mountain bike on the trails behind Furman University. After seeing how much fun Karel was having on his mountain bike, I thought it would be fun to try.  For my first ride, we ventured a few miles down the road. Karel taught me the basics of riding a mountain bike on very easy trails. There were no obstacles to overcome but instead, I learned how to move my weight, adjust the gears and go over curbs. It was a very fun and enlightening session.  A little over a month later (December 24th), I went for my first official mountain bike ride at Dupont State Forest. This ride was much more technical with rocks, roots, gravel, water crossings, climbs and descends. Karel took his time explaining line choices and helping me build my confidence going over more technical obstacles. We would stop and discuss the more challenging sections and although I would try, there were many obstacles that I could not get over. As the ride continued

  Over the past year, I've gone from elite triathlete to complete beginner.  In 2021, at the age of 39, I had one of my most successful seasons in 16 years of competitive long-distance triathlon racing.  IM 70.3 Chattanooga - 3rd overall female IM 70.3 Blue Ridge - 2nd overall female (missed first by 2 seconds) IM Lake Placid - 3rd overall female IM 70.3 World Championship - 11th age group Over the past 12 months, I've also trained for and raced in three new sports......gravel biking, trail running and mountain biking. Although my triathlon experience has given me tools to use for each of these new events, I had to remind myself that I was a beginner. Whereas in half and full distance triathlon racing, the experience is very familiar and routine for me, I was filled with curiosity with each new sport. The novelty of each event made it fun and exciting. But with each 'first time' I also knew that I would be learning a lot throughout the experience and the best race day m