Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

  Every endurance (and ultra distance) athlete wants to show up to an event/race feeling physically prepared. But what about being nutritionally prepared?  A long distance event places a lot of stress on the human body. Extreme environmental conditions further exacerbate the physiological (and mental) demands during physical activity. While physical preparation can improve the chance of completing the event or setting a personal best time, gastrointestinal issues are likely to cause the body to underperform. Or even worse, you may not be able to complete the event due to a nutritional complication.  Research states that around 30-70% of endurance and ultra endurance athletes experiences GI issues on race day. In other words, at an Ironman triathlon of 1500 athletes, around 1050 athletes will experience some type of GI issue. This is a very alarming statistic considering how money, time and effort go into preparing for an endurance event.  I've worked with many athlet...

Gastrointestional issues are very common among endurance athletes. Complaints are usually dividing into two categories - upper GI and lower GI.  Most athletes are familiar with lower GI issues - gas, loose stool, urge to defecate, diarrhea, abdominal cramping. I've written several articles on the topic of GI issues but most of the gastrointestinal issues I discuss involve the lower GI tract. In working with hundreds of endurance athletes on race day nutrition, the common culprits of lower GI issues include dehydration and concentrated or poorly applied sport nutrition consumption. I find this area fairly straightforward when it comes to prescribing well-formulated sport nutrition products to minimize or alleviate lower GI issues on race day.  When it comes to upper GI issues in endurance athletes, like belching, vomiting, reflux/heartburn, trouble swallowing and bloating, this area has been more challenging to fix. What makes it so difficult is that most of the athletes ...

The gut is a very important athletic organ because it is responsible for the delivery of nutrients and fluids during exercise. The gut is highly adaptable and should be trained repeatedly in training - just like the muscles and heart. Unfortunately, many athletes are reluctant (or afraid due to body composition concerns, previous GI complaints and 'they sayers') to take in recommended amounts of carbohydrates, calories, sodium and fluids before and during long workouts. Sadly, this results in underfueling in training and far too common, overfueling on race day. By practicing your pre-race and race day nutrition many times prior to race day, you can improve absorption of nutrition, improve gut tolerance and learn what works (and doesn't work) to reduce the chance of GI distress and to improve performance. Although GI distress is common among endurance athletes, race day performance-limiting upper- and lower-gastrointestinal (GI) issues are highly preventable. Although causes...

GI (or gastrointestinal) issues are no fun. GI issues are one of the most commonly blamed reasons for underperforming on race day. In some cases, gut related issues can result in athletes not finishing the event.  Many athletes have come to me expressing great frustration and discomfort from nausea, bloating, gas, bloody diarrhea, loose stools, cramping, stomach pain, abdominal distention or vomiting during training and competition. While these complaints can have a negative effect on performance, they have an even bigger impact on physical and mental health.  Thankfully, several research studies have discussed the reasons why endurance athletes are at great risk for GI issues. There is also good research discussing how to mitigate these issues during exercise - especially in the heat, at high intensity or during long duration.  Reduced blood flow to the intestines during exercise is one of the main contributors to GI symptoms. These issues are only exacerbated when the b...

Photo by Deuce Bradshaw. Unwanted in training and competition, GI issues frequently impair performance and recovery. The three main causes of GI symptoms include physiological (reduced blood flow to the gut), mechanical (bouncing/jumping) or nutritional (diet/sport nutrition). For example, during exercise, blood flow to the digestive system is impaired so the stomach may reject ingested food or fluids, sending them out of the body - either up or down. Common upper and lower GI issues include: UPPER GI ISSUES LOWER GI ISSUES Nausea Intestinal cramping Vomiting Side stitch Stomach pain/cramps Gas Bloating Loose stools/diarrhea Belching Intestinal bleeding Heartburn/reflux Urgency to defecate Severity differs depending on the athlete and sport. For example, the high-impact nature of running may jostle the gastric system, contributing to lower GI issues. In cycling, posture on th...

                                       A throwback to Kona '18 and Acai bowls - yum yum. Wowzer - five weeks until IM 70.3 Haines City. I'm so excited to race I can hardly contain myself. My training is slowly increasing in training volume - specifically bike and run. My typical swim distances are between 3800-4600 yards (~1-1:15hr swim) and I swim five times per week. I also bike about five times per week and there's never an easy bike workout. As for the run, I also run about 4-5 times per week and while I have some solid brick run sessions (my favorite - I love love love running off the bike), my other runs are all about efficiency right now (around 45-65 minutes). With a long season ahead (20 weeks until Ironman Canada and 30 weeks until IM Kona), I'm being patient with my run volume/intensity (per the methods of my coaches). I'm lucky that I don't suffer from GI issues in tr...

Yes, I am pouring ice down my shorts at Ironman Kentucky (2009). This was one of my favorite races because it was great to be in my home state. I loved the rolling hills on the course and I always like to see nature/wildlife when I am racing. I have been known to say out loud "Hello" to the cows and horses that I spot along course - I am sure they say hello back but I am too busy riding fast on my bike.  This was also a favorite race of mine because it was my Ironman PR - a hard definition to use in racing because I have PR'd in separate races for each the swim, bike and run but here I put it all together for a "fast" Ironman at 10 hours and 53 minutes. But as we all know, you can't compare race to race for every race is different. I will take my 10 hours and 57 minute finishing time as my "best" race at IMWI for it was super challenging and likely the hardest IM I have ever "raced". In Kona 2011, I PR'd on the bike but I have ye...