Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

Karel and I waited for Thomas, our next athlete (of 14) to finish the race before we headed back to the parking garage to change out of our sweaty, sport drink covered, wet kits. I was moving very slow after the race and like usual, my body was not yet interested in solid food. I didn't feel dehydrated at the finish (no GI issues, nausea or anything abnormal) but I did take a few sips of water at the finish line to wash out my mouth. I went into the food tent and since the food selection was unappetizing to me at that time, I ate a few orange slices and grabbed a coke to give me some sugar and calories before heading over to bag/gear check-out. I know my body well (and Karel's body) and after an endurance event, it's amazing how quick the blood sugar can drop so sipping on some sugar (or having something with quick digesting carbs) is always good prevention to a possible post-race low energy moment. Anticipating what was coming next, my body started to tighten up and i...

It took me a few miles to get over the fact that I lost two hours worth of nutrition from my rear two cages - which has never happened before in over 11 years of endurance triathlon racing. Since I was not even 5 miles into the bike, mentally, it really affected me. I was frustrated and I couldn't get my head into a good place. But after realizing that Karel likely had a faster transition than me (nothing good happens in the transition area according to Karel) and I wouldn't be seeing him for the rest of the day, I forced myself to get out of my pity party and put on my Ironman hat and figure out how to overcome this nutrition setback. With every Ironman, there is something to learn. I often think of the Ironman as a day of decision making. Perhaps this is what makes the Ironman distance so addicting in that every race tests you physically and mentally and you keep wanting to get better with every next race. With my experience and knowledge, I knew that I would need to use...

Karel and I arrived in Chattanooga on Tues evening so that we could settle (back) into the city before race day on Sunday. As I mentioned in a previous post, I registered for IM Choo about 10 days out from race day as it was my comeback race from my fainting incident on race day morning at the Ironman 70.3 World Championship. While a half IM may have made more sense since my season was focused on half IM distance racing, the idea of racing an Ironman made me excited to want to race again. Although I did not plan to race an Ironman this year and didn't focus my training on preparing me for an Ironman until 2018, I felt calm, confident and excited to participate in my 12th Ironman in Chattanooga. Seeing that Karel directed all of his training and energy to Chatty as his key race to try to win his age group and qualify for Kona, I fueled off his race day readiness. Plus, being out on the course with my athletes had me even more excited for the race. Karel had a tremendous amount ...