Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

The other day I was chatting with a friend and I told her that there was no way that I would have been able to write my new book, Athlete to Triathlete , six years ago. Even though I've been a triathlon coach for over 13 years, several things have changed over the years that have helped me become better coach triathletes and understand the sport of triathlon. For example, on Pg. 35 of my book, I address several factors that can place an athlete at risk for a performance setback. Setbacks are no fun. They are frustrating, distracting and depressing.  While motivation and excitement can help you show up to a training session, as an athlete, it's your responsibility to be an active participant in all aspects of your life. Seeing that lifestyle choices impact your training, your athletic success is built on great body-mind awareness. In my book, I will help you train smarter and improve the odds of maintaining consistency with your training, all while building confidence for ra...

After a very tough 1:45 trainer session on Saturday morning, we ventured out to the Pretty Place Chapel so Karel and his mom could enjoy the beautiful view of the mountains. We then we went back to Triple Falls so they could see the covered bridge and high falls. The weather was a bit chilly compared to the last time we hiked but the trails were so quiet in the afternoon - it made for a peaceful afternoon in nature. We made a quick stop at the Flat Rock Bakery for some fresh bread (and a pepermint brownie - yumo) before heading back home. As always, Campy loved his afternoon adventure and slept the entire car ride home. On Sunday morning I had my longest training run in a very long time. I still get a bit of apprehension and worry on the day/night before a run. But with a good amount of time spent warming up with strength/mobility before each run, I am gaining more confidence and trust with my body. My run was not the typical "long run" of going out ...

I consider myself a very resilient athlete. I also don't consider myself injury-prone. Although my recent injury lasted around 4 months, I was able to complete two Ironmans, I experienced huge improvements in my swim and bike fitness and I am now back running injury free. This was my first  athletic setback in over 6 years. Having said this, I know I am susceptible to injury. Whether it's my swimming (non-weight bearing) background or bad motor patterns or maybe my endurance and strength allows me to muscle my way through fatigue, me and running have a rocky relationship. I've never had a stress fracture or broken bone and no foot, ankle or knee issues. It's all been glute/hip/lower back related. I've learned that my body needs a certain amount of running frequency + strength based runs to keep my body happy.  Injuries are extremely frustrating to athletes. They force "us" to modify our lifestyle and remove us from doing what we love to do with ou...

I went through a rollercoaster of emotions this summer with my back/hip/glute injury. Although this injury was nothing new or unfamiliar to me, it had been a good six years since I've had a run-related setback. Thankfully, my stubborn past self taught me a lot about how to best mentally and physically overcome an injury. While I felt like I handled it the best I could from learning from my past and being optimistic, there were certainly some moments when I wanted to give up on myself and count myself out of my two Ironman events. Just to backtrack, 3 weeks before Ironman Canada I felt some lower back soreness on my left side on the 3rd day of our endurance training camp. I contributed to a lot of twisting while riding my tri bike to look at the other campers. The next morning, I felt stabbing pain in my lower back after bending over to put on my socks. My training was modified over the next 6 days and I felt like I had escaped a possible injury but a week after I experienc...

Whether you are a highly-trained athlete or a fitness enthusiast, there’s always a risk for injury. While some injures are minor, such as a bruise or inflammation, others are much more debilitating such as a tear, broken bone, impingement, stress fracture or ruptured tendon. To avoid a decline in muscle strength, neuromuscular control and overall fitness, nutrition is vital in the healing and rehab process. Sometimes, with the right therapy, re-training program and dietary habits, athletes come back stronger and faster after an injury. Because the body has altered nutrient and energy needs during an injury, the following recommendations will help expedite return to sport: Protein - While the precise amount varies, be sure to keep up with your protein intake (ex. 1.5-1.8g/kg/d) – especially after exercise/rehab – to maintain strength and muscle mass. Carbohydrate – Slightly lower carbohydrate intake to prevent excessive weight gain and prioritize higher-fiber, satiating foods s...

Injuries are an unavoidable part of sport participation. While there are ways to reduce your risk and some injuries result from accidents, almost every athlete will experience some type of injury during an athletic career. While some injuries can be managed with just a little disruption to training (I call these niggles), some injuries cause substantial physical and mental stress.  It's normal to feel frustrated, annoyed and sad when you experience an injury. Depending on the severity of the injury, your emotions may change on a daily basis. Every person has his/her own emotional reaction to an injury as well as how to best emotionally cope with a setback. It should be noted that injury process doesn't just include the time immediately after an injury until the injury is healed but it also includes the rehab process and the time needed to return to optimal fitness. Because sport/exercise/training is often used as a healthy coping mechanism to manage stress, to boost ...

It felt great to get back into structured training last week. I was a bit nervous for my long ride on Friday (4.5 hours) as it was my first outdoor ride since IM Canada so I recruited my friend/athlete Al to join me for company since Karel is out of town. Karel was in Mont Tremblant supporting our athletes who were racing there (both did amazingly great!). I've also been recruiting my swim partner Kristen for my swims - on Thursday we had a toughy of a workout. The main set was 4000 (after a 500 warm-up) and the workout was a lot of building, pacing and specific intervals to hit. Our arms were super tired at the end! Although I'm still not run training yet, I did my first run (on the treadmill) this morning - yay! Celebrating the small milestones. While I've never had a bone related injury, I'm well familiar with soft-tissue injuries and the biggest thing stopping me from running over the past few weeks was the tugging and tightness that I was feeling. While not t...

Imagine if you could train and race without a single risk for injury?  If it seems to good to be true, well, that's because it is. Injuries are part of sport. If you call yourself an athlete, accept that you are always at risk for an injury. When you train for an athletic event, you are placing a tremendous amount of stress on the body to improve your skills, fitness and preparation. And for any athlete who wants to get more out of his/her body, there are risks to be taken to push a little harder and go a little longer. Certainly, every coach has his/her intentions to design a smart training plan/training environment to reduce the risk for injury but sometimes things are just out of your control. While many injuries (niggles) are managed conservatively with little break in structured training or activities of daily living, other injuries are very disruptive to life, often causing physical and mental stress due to a complete stop in physical activity.  For any athlet...

It's hard to believe that just over 1 year ago, Karel and I qualified for the 2015 IM World Championship. And in two weeks from yesterday, Karel and I will be boarding a plan to the big island of Kona. And in 24 days, we will both be starting our 140.6 mile journey with 1500+ of the best Ironman athletes around the world.  Just like you, we are on the same  emotional  roller coaster that so many experience when training for a key race. With any race day countdown in place, the ups and downs of training for an event can leave you exhausted and drained on some days and excited and overly energized on other days.  No matter what the race distance may be or your fitness level, we all struggle with the dynamics of our   emotions   on a day to day basis. Before you scream "why me?" when you find yourself angry, crying or stressed (or all three at once), what you feel is completely normal and not limited to world class, professional or elite athletes...

Year after year, season after season, I was defined, destroyed and strengthened by injuries.  I remember the very first injury I had as a triathlete. It was 2007.   Karel was racing a cycling road race in GA and I decided to do a training run on the rolling hills while he was racing. Somewhere during the run, my entire hip/back tightened up and it was extremely uncomfortable. A few days later after returning home from GA, I felt a stabbing pain somewhere in my hip area during a run and that was it.  And to make matters worse, I was just about 4 weeks away from my very first Ironman World Championship and my 2nd Ironman.  I was devastated.   I felt embarrassed, anxious, stressed and uncomfortable and simply put, my life just sucked for 4 weeks.  Every morning I would wake up wondering if I could walk pain free. I went to bed hoping that tomorrow I would be in less pain. I wished for the day that I could take a hop without pain, let ...

Ask any family member, training buddy or close friend to a runner (or triathlete) who is recently injured and can not run and you will quickly learn that an injured runner is no fun to be around. Sure, there are the athletes and fitness enthusiasts who keep a smiling face and a positive attitude while coping with an injury but it is completely normal to feel frustrated when you dedicate yourself to a goal and then receive a setback. So when you get injured the focus should not be on "when can I run again" but instead, "why did this happen and how can I become a smarter athlete because of this injury." As an athlete who enjoys to stay active, I have had many setbacks with training for events due to hip/back issues and anywhere from 6-12 weeks of no running. Although I can't say that I am always optimistic at the beginning of an injury, I have learned how to focus on the CANs and understand the physiology of my body better with an injury than when I am 100%...