Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

In 2012, Karel was ready to try a long distance triathlon. After only being in the sport for a few months, he was looking ahead to 2013 to participate in his first Ironman. Although we were living in pancake flat Jacksonville, FL., Karel wanted a challenging course for his first Ironman. After doing a bit of research, we decided on Ironman Lake Placid in upstate NY.  Since our first Ironman together in Lake Placid in 2013, we have returned to the area four more times. We fell in love with Lake Placid so much that we decided that we needed to move away from the beach, and closer to the mountains. Thus, our move to Greenville, SC in May 2014. We also realized that we love challenging and beautiful courses. Some of our favorite courses include Wisconsin, Whistler, Austria and St. George.  In 2015, Karel tore his plantar a few weeks prior to Ironman Lake Placid and intentionally DNF (did not finish) after the bike. In 2017 , we returned again for Karel to race, but he had the flu ...

  I was really looking forward to the new run course. With the first two miles net downhill, it was easy to find my running rhythm. At home, we live on the bottom of a hill so every run is always starting uphill. Although my transition was a bit long, that extra time (plus potty stop) contributed to quickly finding my running legs after a really exhausting and challenging bike. I had no time or pace goals for the run as it’s nearly impossible to predict how the body will feel and perform in a marathon after 114.4 miles of racing. And there’s just no way to simulate the mind and body fatigue that you feel when you start the run. I’ve had Ironman runs where the fatigue doesn’t hit me until mile 18-20 and others where I feel it on the first step (which makes for a very, very long marathon). Although I have had a lot of experience running a marathon after biking for 112 miles, participating in the 3-day, coast to coast, Xtreme triathlon really gave me a lot of confidence with my run...

As I made my way through town, my first focus was to safely get out of town. The first few miles are a bit technical and with the wet roads and rain, I didn’t want my day to be over in the first few miles of the bike. Once I made my way to the first big climb passed the ski jumps, I felt like I could start settling into a good routine.  The few miles before the Keene decent are very challenging as there are a few climbs that seem to roll but you never get enough momentum on the back of one hill to carry it to the next hill. So it really is a steady climb over several hills that makes it feel like one long climb. I enjoyed the out and back section into the Olympic cross country ski area as it was nice to break things up and see the other athletes in the other direction. I found myself around a few female professionals and only noticed a few age group riders ahead of me. I knew there was a lot left in the ride/race so I just focused on riding my own race but also using those around...

  After my alarm went off at 3:45am, I found myself feeling calm and in a positive mindset. I changed into my race kit and went upstairs for my pre-race meal. Although I typically have a bagel, I was really feeling a waffle so had two Belgium style cinnamon waffles and topped them with peanut butter, syrup and banana slices. I had a small cup of coffee (instant Nescafe Gold) and glass of water. I didn't find it too hard to eat which was a good sign that my mind was in a good place. All of the Trimarnis in the house were in the kitchen together so overall, the energy was really positive.  After I ate, I went down to my bedroom and did some light foam rolling as part of my pre-workout/race routine and then went outside in the light rain for a little jog before one last stop at the house bathroom. Karel was giving me reassuring words and telling me that I always do well in the Ironman distance. I appreciated his words and support.  Around 4:50am, we all squeezed into two car...

  We left our house on Wednesday morning around 4:20am and arrived to the GSP airport just before 5am. It was a smooth check-in with our two suitcases and two Scicon hard cases w/ our bikes inside. Each bike case weighed ~50lbs so we were able to check those items for free on Delta and then just pay $40 each for our suitcases. We felt a bit rusty with the entire airport process as the last time we traveled via plane for a race was October 2019 for the Ironman World Championship. We flew to Detroit, had a ~2 hour layover and then flew to Albany. Both flights were smooth and went by quickly (we napped on both flights). It was fun to meet up with a few Trimarnis in the Detroit airport before they made their way to Burlington.  Since we flew into Burlington in 2013 for IM Lake Placid, I decided to try out the Albany airport and ~2:15 hr drive. It was an easy process from luggage pick-up to getting our rental car (right across the street from the airport - no shuttle needed) and th...