Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

"I don't feel like myself!" "I feel so off!" "I feel so lazy" "Why do I suddenly feel sick/injured?" For many athletes, the taper period before a race brings a lot of feelings. Some good and some well, not so welcomed. You'd think that for any athlete who has endured months of hard training, he/she would look forward to a physical decrease in the training load. Yes, that is often looked forward to but it's actually the feelings, that come along with this drop in volume, that leave an athlete feeling uncomfortable in so many ways. Think about this.... You've reached a point in your season when you put in countless hours of training and you have covered more miles in a week than you feel comfortable driving in a car (who wants to sit in a car for 100+ miles???)  and you have accomplished one too many "impossible to finish" workouts. Here you are and the only thing between you and putting all that training ...

Always a great feeling when the hard work is done after a hard (4.5 hour) workout. There are many methods and thoughts regarding how much “rest” is needed by athletes, before going into a major competition. Some athletes will train high volume until 7-10 days from an Ironman whereas other athletes will experience a massive drop in volume 21 days out from an Ironman. Ultimately, when done correctly (and only a few times per year), tapering sharpens your body and mind so that you are prepared physically and mentally for your upcoming competition. Tapering is defined as a short-term reduction in a training load before an important athletic event. When you train consistently, you are placing a lot of intentional stress on your body. You know this feeling well as you are carrying around a lot of residual fatigue, which makes it difficult to feel fresh and energetic for all of your workouts. However, you need to train through fatigue so that your body can adapt in order to g...

Taper is an interesting time for an Ironman athlete. And for most "easy" and "taper" are never spoken in the same sentence. Physically, taper is a needed time for endurance athletes to ensure that the body is rested and well-fueled for the upcoming long haul. A drastic drop in training allows the body to recover from all the previous stress. Nearing race day, intensity can be added to "wake up" the body while volume is still kept low. This allows an athlete to feel sharp, fresh and hungry for race day.  Of course, the style of tapering may differ between athletes, depending on fitness ability, race priority and prior taper experience.  Emotionally and mentally, taper can be rather difficult. On one end, you can't wait for the first day of taper when you have a sigh of relief that the end of "training" is near but on the other end, a change in schedule, appetite, structure, etc. can makes you feel a bit "off." ...

We are off to Madison, Wisconsin tomorrow!!  The weather is looking GREAT for race day and our bodies are feeling healthy thanks to a lot of great, delicious, real food! I thought I'd share a few yummy creations that we have enjoyed over the past 2 weeks.  Don't forget to yum! Chia crepes and egg and kale omelet 1 cup whole wheat flour 1/2 cup skim milk 2 tbsp chia seeds 1/8 tsp salt Dash of cinnamon 3/4 - 1 cup water 1 egg Olive oil 1. Mix ingredients in bowl for crepes until thin consistency.  2. In a medium skillet on low heat, drizzle olive oil to lightly coat bottom of the pan.  3. Pour crepes (around 1/3 cup) in middle of skillet and spread to make a large, thin pancake with back of spoon (you need to do this quickly and your pan can not be hot, it needs to be on the low setting. You may also use this batter for pancakes).  4. Cook for 1-2 minutes until firm on edges, then flip and cook for 1 minute.  Omelet 1 ...