Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

NO MENTAL PREPARATION It's a no brainer that mental training can help to boost your race day performance. Whereas the atmosphere at an Ironman event can be exciting, the big island of Kona is unlike any other Ironman event on race week. There are countless events, meet-and-greets and other activities to entertain athletes and with all of the excitement of race week, it can be difficult to tune out distractions, reduce anxiety and stress and maintain great focus for race day. It's very normal and typical for Ironman athletes to experience a heightened sense of self-doubt, worry and fear on race week. Whereas there's a lot to consider when racing for 140.6 miles, Kona brings unique race day conditions with the wind and heat and the unpredictability of the day can literally suck the energy out of your body before you even have a chance to toe the start line.  But no need to worry. My good friend and Licensed Clinical Sport Psychologist Gloria Petruzzelli (Dr. G) wrote an ...

It's crazy to think that this is my 11th year of endurance triathlon racing and for the last five years, I have been sharing it with Karel as my training partner. We have had highs and we have had lows but that's all to be expected when you are a competitive athlete, always wanting to give your best, stretch your comfort zone and push your limits.  Over the past few years, I have learned that it requires a lot of work and time to see performance improvements, so I am never quick to assume that my training is or isn't working. I continue to focus on the process and with so much gratitude to my strong and healthy body, no workout is taken for granted. Some workouts are so-so, some I want to quickly forget and others go into my memory bank to be remembered on race day.  I've also learned that time goals, paces and watts are not worth chasing nor is a specific body image, but instead, I must continuously focus on something more subjective and meaningful to keep...

                                    Life is hard. We have our good days and our bad days.  Consider a change from negative thinking to help you function/perform better in your awesome life.   1. Accept where you are now and be happy about it. It's easy to spend much of your life thinking that you would be happier if or when...... Despite life moving forward, it can seem that no matter what you receive, earn or achieve in life, you have a way of postponing happiness because whatever you have now, could be better and could make you happier. Or so you think.   Life is filled with challenges and life is hard. You can either be frustrated, angry, anxious or overwhelmed by this fact or you can be happy anyway.  If you are constantly comparing yourself to an old you or to someone else, consider what you would need to sacrifice, give up, change or restrict in order to achieve ...

As a lifelong athlete, I have found that when I train my mind as hard as I train my body, I perform well, often exceeding my personal expectations.   However, mental training is easier said than done! There have been many times in training and racing when my mind just wasn't in it to win it! In the past few yeas, I have actually had to work on my mental strength as I was finding my mind to be a major limiter with my training as it relates to the following: -Overcoming injuries - a fear of an injury coming back, having fear when pushing hard or going long -Bringing my work/life to a training session - not being 100% present during a workout and thinking about everything that I need to/should do I've really worked hard on these areas over the past few years so that I can execute better in my training sessions.  When athletes talk mental strength, I believe many athletes think toughness, digging deep, grit, perseverance. Absolutely, all of those components ar...

When it comes to training for athletic events, there are many different approaches that athletes and coaches use to reach peak performance. When it comes to fueling the human body before, during and after training, there are many different approaches that sport dietitians use to support a body in motion. But when it comes to the mindsets of top athletes, there is not much that differs among those who know how to use their minds to reach top fitness and perform well on race day.  Top athletes are mentally strong. They know how to focus on the task at hand, they know how to overcome obstacles quickly and they know that it will be worth it.  Mental toughness is not reserved for the elite or pro athletes as it has very little to do with speed, pace, watts or finishing times in order to achieve it. Any athlete, of any fitness levels, has the opportunity to be mentally strong in training and racing.  Although I love showing off our beautiful cycling playgro...

Well, it's finally official.  MARNI SUMBAL (30-34 age group): BIB NUMBER 1933 With this week being my last week of Ironman training before an active recovery week followed by race week taper, my body feels amazing. With our approach to Ironman training being enhanced every year, I really feel Karel and I nailed my training for my 7th Ironman and 3rd Ironman World Championship. Every go-around we reflect on what didn't work and then we stretch the boundaries on how much I can get my body to adapt with the least amount of training stress. With this "less is more, train hard, recover harder approach" I have experienced bitter sweet feelings before my last three Ironmans. Absolutely I am ready to taper and rejuvenate from all this Ironman Kona specific training and I am excited to experience the normal "hunger" I experience on race week to get out there and let my body do it's thing. But my body and mind feel healthy. They feel strong and c...

Do you want the perfect life?  Life is not perfect. Healthy individuals get cancer, cyclists are an annoyance to drivers, employees who work less get paid more than you and when everything seems to be running smoothly, life happens and you feel unbalanced.  So what you can desire in life, is the ability to want the most out of your life. You can define your own definition of the perfect life by one that is consistent and involves a lot of hard work, growth and reflection.  Today I officially registered for the 2013 Ironman World Championship  in Kona Hawaii. This will be my 3rd experience on the big island, racing amongst the best (and most inspiring) age group and professional triathletes in the world. I will be arriving October 7th and departing October 15th. All the logistics of traveling are settled and all I have left to do is prepare my body and mind for my 7th Ironman. Nine weeks of another Ironman journey. Thank you body. One of my favori...