Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

How much food does it take to fuel two triathletes training for the Ironman World Championship?  A lot!! With almost 9 weeks left until Karel and I use our bodies for 140.6 miles on the big island of Kona, the training is getting a lot more specific....and a LOT longer.  There is a lot to juggle every day with work/business, training and the rest of life and a lot of food must be consumed to keep our bodies healthy and well fueled.  As for our weekly staples (we make at least two grocery trips per week): Milk Eggs Cheese Yogurt Deli meat/meat (for Karel) Tempeh/tofu Irish butter Cottage Cheese Veggies - all kinds Mixed greens Fruit - all kinds Potatoes Waffles Oats Fresh bread - all kinds Saltine crackers Pretzels Rice cakes Cereals Maple Syrup/honey Peanut butter Jam Soup Rice Whole Grains Coffee I think that's it for the weekly staples and there are always "extras" based on what we make for meals, what we are craving and what is accessible a...

Batch cooking is a life saver. If you are an athlete, you know the feeling post-workout when you are hungry and two thoughts come to mind: You think about what you should eat to refuel and nourish your body and then you think about the time it will take to prepare the meal, cook the meal and eventually eat the meal. We all know that a bowl of cereal can be "made" in less than 5 minutes but so can leftovers - heated in the microwave. Healthy eating takes effort but when you are an athlete, you have to be dedicated to nourishing your body. The added stress from training makes the body more vulnerable to sickness, injury and fatigue. Food is your medicine and your fuel. Although you may feel like the extra time in your life that could be devoted to meal prep is taken up by training, sorry - your excuse is invalid... you still have to make the time to cook. Every now and then the stars will align and you jump with  joy that you have the free time to cook a home cooked mea...

What a delicious creation!  Karel and I went grocery shopping a bit late tonight (around 6:30pm) so by the time we returned home and unloaded the reusable grocery bags, it was 7:30pm. We didn't shop hungry thanks to a small snack before we left but come 7:45pm we were ready for dinner.  We both did our own meals this evening and I just wanted something simple.  My original plan was to cook my sweet potato and have a side of veggies. I steamed the edamame, corn and mushrooms and I was ready to eat. But then it came to me....why not combine everything together? Oh, what a delicious, simple creation!!! I cubed the sweet potato and combined it with a ladle or two of the veggie mixture. I seasoned with pepper and a pinch of salt and drizzled with olive oil.  Not pictured is the slice of fresh Mozzarella cheese that I enjoyed as I was getting my dinner ready and also the big dollop of Fage 0% Greek Yogurt that I served as a dip on the side.  I just lo...

This endurance body is happily fueled by real food. AND Plant strong for almost 21 years. A Karel creation: Jasmine rice and a stir fry of tempeh, peanuts, onions, mushrooms, peppers and marinara on top arugula. This creation was enjoyed last night and made my tummy/muscles super happy for an early morning wake-up call (4:20am) for a 5:30am track workout.  Love your afternoon snack Honor your biological hunger in the afternoon. Do not expect your body to allow you to go from lunch to dinner without food (especially if more than 4 hours between meals or if working out in the evening). A mid afternoon snack is a great way to nourish your body and boost energy.  Here's one of my fav mid day snacks: 1/2 cup Chobani Greek yogurt + fresh fruit chopped + a few spoonfuls of KIND or organic granola. Enjoy! Refueling from a long brick Asparagus, mushrooms and tofu tossed with pasta noodles and marinara, topped with Parmesan. Karel had the same (larger portion) but chicke...

It's no fun coming home hungry after a long day/commute, evening workout or late meetings and feeling the pressure to cook.  We all have crammed-packed schedules but even if you want more hours in the day to get everything done, you'd likely fill-up those hours as well. Rather then beating yourself up that you are failing on certain areas of you life that may improve your overall health, remind yourself that regardless if you find the time or make the time, you do have time that you may not be using wisely and nothing is more important to your busy life than keeping your body in good health. You know a home cooked meal will make you feel great inside and with you in control of the portions, ingredients and timing, there is a lot to benefit from when it comes to preparing food at home.  So the hope is that when you make small changes with your diet and keep them up, you will feel the effects of those changes and not only form new healthy habits but you may also feel ...

Trimarni lifestyle change tip:  If you have between 10-30 min when you come home from work before an evening workout or meeting/event, start your dinner prep and finish as much as possible so you don't come home starving and convince yourself that you can't wait the time to cook a real food, balanced meal.  Here's a creation that I prepared in 25 minutes before our evening swim practice on 1/15 (I planned for leftovers): Tempeh, mushrooms, frozen veggie mix (corn, peas, carrots), onions, garlic, balsamic, olive oil, kale, turmeric, pinch of salt, chili pepper, slivered almonds. Also, 1 pot of quinoa (1/2 cup dry to 1 cup boiling water).  The final creation! Swim workout Main set (at the very end of our 75 minute practice): 3xs (with fins): 3x100s fast swim on 1:30 3x50s fast kick on 1 minute Continue 2 more rounds. Total yards: 3800 After my morning fuel (8 ounce skim milk + 1 spoonful chia seeds + 1/2 cup cheerios - a new creation I have been us...

There's food inspiration everywhere and depending on your creativity in the kitchen, the possibilities are endless. I recently received my first every wok from my brother and his new wife and I couldn't wait to put it to good use. When I was reading a recent issue of Nutrition Action Healthletter, I came across this page on stir-fry recipes.   Instant Trimarni Motivation!!   One of my favorite proteins in my plant strong diet is Tempeh. Actually, Karel is the one that turned me to LOVE tempeh after he had a wrap from Nat http://nativesunjax.com/ with Tempeh inside of it. I am a big fan of soy (in it's whole form) because it is a complete protein and contains all essential amino acids. So, not only is this ancient fermented soybean food great for my health but tempeh is also protein packed (20g per 4 ounce serving) which makes for a great fuel in my active lifestyle.     With the following ingredients in my kitchen, it w...

Wow - I can't believe it's been two weeks since IM KONA. After a few days, the aches, burns and chaffing subsided and that was a sign that I was officially in my off-season...and  I'm totally enjoying every day of it! Three full weeks of no weight bearing activity (ex. no running, plyometrics, etc.), no workout structure and no alarms. There's plenty of time to catch up on house chores, be super creative in the kitchen, take longer walks with Campy and just give a little TLC for my awesome body for what it allowed me to do this summer. And to rest up for a very exciting season of destination races: St. Croix 70.3 (May), IM Austria (June), IMWI (July). There's a lot of work to do in the off season after my recovery period and I am really excited to set new goals and to enjoy another exciting year with my healthy body. Just to recap the past few weeks, there have been no post-race blues, no guilty feelings about no structured activity (typically 30-60 min o...