Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

I've spent the last two blogs talking about mindful eating. And I'm not done yet. I still have part IV to combine everything together so that you, the athlete, can fully understand where I am coming from as it relates to your health, performance and body composition goals. First off, I invite you to read  THIS ARTICLE  to help you improve your relationship with food. As promised, here are a few simple tips to help you practice mindful eating. Whereas the above article (link) can help with improving your relationship  with food, the below tips are specific to when you indulge. Most people do not have an unhealthy relationship with food they term healthy and feel good when eating is under control. The food mind games likely occur when you indulge, eat something you term "off limit" or feel "off track" with your eating. (Be sure to practice these tips throughout the holiday season when you will be presented with more treats than normal.) Befor...

How did you do with your homework today from my last blog post? Did you find yourself with positive or negative thoughts when you ate? Did your thoughts turn negative when you ate foods that you term "off-limit"? What foods made you feel the best and what foods gave you the most anxiety? Continue to work on this so that you learn how to quiet the voices in your head so that eating is a peaceful, joyful and positive experience. I promise - it is possible and it will make a huge impact on how you fuel for your athletic endeavors.  ----------------------------------------------------------------------- So why do I continue to talk and talk and talk about mindful eating as it relates to athletes? As a Board Certified Sport Dietitian, shouldn't I be spending most of my time talking about supplements and sport nutrition products? Well, every athlete has to eat. And in my field of work, far too many athletes struggle with their relationship with food...

A few days after returning home from Kona in mid October, Karel and I went to an Ironman celebration party in Greenville. We spent the evening talking with several Ironman finishers who live in the Greenville area. To finish the evening, we enjoyed cake from a local baker.  And to top it off (literally), the dot of the cake had our names on it. So sweet (literally, again) ! After cutting into the M part of the cake for everyone in the party, the dot remained uneaten. The host of the party insisted that Karel and I take home our personalized section of the cake. After returning home from the party with a beautiful round cake, I wrapped up the cake and put it in the freezer. I figured there would be a good time to eat the cake but the right time wasn't anytime soon.  --------------------------------------------------- As a sport dietitian, when I think about athletes and their relationship with food, I often see/hear two different types of athlet...

There are many names to describe the phase that occurs between the end of a racing season and the start of more structured, specific training stress.  For the sake of the masses identifying with this blog topic, I used the word "base" phase in this blog post but as you may know, we use the word " transition " as well as " foundation " to describe the first phase after the off-season. Other coaches have different names for this phase. For example, Matt Dixon with Purple Patch Fitness uses the word "post-season". The transition (base) phase of training is critical to athlete development. As I mentioned in my previous blog post , preparation for an event is more than just putting in the miles. As athletes, we are always developing and we are always training in some capacity. In order to maximize fitness, season after season, it is important to follow a periodized training plan that allows for progression. There must be specific emphasis on pea...

The triathlon bug hit me hard when I finished graduate school in Dec 2005. Over the next 11 months I became a first-time Boston Marathon finisher, a Half Ironman finisher and an Ironman finisher. People would tell me "Marni, you are a natural for endurance sports!" My first year of endurance sports was perfect. No injuries, no sickness,  no setbacks. It was smooth sailing for all of 2006 and I had many great accomplishments to celebrate by 2007. Nobody likes setbacks when they happen but I often wonder how my life would have been different if I demonstrated weaknesses during my first Ironman journey? When we are aware of weaknesses, we can strengthen them. But when we have strengths, this brings an element of confidence to our training. Confidence is great but for a type-A athlete, confidence is like adding fuel to a fire that is burning too quickly. As a beginner, I wasn't aware of my weaknesses. But now, looking back, I had a lot of them. From t...

New York City is everything we are not. (And I'm talking about the touristy segments of NYC.) NYC is big, there are a lot of people and there is a lot of traffic. We like quiet, small and being able to get to places quickly.  NYC is stimulation overload with bright lights, non stop entertainment and media overload. We like nature, wild-life and mountains.  NYC is expensive. We like affordable living, eating and traveling. NYC is not triathlete friendly. We like being able to bike or run out of our front door.  NYC is busy. Everyone seems to be in a rush. We like slow-paced, enjoying the moment.  But.... We are loving NYC!!  One of the best parts about traveling is experiencing a way of life that is not your own. Learning, exploring and immersing yourself into a different lifestyle. Sometimes traveling makes you miss home and what is familiar but many times, traveling opens your eyes to a different way of life th...