Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

Dear athlete,  On the first day of the New Yearm you are likely reflecting on the past twelve months. The New Year brings with it excitement for new beginnings and hope for a better future. As you look ahead to the upcoming year, you may be planning your New Year goals, resolutions or intentions as a way to officially begin anew.  Although goal-setting is an important component in the journey of self-improvement, I ask that you carefully think through your New Year, New You thoughts, actions and behaviors.  The New Year symbolizes a time when most people resolve to make changes in health. I'm assuming that one of your New Year goals involves your diet, training, body composition or health. Even if you have great intentions with your New Year goals, I am concerned. Because the month of January is so deeply rooted in making changes in body size, shape or weight - supported by the toxic diet culture - I am extremely worried about how your current thoughts about your body siz...

  On the eve of 2021, the classic tradition of New Year's resolutions may look a bit different. In a year of living with restrictions, being let down, feeling unproductive, and not being able to make plans, you are probably looking ahead to the hopeful end of this pandemic and returning to a life of normal.  Because of this unprecedented time, we are all feeling a bit reflective about the year that we leave behind us and this may be affected your expectations for 2021.  For those who typically make resolutions, you may be feeling the need to do without in 2021 - "why bother?" you say to yourself. Or, perhaps you want to create a resolution for 2021, even though you have generally avoided them in previous years.  As it relates to New Years Resolutions, to be honest, the meaning behind it all is somewhat impractical. Sorry to be a downer but there's got to be a better way to self-improvement.  Here are a few reasons why New Year Resolutions don't always work:...

Drive is often the fuel that keeps you motivated to achieve a goal. But a powerful need to succeed can be driven by a fear of failure or constantly comparing yourself to others (or a past version of yourself). The more successful you become in each step of your athletic journey, the more afraid of failure you can become. As a result, you may find yourself compromising your values - and your mental and physical health. The state of being driven can become addictive.  Being intrinsically motivated is required in any successful individual. To work hard and relentlessly pursue a goal with determination is a great quality.  Although drive can be a great thing (when you use it in the right ways), it can also lead to a single-focused mindset. When you are too driven, it can be difficult to switch "off" which can make it difficult to respect your health and well-being.  As an athlete, the competitive nature and strong discipline that can make you a great athlete may also place yo...

What behavior (or habit) has the strongest negative impact on reaching an athletic goal? What behavior has lead you into a vicious cycle of self-sabotage? What habits have you struggled with the most? What behavior, if changed, would give you the most leverage toward improving the odds of achieving your athletic goals? Changing a behavior to reach a goal sounds simple but it actually requires a process of changing the way that you think. The idea that if you change your thoughts, you can change your behaviors sounds straightforward but many athletes go straight to behavior change and neglect working on the thoughts that influence actions.  This is why I created The Whole Athlete.  As you enter the New Year, the motivation may be high to change behaviors in order to move closer to your athletic goals. While you may have good intentions behind your behavior changes, it's not uncommon for good intentions to lead to bad outcomes.  I want to remind you that your thoughts are c...

  Over the past few years, I've worked with over 250 athletes from all over the world on nutrition. From daily to sport nutrition and everything in between, I've learned that many athletes struggle with food and body image. Often at the root of having a poor body image and unhealthy relationship with food is the belief that "the lighter or leaner I am, the better I'll perform."  Many athletes come to me with good intentions when wanting to change the way that they eat or look. As a Board Certified Sport Dietitian, I can confidently tell you that there are healthy ways to improve eating habits to optimize sport performance by changing body composition. But the methods for changing body composition - especially for a performance boost -  should never require dieting, restrictive eating, underfueling and excessive exercise. Sadly, this isn't the case. Far too many athletes are not eating enough to fuel their body for sport performance. Influencing factors for int...

  If you are in search of the perfect gift for your athlete or fitness enthusiast friend, partner or well, just for yourself, check out my books. As always, thank you for the support!  Athlete to Triathlete All the triathlon-specific information you need to know for your upcoming triathlon - including helpful features like gear checklists, transition and brick workout tips, the race-day procedure, nutrition guidelines for training and racing and race day rules. There's even a section on triathlon lingo! The book includes several comprehensive chapters with easy-to-ready information on training fundamentals, strength training and stretching/mobility exercises (with pictures), and advice tailored to runners, cyclists, and swimmers.  Athlete to Triathlete will simplify the sport to help individuals safely and confidently enter, remain or re-enter the sport of triathlon. Order HERE. The 365-Day Running Journal  In today’s digital world, logging workouts with a pen...

Despite feeling busy with so many daily to-do's, it can be difficult to say "no" for fear of upsetting others or fear of missing out (FOMO). Sometimes it's easier to just say yes. As a result, you add more stress and frustration to your already packed schedule. How many times have you said yes to something only to avoid tension or to avoid disappointing someone? Although it's an easy and quick answer to please others, learning to say no is essential for your happiness and well-being. Although sometimes you do need to commit to something that you just don't want to do, here are a few tips to help you feel good about saying no when saying no is the right thing to do:  If the thing that you feel pressure to say yes to is an impractical use of your time and adds little value to your life, say no thank you. Don't overcommit. Saying yes to everything adds to the feeling of being overwhelmed. You get to control your calendar. Don't be so quick to say yes to t...