Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

Hi athletes, weekend warriors and fitness enthusiasts,  I feel you. 2020 was a brutal year. We all lost our primary source of mental wellness - sport, gym, socializing, traveling, racing. We lost our routine and our favorite way to socialize. Sport and exercise affect us in deep and personal ways. After a year of cancellations, disrupted routines, changed plans and unpredictability, we all feel a profound sense of loss. We lost our self-identity during a time of uncertainty.  It's not silly to feel a wide range of emotions - almost like a death. Something this powerful and meaningful was taken away. Right now you may still be experiencing any one of the stages of grief - denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance. Left unaddressed, these feelings can lead to more serious mental and physical health problems.  If you have felt growing levels of anxiety and depression, you are not alone. You may be confused on whether or not it's worth continuing on with sport with so...

  Looking at this picture from seven years ago, I remember how nervous I was for every live TV segment that I did with News4Jax. I'd prepare for hours.....all for a 2.5 minute segment. Despite the nerves and unpredictable nature of speaking live (for the entire city to see), I would always finish the segment with relief and the feeling that it wasn't as scary as I imagined it to be. Overtime, I became more comfortable speaking live and started to look forward to each new opportunity. Trying something new can be intimidating but here's no time like the present to try something you've never done before! Change is hard. Despite your best efforts, you may find yourself always reverting back to old behaviors and habits. Going from something familiar and within your control to something that is unknown and unpredictable provokes a lot of fear.  Affected by a feeling of insecurity, you may find yourself with thoughts like "will I be successful?" "what will happe...

  Every year I like to recap the year, sharing our highs and lows and everything in between. Although 2020 didn't give us our typical year of racing, it provided us with a lot of new opportunities and experiences.  I posted this picture on Facebook on January 21st with the caption: "When it feels like you are carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders, remind yourself that it’s better for the world when you first take care of yourself." With 2020 being such an extraordinary year, it reminded me to never take anything for granted. We are responsible for one another. Every human in this world is interdependent on each other. Your well-being is my well-being. Although Karel and I love to race, we actually thrived during this year of cancelled races. We stayed healthy and injury free and we kept our training fun and flexible. The worst part of a season of cancelled races was the sadness we felt for our athletes. We really missed the excitement, stress, worry and emoti...

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...