Trimarni Coaching and Nutrition

  \ In early January, I found myself watching a lot of mountain bike skill videos on YouTube. As a complete newbie , I want to learn as much as I can so that I can improve my skills while building confidence and safety. Although I still love triathlon training and racing, I really love bike riding. It was only a matter of time until I added a mountain bike to my collection of bikes. Karel is much more experienced and skilled than me in mountain biking, there are several skills that he is struggling to learn on his own. And after breaking his hand  last May, there are certain obstacles that cause him to tense up (ex. bumps, drops and jumps). Karel has been an exceptional teacher as he has taught me how to go up and down certain rock garden features and how to safely navigate over roots. But since neither of us don't know what we don't know, we felt it would be worth our time, money and energy to invest into a mountain bike clinic.  In late January, Karel came across Lon fr...

Earlier this week, Karel and I traveled to Pelham, Alabama for a 1.5 day private mountain bike skills camp/clinic with Lon from Single Track Skills.  I'll write more about that experience in my next blog but the opportunity to work with a professional coach was an incredible investment of our time, effort and money.  Since 2014, we have organized, planned and executed over 15 group camps. While our training camps are fun, memorable and challenging, there is a common theme for every Trimarni training camp - bike skills and terrain management.  The convenience of the indoor bike trainer has created a false sense of confidence with regard to bike handling skills - especially among triathletes who ride triathlon (or TT) bikes. It's easy to build fitness indoors but it's impossible to improve bike handling and terrain management skills. The moment you begin to climb a steep hill, descend or take a tight corner (or u-turn), your FTP (or power) number is of little benefit. ...

  Today is International Women's Day. A day to celebrate women's achievement, raise awareness against bias, stereotypes and discrimination and to take action for equality. A day to move closer and to eventually achieve a gender equal world.  Although every day should be an important day to celebrate women's achievements while calling out inequality, today is an important day to remind female athletes that the power to change starts from within. When you take this approach, the world is better off.  Far too many young girls, teenagers and young adults believe that the external view of their body defines their perception of their physical self. And when a female doesn't feel good about her looks, she may be hesitant (or refuse) to participate in sports, try out for a club, join a team or lack confidence in a professional setting. Many little girls grow up idealizing certain celebrities, athletes and influencers with the idea that they must look a certain way. These girls ...

  Does it matter if you consider yourself an exerciser or an athlete? I say yes.  When you sign up for an athletic event, you have a responsibility to embrace your athletic identity. You don't have to be competitive against others but you should desire to challenge and better yourself.  Because your thoughts and beliefs about yourself lead into your actions and behaviors, embracing your inner athlete means including your athletic lifestyle within your self-identity.  Once you learn to learn to identify as an athlete, you start to behave like an athlete. You make better choices with your sleep, nutrition and lifestyle, which will likely improve your overall motivation and quality of life.  While it's powerful to identify as an athlete, it's also important to identify as a member of a team or community.  When you are around likeminded individuals, you feel a sense of belonging. This brings acceptance, confidence, connection, fun, motivation and accountability...

It was nice not to feel rushed in the morning. We spent around an hour eating/working between 7-8am and then got ourselves ready to leave. We prepared everything the night prior (food, sport nutrition, gear, etc.) in addition to our hydration packs (2 each), which we kept cold in the fridge. We left around 8:20am and arrived to Pleasant Ridge (event venue) around 20 minutes later. I had a cinnamon raisin bagel w/ peanut butter and jelly at home and then had a Chobani cherry flavored yogurt in the car. I sipped on water in the car and had another bottle of Skratch to sip on at the venue. Karel had oatmeal at home and ½ bagel w/ peanut butter in the car. Compared to Friday weather which was warm (70) and sunny, Saturday was much colder – in the upper 40’s. With a lot of outdoor riding in the cold, we both had an idea of what to wear, with most of gear removable (ex. leg covers, arm warmers, jacket, etc.). After we arrived, we set up our area in the “loop” section of the course. We us...

  On November 15th, Karel asked me if I wanted to ride his old mountain bike on the trails behind Furman University. After seeing how much fun Karel was having on his mountain bike, I thought it would be fun to try.  For my first ride, we ventured a few miles down the road. Karel taught me the basics of riding a mountain bike on very easy trails. There were no obstacles to overcome but instead, I learned how to move my weight, adjust the gears and go over curbs. It was a very fun and enlightening session.  A little over a month later (December 24th), I went for my first official mountain bike ride at Dupont State Forest. This ride was much more technical with rocks, roots, gravel, water crossings, climbs and descends. Karel took his time explaining line choices and helping me build my confidence going over more technical obstacles. We would stop and discuss the more challenging sections and although I would try, there were many obstacles that I could not get over. As the ...

  Over the past year, I've gone from elite triathlete to complete beginner.  In 2021, at the age of 39, I had one of my most successful seasons in 16 years of competitive long-distance triathlon racing.  IM 70.3 Chattanooga - 3rd overall female IM 70.3 Blue Ridge - 2nd overall female (missed first by 2 seconds) IM Lake Placid - 3rd overall female IM 70.3 World Championship - 11th age group Over the past 12 months, I've also trained for and raced in three new sports......gravel biking, trail running and mountain biking. Although my triathlon experience has given me tools to use for each of these new events, I had to remind myself that I was a beginner. Whereas in half and full distance triathlon racing, the experience is very familiar and routine for me, I was filled with curiosity with each new sport. The novelty of each event made it fun and exciting. But with each 'first time' I also knew that I would be learning a lot throughout the experience and the best race da...