Eating to compete

I am sitting here at the Orlando airport after just completing a 10 day training camp in Clermont, FL with the QT2 Pro squad. I was lucky enough to be able to join in on the "fun" and made some great friends that I look forward to seeing at future races. Over the course of the camp, it didnt matter how many countless hours were spent training, the one thing that highlights the experience is food. 

Thanks to Kendra for all these pics! The fuel van at the squads "Miracle Marathon workout"

Fueling: they often say is the 4th discipline of triathlon (or recovery). Head Coaches, Jesse Kropelnicki, Tim Snow and Jon Spinney were constantly throwing Gu's at us, making sure we had our recovery drinks, checking our cabinets. If we failed to keep up, we failed to complete the day. Professional athletes fuel to train. Its not a number game. Your weight is what it is. A healthy body is a fast body. So why would we feed ourselves crap?

My roommies and I actually seemed to even find competition in our fueling. The winner of the days workout, got the biggest bowl for our ever so delicious salads that we prepared each night. We found ourselves  constanly eating. We were always intriqued to see what the other was cooking. Our refrigerator looked like a produce stand. It was amazing. Food. Its just so good, so why neglect your body from getting the good stuff.

It doesnt matter whether you are training for an Ironman or an olympic distance race. You are training. You are fueling your body to race fast. Yes the volume may be different but you still have to treat your body to recover in its more proper form. 

If you havent been on top of your nutrition game, thats okay! We all have to cheat every once in a while. I wont lie even after a day of epic workouts with the squad we found ourselves ordering pizza. Its never too late  to start trying. Heres my top 5 tips to help you find find a more balanced and healthy body:

1) Drink, Drink , Drink. And not the alcohol type! Stay hydrated and never let your body become dehydrated or depleted. If you are working out for an hour or more or have multiple workouts in a day you should always be fueling with some kind of carb/electoltye drink. Some suggestions are Powerbar perform, First Endurance EFS, Gu Roctane. Shorter than an hour? Try nuun or water. Also try to limit caffeine intake unless you absolutely need it. You will really find that when you do use it in a workout/race it gives you a HUGE burst.

2) Know your sweat rate. I did the Core diet Race fuel plan last year and found my missing link in my racing/training: I wasnt drinking enough! This will really help you find out how much fuel you should be taking in during workouts. Another test you can do is VO2 max test with a certified Metabolic Tester. Not only will you learn your fitness level but you will learn the amount of calories you burn in each zone. Check out www.thirdcoasttraining.com for more details. Also, find out what works for you. Everyones body is different, so practice with different brands and see what you like.

3) Protein, Protein. Protein! It helps build strong muscles and rebuild those that have been damaged during workouts or racing. Recovery drinks or bars are particularly important if you cant get a real meal in within an hour. If your training load is very big you need these after every workout. Even if your load is  not too large, you will find you stay satied longer with more protein. I really like Ultragen Cappachino mix or an Oatmega Bar to tie me over until I can get a meal.

4) Other than during workouts, try to eat only natural foods. This means fruits, veggies, lean meats, eggs, fishes, legumes and whole grains. Anything that is more than 5 ingredients puts more stress on your body. The less and more whole a food is the easier your body can digest it and the more opportunity for it to recover! Sounds easy right?!

5) SLEEP!! If your only getting 6 hours your not getting enough. 7-8 hours minimum. Are you really going to make up for that sleep on the weekend? Lets be real, were triathletes and we get up even earlier on the weekend to go long. 

Happy training!!

Head lamps for the night run. Waiting for our partners return.

Squad getting ready to roll.

House of BAMF. Gonna miss my roomies!! Linsey Corbin, Cindy Lewis and Vinny Johnson with an adopted Pat Wheeler!