The What, When and Why of Your Nutrition Plan | USA Triathlon

This article sounded pretty familiar unitl I got to the third section about How much am I eating?
I admit I am addicted to numbers when it comes to exercise (HR, PR, Cadance, Calories burned & consumed etc.) If my heart rate monitor is not working it drives me crazy and it feels like my workout doesn't count. You don't have to tell me how irrational I am but I would venture to say that I'm not the only person out there with this issue. I keep track of calories out with my heart rate monitor and calories in with a food diary, thinking this is the best way to successful weight loss. This article has me going hmmm.... What do you think? Do you think you could become in-tune with your body enough to be able to truely only eat when you are hungry? I'm not sure if I can. I'm considering giving this a try and giving my food diary rest for a while. But the recommended 4-6 weeks is valuable time I could be losing if it doesn't work.

The What, When and Why of Your Nutrition Plan USA Triathlon

View Photos from Sedona Marathon

View Photos from Sedona Marathon

Sedona Full Marathon Race Report

Arrived a night early for packet pick up.  This went smooth other than the fact that by the time we arrived there were no more small shirts left.  So why is it that there are never smalls left when I go to pick up my packet?  Why do they bother asking what size you want when you pre-register?  I know these shirts run big and that is why I order a small, now I will just give away my medium.  Better yet why don’t they just give me the option to pay less if I don’t want the shirt or any of the give aways?  I’ve only seen 1 race use this awesome idea!  Ok off my soapbox.

It was a brisk start to race day, somewhere around 32 when we got ready to head out the door.  Lesson Learned  #1: Don’t take the word of the front desk clerk when they say it is less than a quarter mile from the hotel to the start.  We walked to the start in not much clothes which ended up being at least a mile walk.  My hands were frozen by the time we got there.  The stunning vistas and some nicely placed hot air balloons momentarily distracted me from this.  There were about 1,700 entrants total which we later found out was mainly for the ½ marathon or less (10k or 5k) 168 were for the full, which made for a very lonely race, which for some is welcomed.  The start was a little unorganized due to the fact that a lot of people thought all the races started at the same time.  Luckily the timing chips on our bibs made up for this little fumble.  About ½ hour into the race my hands finally started getting some feeling  in them and my muscles started to loosen  up a bit.  The bf and I ran about the first 6 miles together.  At the turn around for the ½ marathon is where I lost sight of him and it became a very lonely run.  I tend to be a middle of the packer and end up with people far in  front and far behind.  I actually took my little camera in my fuel belt and it’s a good thing I did because this ended up being the best part of the marathon.

Lesson Learned #2: Train for the race not for the convenience of the trails near your house.  The hills were mixed throughout the run which is something we failed to train for.  Our training involved lots of hills but we usually did one really long steep hill at the beginning then had it easy for the second half.  That made these rolling hills difficult on the second half.  The 10 miles in the middle of the race were on red sand dirt roads.  It was more uneven then I expected and the rocks and dips made my hips very tight.  Again made for very pretty scenery.  Apparently this is voted in the top 3 most scenic marathons in the world by some trail magazine which explained why there were people there from all over the world (Japan, Sweden etc.)  The top male finisher passed me on his way back when I was at about mile 11.  He finished in 2:50. 



Just Past the
1/2 Marathon Turnaround



The aid stations were awesome and stalked with all kinds of treats they were about 1.5 miles apart.  I opted for my own plain water which they refilled for me as necessary.  The really odd part was that I packed 3 packs of Clif Shot Bloks which I had used for all my training and I should have eaten all 3 throughout the race.  But my stomach decided not to be happy with me on race day and I barely made it through 1 pack and had to force that.  About mile 18 it started to really hurt and by mile 20 I was having to walk part of the uphill portions and at the aid stations.  Miles 22-26 felt a lot longer and I even thought at one point “am I going to make it in the allotted 6 hours?!?!?!”  There was no way I was going to quit especially knowing the bf was waiting for me at the finish line and it was his first marathon. 

It warmed up to 65 by noon.  I ended up finishing in over 5 hours I think it was 5:28 he finished in 5:12 and  by the time I finished they had shut down the massage tables and there wasn’t much left to hydrate with or eat at the finish.  All in all I am glad I did it and even happier that I was able to finish.  It was a great bonding experience and the most fun I've had as far as the personal aspects of the race.  This is the first relationship I've been in that we share these intrests together and I will never take that for granted!  The biggest pro for this race was the location and scenic road.  The biggest con was the organization but if you were just doing it for fun and not for a fast time this was a good winter race to attend.

I am very happy that we ended up staying a second night before driving back.  We were wobbling around so much that it was hard to sit in the car for 5-6 hours on that drive back and that we were able to take in some of the sites and visit with the bf’s family! 

Final Countdown!

Taper Week!

Saturday - Had an awesome last 10 mile run.  Started at the bottom of a 5 mile hill, temperatures were kind enough to go above freezing with only 1 snow flurry at mile 5, then south for about 2.5 miles of easy rolling hills, where I picked up speed and the bf was cursing me, then 1.5 miles of excruciating downhill, where I was cursing the bf because he caught up to me when I had to wait for the light and as he speedily eased his way downhill, then the last 1 mile relatively flat stretch home where I kicked it up a notch cause I was just ready to be home.  Lots of stretching afterwards and was a little stiff in the left knee. 

Sunday - Day off recovered fairly quickly by mid-day.  

Monday - I had a nice 40 minute jog with a mostly well behaved puppy.

Tuesday - Day is day off and going to puppy/owner training.  Wed. speed  work.  Thurs. easy swim  to stay stretched out.

Wednesday – Speed work but shorter than normal

Thursday – Easy Swim about 1,000 meters no drills

Friday – Day off and drive to Sedona, AZ  There is an all you can eat carb dinner before.  My concern is if the sauce is truly vegetarian or not.  Would hate to have an upset tummy night before race day!  Taking Fuel belt with watered down Clif electrolyte mix drink, 4 packages of Clif Shot Bloks.  Can’t decide how to layer yet because it has been cold but they are predicting a warm up may take a trip to Goodwill for clothes I wouldn’t mind discarding along the way…  Now as long as those darn hills (more specifically the downhill) don’t give me problems with joints or muscle tightness I should be good to go!

Quick article on Cold & Running

It's all relative right.  Less than a month ago I was hesitant to go outside and do my run in 22 degrees I thought that's craziness, but it's not.  NOw I think -11 is craziness.  But luckily I won't have to find out!  By Sat. when I need to do my next long run it should be a high in the low 40s here so I will be in the clear.  Luckily I only have a 40 min. run scheduled for today so I should be just fine on the treadmill for one day.  I believe the longest I've ran on the treadmill was 1 1/2 hours, you do what you gotta do right?  The longest I've been on the bike trainer was 2 1/2 hours.  Anything longer then that I'm looking for the right clothes to make sure I can get outside!!!  I remember reading an article about a woman who trained for an entire marathon on a treadmill.  How far would you be willing to go on a stationary exercise machine?  I found this article good and to the point.  So what does this article mean to you?  No more excuses or one missed run won't hurt?
http://www.active.com/triathlon/Articles/Is-Running-in-the-Cold-Bad-for-Your-Lungs.htm?cmp=291&memberid=107656707&lyrisid=21409653

Whose idea was this anyway?!?!

Have you ever had that thought as you are trudgin through a long workout?  I remember one time leaving the warmth of a cabin in windchills that were about -35 at the top of the mountain as my mother and I both could barely carry all of our ski equipment up to the slope walking like robots in our stiff boots, we both happened to look at each other at the same moment and busted out with hysterical laughter.  The sight of us was so silly and unatural and we both were thinking whose idea was this anyway?!?!?!!  Who thought let's put these long sticks on our feet and go out in the freezing cold and slide down a mountain?  Then when you get the rush of wind as you speed down a mountain and the adreniline hits you remember, oh that's why!

That cold I mentioned in my last post really took me down!  I went a whole week with no training.  SO other then taking the dog for a few walks the last thing I had done was the 22 mile run!  Usually during a taper I'll get a quick 2 day cold that's not bad.  This time it was demoralizing how long it has taken me to recover.  I missed my Saturday recovery 8 mile run.  It didnt' help that work was so busy I couldn't take a day off.  So now here I am back at they gym.  Yesterday I had snow day which meant the entire University was closed and meant I could spend as much time at the gym as I wanted.  I did 1 hour of weight lifting 20 mins. of abs and 1 hour spin class.  It felt good but I was really struggling in spin with a much higher than normal heart rate.  I guess I'm still recovering from my cold.  I"m just a little worried because it is so close to the race.  I will have the rest of this week then a last 10 mile run then taper week and Race Day!!  Will that be enough?  Have any of you struggled with tapering and colds?  I know it is a common occurance but how much of a hit can one take this close to race day?  So as I struggle through this week of training I think "Whose ideas was this anyway?"  I know I won't quit or give up but how quickly we forget these struggles when we put pen to paper on the next race's entry form! :-)    

Hope everyone is staying warm and safe during this storm & remember to dress accordingly no race is worth frost bite....