Daily Training Nutrition

Whether your training very high volume, medium or lower volume, the food you consume fuels your workouts in much the same was that you accumulate training load and fatigue.  Some workouts have a very acute impact, others show up over a longer period of days.  The duration and intensity of training, also determine the acute impact on you fuel stores.   Lets first look at where your fuel comes from.  Then I'll give a few simple tips on when you do and don't need to eat.  As a general rule, other than key workouts, or very high intensity workouts of a longer duration, it's best to practice consuming the least food necessary while training.  Not only can this save you money on expensive packaged nutrition products, as well as cut your dental bills, it trains your body to adapt to have less easily available fuel.

When we talk about fuel, we're referring the glycogen, which is made up primarily of glucose, that fuel the metabolic activity in your muscles and organs.  Your body runs on carbohydrates.  It stores fuel for immediate use as glycogen , which is used to make other chemicals that allow your muscles to move and brain and organs to function.  We function much like thousands of batteries powering of little motors and devices. We'll ignore protein for now since it's not a primary fuel source.  Just be sure you getting a good balance of protein in your diet.  Protein in generally part of an emergency back-up plan for supplemental fuel.

Fats:
The primary fuel source.  1 lb of fat is approx. 3500 calories.  Eve a very lean human is has over 10lbs of fat ready to convert to glycogen.  That's 35,000 calories!!!  In comparison, if you could store 3500 calories of glycogen, it would be approx. 4-6lbs since glycogen is stored with 3-4x it's weight in water.  However, you can only burn fat alone up to about 50% of threshold HR or power.  Above that it decreases until high intensity exercise when you consume 100% glycogen.   Fats also keep you more satisfied longer in terms of hunger and are critical to organ and tissue health including the brain.  Low fat diets have recently been proven to not improve overall health or be more effective at losing weight, quite the opposite.  Especially since fat is often replaced with sugar for the same caloric intake.   Eat you fats, eat plenty of them, a wide range of them.  They are good for you.  This includes saturated fats.  Best to start away from hydrogenated or modified oils.  These are being phased out of processed food.

Carbohydrates:
What powers your muscles.   An average sized, well trained athlete can store around 2000 calories in the liver and muscles.  That's 2 hours at a fairly high intensity, longer, since you will still be burning fat as well.  That being said, at intensities near, at and above threshold, Consuming at least a small amount of sugar, will have a physiological and psychological effect that can increase performance.  However, you can typically only absorb 300-400 calories per hour, or roughly 1/2 your calories demand.  The good news, is that for more humans, the rate that your fatigue you muscles at different intensities, almost perfectly matches the maximum metabolic output you can sustain over longer duration.   Funny how that works.

Hydration and electrolytes:
Hydration is necessary to replace fluids lost through sweat and other bodily fluids, when breathing, and when utilizing glucose.  You typically need to drink 20oz during more activity, 30oz or more if sweat rate is high.  You can function at a high level of performance over a wide range of hydration levels.  In moderate to mild weather, you can go 90 minutes without consuming additional water.  I won;t discuss electrolytes and it's almost like discussing religion.  In my opinion at least, you get plenty in most foot, nutrition products that it's not something you need to think much about.  Consume a little more if you want, but you can;t really store a whole lot, don't need very much and you body excretes any excess.

If I'm well trained, in moderate conditions how much do I need:

30 minutes - Nothing
60 minutes - Water optional
90 Minutes - Water Optional, 100-200cal of nutrition if very higher intensity.
120 minutes - 20oz of water and 100-400 calories if moderate to higher intensity.
2 hours + - 20-24oz per hour and fuel at 250-400 calories per hour for moderate intensity.

Keep in mind that water and glycogen still needs to be replaced after you finish your workout.

These are just general guidelines, but I find that during short workout a lot of athletes are consuming much more than necessary.  I remember completing 2-1/2 hour swim workout in high school consuming just 1-2 bottles of water.  It's amazing what you can adapt to even at moderate to high average intensities.

In hot conditions when your sweating a lot, consume more water.  On the bike I always drink some just to be in the habit of drinking regularly.  In a triathlon, one of the most important elements of the bike leg in long course, is hydration and refueling for the run.

Hope this little piece of info helps.  Good luck in your training.

Athlete Spotlight - Feb 2015

Josh Heger, 

Age Group: 25-29

Home: Ballwin, MO

(Sorry, best photo I could find thats not copyrighted.)

Accomplishments:

2014 Ironman Chattanooga (1^st IM) - 11:35

2013 Ironman Racine (1^st 70.3) – 6:22

2015 Goals:

            Improve Run threshold pace
Develop swim skills & swim more frequently
 Increase bike FTP
Train more consistently and with clear purpose
 Refine Bike position and set-up
Improve race execution & nutrition

2015 Key Races:

St Louis ½ Marathon

Chattanooga 70.3

Steelhead 70.3

 Ironman Louisville

Improvements since Nov. 2014:

Swim Threshold Pace - 1:41 to 1:31/100scy (1000y TT)

FTP – Increase from 235W to 279W only riding 4 days per week while focusing more on running.

Threshold Run Pace – 7:15 – 6:48.   Even bigger improvement is his endurance on long runs.

Josh has been extremely consistent in following his planned workouts.  The results have been impressive.  He recently signed up for Ironman Louisville in October.  This will be his 2nd Ironman with the ultimate goal of qualifying for Kona in the next 2 seasons.  I'm excited to see how he will perform in upcoming events.  

To better illustrate what happens when you are very consistent at building fitness, below is Josh's Performance Management Chart.  You can see that how each training block builds on the next and average training load steadily progresses with a recovery period between to shed fatigue, test for improvements and make adjustments.  He is finishing his 3rd base period.  This represents the largest gains in fitness during the season.  Following that will be build periods, where fitness grows at a smaller rate but you adjust your training to be more specific for your goal race distance.  Following that is taper where a little fitness is traded for freshness and more energy entering your race.

Looking closer you can see how few day off he has and while there are fewer long rides or "big days".  The overall average intensity of the training is higher.  The volume is only about 50% higher and he's managing it well.

Mental Preparation for Raceday

This might be a little early for this.   But some athletes have early season races.   I've found that positive visualization is an important part of mental training for a race.   Not just rehearsing what you have to do in your head, but seeing your self succeed.  For a triathlete, you might call it the 5th discipline after nutrition.

So you have that big "A" race off in the distance.  Maybe it's even the 1st time you've ever raced that longer distance.  I myself tend to be a visual person..   So I believe it's never too early to think about the race and visualize yourself over coming challenges and succeeding.  No matter the race distance, you can visualize the pace you'll be running, how you might be feeling and the excitement and reward of success.  It can be a huge motivator especially on those long runs and long rides or when grinding out sets in the pool.  Visualize yourself performing well, having a great day then hitting the final miles and the finish chute.

You're practicing positive thinking.  Drilling into your head that you can keep going when your body is yelling at you to slow down or stop.  If that big race is truly important to you, if you not injured or physically unable to finish (stuff happens) remind yourself all you've done to get to this point in the race, all the hours you've trained and the goal you've focused on for so long, that quitting isn't option.  Failure is not an option.  You can drive on to the finish.

This could mean not slowing down a the miles count down... or just putting one foot in front of the other one more time, then the next.

For myself, having done my first full Ironman last Fall, on most of my runs, I thought about the pictures I've seen of athletes finishing that distance, that race.  I tried to place myself in that finish chute, achieving all my goals for the race.  Finishing strong.  I was truly in uncharted territory as well.  It was only the 6th time I had run over 20 miles, ever in 21 years as a runner or triathlete.  The last time had been in 1998 on a long training run with a friend.  While I wasn't prepared for the level of suffering I would face in those final miles, I was prepared for the commitment to drive forward and not slow down.  I was rewarded with by far my greatest athletic achievement ever.

Good luck to everyone as they start their training this season.  Focus on those goals.  Focus on over coming any setback in training or racing and see yourself finishing strong.

Dealing with Injury

This is the time of year where soon athletes will begin increasing their mileage in anticipation of Spring Races.  Even with the best plans, that can mean injury.   Your ability to predict, efficiently address injuries can determine if the impact is minor, major or even becomes chronic.  Once you’re able to train again, you will need a good plan to recover lost fitness while avoiding reinjure and address the mental aspects as well.

First is predicting injury risk.  One tool is to make sure that your increasing training load at reasonable rate.  A tool offered in TrainingPeaks is the Performance Management Chart.  Using it is a whole topic by itself.  A simpler method is tracking weekly miles.  This however does not factor in harder intervals sessions or the impact of longer runs.  An experienced runner knows how their legs should feel, when they are fatigued and what feels normal or not normal.   Pay close attention to particular tightness in the hips, calves, quads and hamstrings.  Deliberate stretching of the associated muscles after a run, goes a long way to prevention.  It’s also smart to avoid running on highly fatigued legs.  This can result in altering run mechanics and placing additional stress on tendons, joints and connective tissue.

Let’s say you failed at the above and find yourself injured.  It’s OK, it happens to the best athletes.  When you’re finding new limits, you sometimes cross them.  The first thing you need is rest.  Yes, that means not doing any training that aggravates the injury.  Next is to use ice to reduce acute swelling and rolling any tight muscles. 

Finally you need to determine what caused the injury.  This is often the hardest part.  Once identified, you will need a clear plan to address the issues and slowly progress back to running.  A physical therapist experienced in sports related injuries is often the most skilled at this.   For more minor injuries, an experiences coach can make adjustments and recommendations on beneficial stretches and exercises.  Most injuries will require focused stretching and strengthening exercises.  These will need to be done consistently and as prescribed for as long as it takes to eliminate that root cause of the injury.

Once you able to train again.  You will need to access where your fitness is at and develop a plan to safely return to normal training.  Again, an experiences and trained coach can be critical in aiding this process.  Finally, you may need to deal with the mental challenges of losing fitness, missing races or poor performances.  It’s important to focus on what you can control, what training you are able to perform, stay positive and know that many athletes return more focused, well rested and sometimes stronger than they were before the injury.  Many pro triathletes have had their best seasons and performances following their worst periods of injury.  They took the challenge as an opportunity to overcome, improve and move forward.  

Key Lessons:

1) If in doubt, take time off.  

2) Evaluate your condition and identify any tight muscles or tendons.

3) Seek professional help if its a new injury and doesn't clear up in just a few days. 

4) Seek professional help for constant pain or sharp acute pain.

5) You probably cannot just run through it and just a couple days off won't work unless it addresses the root cause.

Big Announcement!

I've made the career decision to pursue coaching full-time.  I think many of us always dream of the opportunity to make a career out of what brings us real excitement and passion.  I'm just in need of more clients with a clear drive and passion to succeed in triathlon, running or cycling.  I have several clients now that continue to exceed my predictions and reach new levels in performance.  I can't wait for the opportunity to work with more athletes and see what we can do together.

I'll be putting together some short seminar to present locally on training periodization as well as the value of tracking training data and equipment selection and set-up.

Referrals - I'll be offering a $25/mo discount for 12 months on basic coaching plans and $50 on premium plans.  (See Trainingbible.com website for plans)

No Start-up Fee - I'll also be waiving the start-up fee for any client that chooses automatic billing.

Trainer Road Team

I finally purchased a TrainerRoad membership.  I added a team for my athletes, friends or anyone else interested in joining.  Just send me an e-mail and I'll send the request.  I thought it might be fun and motivational to see what everyone is doing.  I'll try and either create the interval workouts in there for my athletes or pick a ride to complete.  I have one client at a fairly high volume, so there may be a long & short version of some workouts.

I could think up a better name.... so the team is "Coach Girard's Test Lab".  Why not.

It should be fun.  A little friendly bench racing.  Remember, you performance is always in relationship to your FTP.  So the higher intensity factor is what we're looking for on there.

Facebook Page For Nutrition

I made a little Facebook page to discuss nutrition.  I'll be honest, that not my expertise.  But I challenged myself to drop 17lbs in 6 weeks.  So some fellow triathletes were interested to see how that's possible.

I think it's easy or at least simple.  Eat only what you need to maintain enough energy and critical nutrients (protein good fat, vitamins, minerals, etc.) and cut out what you don't.   Simple sugars, excess carbs, excess fat in general.  Drink plenty, but eat enough sea salt to balance the water intake.  I try and eat cleaner by mixing in fresh vegetables, and more vegetable based protein like edamame, soy milk, legumes.


https://www.facebook.com/groups/1583516201878855/