Nutrition Revamp

Since I am embarking on a little journey to my next 140.6, and then doubling it, I decided to get serious about my nutrition.

 I spent some time last week with Ilana Katz, who I have worked with before.  Her guidance has gotten my body fat down (in the past, not now). I remembered that when I actually LISTEN to her and ACT on her advice, I am leaner, and ultimately faster!

I have lovingly named this effort "too much chub for the dub." (double IM!)

Here's the thing though....it's hard. So I don't always do it. In fact, the last couple of times I tried, I quit after a couple of days.

So I set a couple of appointments so that I have some accountability and decided to commit.

I went in to see her, and we mapped out a periodized nutrition plan.

Of course the first four weeks are really really hard. 

I went home and moped about it for a while. I stuck to it grudingly for a couple of days.

And then I decided to flip my attitude around and have a cooking day. I will post more about my day to day later. Today's post is about taking on this challenge with a GOOD attitude and finding foods within the plan that I can get excited about.  There is a lot more fish and egg whites (I don't eat other meat), which is really hard for me, so I tried to make it fun!

I snapped a couple of pictures straight from my lunchbox. I am not a photographer.


I made:

*Lots of brown rice for the week

*Steel Cut oats for the week

*Salmon and Egg Salad (to put with tomato, avocado, and sprouted grain toast for lunch)
-12 Egg whites with a 3 yolks
-Plain Greek yogurt
-Mustard
-Spices (dill, mustard, lemon salt, pepper)
-Stir!




*We bought a tiny George Foreman grill for grilling fish. It's just nice to have a different way of cooking it. Last night's salmon was great!

*I invented these egg white cups.
-3 cups egg whites
-Lots of cut up veggies (tri colored peppers, broccoli, spinach, mushrooms)
-Salt and pepper
-I put them in 12 muffin cups (I sprayed silicon cups) and baked at 350 for about 25 minutes
-I brought 2 for a mini-quiche snack with an apple for mid morning.



*Ilana's Protien Bar Recipe--I did two variations, one with chocolate protein powder, almond butter, and dried cherries (George's favorite), and one with vanilla protein powder, peanut butter, and mixed dried fruit which was cranberries, blueberries, and mangoes. Both are tasty!

-1 cup protein powder
-1/2 cup oat bran
-1/2 cup whole wheat flour (or any other flour if you are gluten free)
-1/2tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cup dried fruit
-1/2 cup unfiltered apple juice
-1 package of tofu (silken is the easiest to wisk, but it doesn't matter!)
-1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
-2/3 cup nut butter

+ Spray a 13 x 9 glass dish with nonstick (important step! I forgot one of them, and I am regretting that!)

+ Mix together protein powder, oat bran, wheat flower, wheat germ, and salt in a big mixing bowl.

+ In a different bowl wisk (or use a mixer) tofu until smooth. Add in apple juice, brown sugar, eggs, and nut butter one at a time and wisk them each together.

+Add the wet to the dry ingredients.

+Fold in the fruit

+Back at 350 for 35-35 minutes until your knife comes out clean!

Here's a sideways picture for you of my chocolate one:


*Pumpkin Almond Butter "Brownies:" So my real treats are really limited right now, but this recipe feels like a dessert, though all of the ingredients are "legal" on my plan. I found this recipe from here the last time I actually listened to Ilana.:
-1 cup almond butter
-3/4 cup canned pumpkin
-1 tsp baking soda
-1/3 cup honey
-1 egg
-Mix all of the ingredients, spray an 8 x 8 baking dish, and bake for about 30 minutes at 350 until knife comes out clean.

No picture, since I am saving this for tonight!






So, I'm sticking  to it. I am doing my very best to really focus on my nutrition.

If you have any questions about my recipes, feel free to ask!

If you have any suggestions for me, let me know!

If you have any motivation for me, send it my way!

I will post more about the actual plan later on!

Registered for Double Ironman

That's right! Two times the fun, right?!

Ok, here's the thing. I really really really like long races. I actually don't get all that excited for the shorter ones at all.

During Rev3 Cedar Point, I just kept on thinking that I loved being out there all day. It took me a really long time to feel tired....

George always teases me that there is no award for "I could have kept on going" at the end of a race.  The options are 1.Go faster or 2. Go longer.

I like #2. A lot.

So, I am signed up for this.

 

And I am really excited for it. It is going to be a huge challenge in both the training and the race.

It starts at 7 am on Friday February 24th in Tampa, FL, and you have 36 hours to complete it.

It is 4.8 miles of swimming in a pool.

224 miles of riding. It is a looped course, so I will see my crew a lot, and I will be taken care of throughout the race.

52.4 miles of running. Again looped, and I will be able to have my crew pace me on the run.

Here's my little bio on the website (I'm actually 28, but hey, who's counting!):

Here's the thing. I get it. It's crazy. But there is crazier stuff out there. This is just my level of crazy.

I am excited/nervous/anxious, but I can't WAIT to give it my all and see what I can do!

Join My Team!

I have been incredibly lucky this year to race with Team Trakkers Age Group Team!!

I have been supported by amazing sponsors!

I have met incredible friends through my teammates!

AND--I have raced Rev3 Races and loved them!

 

 Well, we are turning into Team Rev3 next year!


If you want to be a part of the fun, we are taking applications. 


This is truly an incredible group of people and triathletes. 


Join us if you want to race Rev3 Races and are enjoy social media. And if you like to be with really awesome athletes, make new friends, and race fantastic races!


Here's the website to apply!

Post Cedar Point Recovery!

There are stages of my recovery from a 140.6

1. Euphoria! I went back to the finish line to dance and cheer!

2. Pain--getting up the next morning is HARD! Ouch Ouch Ouch!

3. Sleepy. Getting out of bed the following morning is even harder! I wanted to sleep for days.

4. Hungry. Lots of cake and ice cream were consumed.  Oh, and it was my birthday, which warranted EXTRA cake and ice cream!

5. Omigosh I have SO much work to do from being away from work! AH!

6. Ok, tired of sitting around, time to start training again. But 30 minutes sounds like plenty right now.

7. Meet with coach for the game plan for IM Cozumel. Less than 10 weeks left!

8. Book travel arrangements for IM Cozumel! There are ONLY less than 10 weeks left.

9. Use spare moments to make final decision about a race I have been considering for a long long time.

10. Register for a double ironman.

:-)

Rev 3 Cedar Point Full Race Report

This is my BEST race yet! Loved the course AND I had a fantastic day!!!


We arrived in Cedar Point on Friday after flying to  Cleveland.  Rode a few awesome coasters and saw some teammates.

Saturday led to the practice swim. Storms had blown up disgusting black gunk, and the visibility was very low. I had a head on collision that led to a bump on my head and a quick knock on my confidence...BUT I enjoyed seeing my teammates!

Headed to the briefing and to meet up with teammates/bloggers in the afternoon.  Then, had a dinner of rice/soy sauce. YUM, right?! I am pretty exciting with my food before a race!



Race morning! Feeling a little nervous, but hop into the swim and it is physical the WHOLE way. I swam 1:22, which is fine. Nothing too good or bad for me...kindof just normal! Here with two teammates/team spouse pre race!

Hopped on my bike, and I had the BEST bike ride of my entire life. All3 sports had taken care of my bike, and replaced my cracked race wheel for the weekend. I am SO grateful to them for that.

The race was suprisingly beautiful! I loved riding by the lake, I loved riding through the farms, and I loved the terrain. There were a few little rollers, and one tiny punchy hill. Those little hills gave me a chance to stand and strectch.  Finished the bike leg in 5:47, which is a HUGE bike PR for me. I think race wheels helped, but I also went into this race feeling strong. I already have one 140.6 in my legs this year.

I have always felt that the bike was my weakness, but this race convinced me that maybe I am not as terrible on my bike as I have always thought!

I was talking with people as I passed them/they passed me the entire ride. The weather was great, and for the area, the wind was minimal.  Fantastic ride!

I came into T2 on cloud nine! AND my friends and teammates were telling me that I had a chance to podium in my age group if I had a decent run! I said, "are you sure you are talking about me???" 

The run felt fine. Nothing great, nothing awful, just kind of fine. Just kind of running. I did get the news from George that he had won his age group with a 4:29 half ironman (his first ever!). I was really proud of him, and I kept this in my mind throughout the run.

I saw teammates out on the run, which was awesome. I met up with Kristin, who became my running sister for the last 7 or so miles. Once we were running together, it was awesome! My mood lifted and my feet felt lighter. It is amazing what a friend can do for your running! At one point, I was singing a song to the mile 22 marker. Maybe I was loosing it a little....but I felt great!

At about mile 25, I told Kristin I was tired. She was supportive (and I was secretly thrilled that it took until 25 on the marathon to feel tired!), and said we should drink coke at the last aid station and then finish!

She ran ahead to enjoy every second of her first ironman.  Rev3 is awesome in that they let you cross the line with your family. So George and I ran across the line together, and it was awesome!  AND, my family all got to see me cross the line onine, which is SO great! I loved this race!

I give Kristin SO much credit for helping me pick up the pace at the end. When you see my splits, you'll see that my last bit was the fastest thanks to this girl! (There were two bathroom stops in that middle split!).  I am SO proud of her!

So here are the numbers....

That performance meant that I came in third in my AG. I am really proud of this.  To be perfectly honest, I have never place in a triathlon. I have in running only events, but never a tri.... So this means a lot to me! Not only that, but the great people at Rev3 gave me a fuel belt, goggles, and a bottle! Yippie!



I loved this race, and I have every intention of doing it again.

Now....it's time for me to speed up my running. I have and can run faster than that, but I had not been training to run any faster.  At the moment, I have 10 weeks and 4 days until my next 140.6 mile race.....gotta heal up and get back to it!

Doubting the taper

I am convinced that doubting the taper is a part of the taper.

This happens to me every time.

I do what I am supposed to do, but I still find holes in what I did.....it is really easy to find holes.....really easy.....

I didn't pay enough attention to my nutrition.

Maybe these are too close together.

I didn't make time for my sports chiro this week.

I am not packed yet.

I didn't prep for wind.

Maybe I am not ready yet.

I keep on feeling like I am getting a cold.

Maybe I am getting sick.

I can't get sick.

I haven't done speed work.

Can't get sick.

These are too close together.

Our back carbon race wheel cracked. Great.

All3 replaced my wheel cause they are awesome.  What if they are tubulars and I get a flat and I can't change it.

Just call them and ask Kacie, and then you won't have to freak out.

But as george says, it gives me somthing to worry about.

It might rain, and I will get blisters. Yuck.



Bu working through these doubts in my mind is what I need to do.  I have to convince myself that I am AM ready and I have to solve these problems in my head. It is a part of my race prep. Not my favorite part, but it is actually really important.



Then I have these flashes of .......

I am ready for this!

I have done this twice already, and I know exactly what needs to be done!!

 And I LOVE this distance. Love it!

 And I am SO lucky I got through this training cycle ready and healthy!

I am really strong right now.

The sickness is probably just allergies, and I'll just get extra sleep and be fine.

I have done the work, and I can't wait to cash in on it!

Rest rest rest Kacie! The work is done!




Basically, by race day, I have to balance these two side of me and my thoughts.

This post actually makes me sound just a little crazy.....but it is what goes through my head...and this is before I even have dreams about the race!

Taper Time! (Again!)

So last night, I made the decision that I am tapering.

My coach and I have kept my volume pretty high, but there has been some flexibility depending on how I feel, and I have felt good, so I have not really cut it short at all.



Wednesday I rode 2 hours instead of three, and thursday, I skipped my run to clean my bike. And eat. And do nothing, And take a bath. And, get my head right.

So, I spent some time talking with my awesome teammate Jill (who has a fantastic race report of Louisville up right now). She asked me what I want out of the race in Cedar Point...and I had NO answer for her. Great job Kacie.

So, for my workout, I worked on that. And I emailed some thought to my coach that went something like this (The she is Jill!):

She asked me what I want out of Cedar Point. And I am still working that out. Even though it is not an A race, I don't want Cozumel to be on my mind until monday the 12th. I know I want to finish another Ironman. I want to enjoy knowing so many people out on the course. I want that feeling of the finish line. I want to experience a new place. I have decided that I don't want a time prediction. I just want to do the distance, and see how I feel. I am healthy and well trained. It might be a good day, and it might not. I will just do the race and enjoy being a 3 time Ironman when I am done. One of the upsides of having three Ironmans on my schedule is that I don't have to feel the pressure that so many people feel if there is only one. I have my eggs in three different baskets!

So, that is where my head is right now.

Which leaves me in a decent place. I can use the taper to obsess about weather!