"The Summer Heat Lull"

Hey Team!

As happens each year whether you like it or not, our muggy months of July and August are here and the hot humid stretches are seemingly endless! Every year my TY Team of Runner's, Cyclists, and Triathletes all start to run a bit low in the motivation department due to what I refer to as the "Summer Heat Lull". In most parts of the country, especially here in the south, July and August seem to make or break athletes as they try to extend their fitness and racing goals through the end of the year. The body simply cannot perform up to par in extreme temperatures. Your hear rate rises prematurely and your body's cooling system goes into overdrive leaving zero blood flow for the working muscles.  Quality training becomes obsolete and therefore motivation sinks! As a coach you have two options. The first is to explain to athletes the physiology of what the body is doing or not doing and console them with encouraging words :). haha!  The second option, and the one I prefer, is to train them differently and take advantage of a crucial time where they can actually get ahead of their competition! I have 3 areas in which I coach differently to help my athletes stay motivated and away from the mental and physical fatigue!  If you can make a few changes in your routine, you'll be able to bridge your fitness level and set yourself up to excel through the end of the season.  When September rolls around and the air becomes brisk and cool, you'll be a step ahead and ready for a great late season surge of personal bests!

     The  first and most obvious way to survive the "Summer Heat Lull" is to adapt your training to before or after 7:00!  Getting used to training in the morning or evening, without the sun blaring down, will allow your core temperature to stay down and therefore keep your hear rate down and your pace up!  You also avoid damaging ozone levels which increase what's called "free radicals" in the body. Simply put, free radicals are what causes good hard working cells to turn bad!  This scary fact alone should encourage you to shift your training schedule to before sunup or after sundown!  If you are not able to shift your training schedule around, simply do your best to move midday workouts to treadmill runs, bike trainers sessions, and swimming of course!

     The second change I make for athletes is to shorten the duration of the workouts and then up the quality by increasing their sports specific strength training.  After early season weight training took a back seat in April and May, my athletes will typically show a dip in their strength after 2 months of racing and training. With racing comes tapering and recovering, therefore little time is available for crucial strength training.  I would suggest easing back into some of your strength training by incorporating light sessions after your sports specific workouts. Here's an example of one of the TY Run Team's 5 minute post run workouts that can help you gain back some of your run strength too!  I call these short workouts THE TY DiFFERENCE w/o's because in competition champions are doing the little extra things when their competition is not!

The TY DiFFERENCE Max 

·         1 Wall sit to fatigue, then 30 sec rest

·         30 sec of calf raises,  then 30 sec rest

·         Deep squats  (Match the time of your Wall sit)  then 30 sec rest

·         1 set of push ups to fatigue, then 30 sec rest

·         Walking Lunges (Match the time of your Wall sit) then 30 sec. rest

·         Plank in prone position  (Match the time of your Wall sit)

Note Your goal with this workout is to increase to duration of the wall sit every 1-2 weeks by 10-15 seconds. Therefore, the time of the remaining exercises, except the calf raises and push ups, will increase as well. Make sure you consult a local personal trainer to help with your form and technique with these exercises. Form is crucial, not only for injury prevention, but also for allowing the proper muscle groups to perform the exercise! 

The third and final change I make with athletes during the "Summer Heat Lull" is to suggest changes to their food selections at the training table! Antioxidants and electrolytes from the foods you eat are essential for combating the free radials we talked about and for hydration!  Yes, proper hydration does come from a combination of the foods you eat and the fluids you drink. Your body is desperate for the extra antioxidants and electrolytes in order to battle the twofold enemy before you!  Foods rich in antioxidants and electrolytes are typically the foods which will carry extra water as well, just another advantage to your choosing wisely! To clarify, electrolytes are those nutrients in certain foods and drinks that help your body stay "PROPERLY" hydrated. As we know, the fluid in your body is the one thing required above all for survival. However, it must also be stored and kept in the proper areas of the body.  Electrolytes will balance the fluids in your body and keep the blood, intracellular, and extracellular fluid levels where they need to be!  Keep it simple and just choose better "Hot foods" to get the extra electrolytes, antioxidants, and fluids you need to bridge over this "Hot Summer Lull"!   Here's 5 of my top 5 favorite heat boosters!

1 Berries! (All)

2 Other fruits ( plums, oranges, apricots, and grapes)

2 Colorful Veggies (tomatoes, red bell, spinach, sweet potato)

3 Whole Grains (quinoa, oats, and brown rice)

4 Nuts and Seeds (almonds, walnuts, chia seeds)

5 Salt and Seasoning :)!

Hopefully these tips can help you bridge your fitness to coolers temperatures ahead! 

Train Wise & Train Hard!

 Coach J   

           

"Racing on Effort not Expectations!"

Hey Runners, Cyclists, and Triathletes!

Spring has sprung and summer racing is now upon us!  Hope everyone has had a great base building early season and you are ready to roll out some peak performances this year!  Coach here decided to dibble in a 10k a couple weeks ago and relearned a fine lesson that I think all us could stand to hear before toeing the start line this season. My family and I headed down to Charleston SC for the Cooper River Bridge Run where many years ago I was able to set my personal best 10k time.  Now many years later and just a few year shy of the Grand Masters division,  Yikes!  I set my sights on a time goal after training fairly well for the last few weeks. Big Mistake :)

As an athlete most of us have a certain level of competitive spirit and will most likely look at past race results to see where we might fall in the ranks. It's a natural thing and we inevitably  predict our time and where we will finish. Immediately this gets branded on our brains and we never begin to think about the physical side of the race. Goals are important sure, but in attaining them we should show patience and let the right day present itself.

In my opinion, 99% of the time forcing your body(effort) to match your expectations will most certainly produce mental and physical exhaustion.  For me that day it was mile 4 of 6.2 :).  Seeing the mile splits fail to match up with my predicted time I continued to try harder. With heart rate soaring through the roof, mentally I was pushing harder but my body was saying ease back.

Each time you toe the line, the race will present you with a different scenario. Temperature, wind, hills, nutrition, hydration, stress; these are just a few variables that should help me convince you to "Race on Effort not Expectations."  Leave pressure by the waist side and just feel happy to run in the moment.  After all, aren't we all blessed just to be able to compete?  Sure we are and we must remind ourselves continuously to just do your best.  Besides, how much more can you ask than that?  I would take the results of that effort every time :)

Try this "4 R you Ready" thought process and before every race you'll be Race Ready!

# 1   Remove:  Remove any thoughts of a time goal from your head.

# 2   Relax:    Say to yourself, all I expect today is to perform my best.

# 3   Remind:   Remind yourself to be grateful for competing.

# 4  Race: Focus on your effort for the distance and do not focus on your competitor. Besides, they're focused on YOU so you NOW have the advantage :)!

       

No Opportunity Wasted!

Have a Great 1st Race!! 

Coach

" Running Free "

Hello Everyone! 

I  hope everyone's early season training is going well and you're getting fired up for some racing!  March is here and the temperatures will soon be warming up. It's time for some fresh air and more outdoor training, "Whew" you say!  Treadmill running, bike trainers, and gym work can all be fun and exciting as the Winter begins, but as the weeks add up you start to wear down and feel the need to travel.  There's something about actually going somewhere when you run, bike, or swim that offers motivation and reward to your training.  Too much time breathing hard in one spot, sooner than later, will begin to make you feel like a lab rat :)!  For some of us, there is also a need to leave the constant information feedback you get from treadmills, compu trainers, and lap pools behind!  The industry of training and fitness in the 21st century has become technology information overload.  We are losing the "Rocky" approach to our training!  Garmins, heart rate monitors, wattage meters are all very valuable tools for feedback and proper training, but if you're like me, sometimes you feel like just dropping the watch and "Running Free!" As my oldest daughter Josie puts it, "Daddy, when we're at Nana's and Papa's ( in country) I just feel free! There are no 'gates' like at our house."  She's 6 :)!   Her "Gates" to me are like the heart rate monitors and treadmills that sometimes damper your fire for training!  As you train in sport you begin to learn your body and can distinguish or perceive what's easy, comfortable, or hard efforts.  If you do need a break from the "information world" of training, learn how to "Run Free" to faster times, more enjoyment, and NO Gates!

Here's how and why!

The how is easy when you keep these three things in mind.  To improve as an athlete you need to do consistent work, hard work, and easy work.

Consistent work is  Aerobic work.  Aerobic means "in the presence of oxygen" which seems like a good thing right? :) For our Tech folks it's an effort level of  70-80% of your maximum heart rate. But if you're trying to "Run Free",  it's that comfortable to comfortbly hard effort of swimming, biking, or running.  A good checkpoint is that while working out, if you're able to talk in complete sentences but not prefer to carry on a long conversation, then you're at that aerobic effort. Word of caution, don't try the talking test while you're swimming :)!  At this effort level you are producing the most valuable results for building strength, endurance, and even speed. For athletes of all abilities and for all distances this area is your "Bread and Butter". You are building a V-8 engine versus a 4 cylinder!  You should spend the majority of your miles in this zone and I would suggest 75% of weekly mileage or time be spent at this effort level.

Next up is the Hard Work!  This effort moves into the category of uncomfortable plus!  It's anaerobic for the lab rate, meaning  oxygen is getting used up more quickly than the body can replenish it!   Ouch :)!  This zone is above the 80% max HR level and you move into a state of labored breathing.  Don't be afraid to go here as long as you're overall health is good.  Training at this level in the right amount will produce a more efficient heart muscle (VO2) , a better flushing of the leg burn (Lactate threshold), and a more efficient stride or stroke due to power and strength!  Notice that I mentioned the right amount, which should be in the range of 10-20% of weekly mileage depending on the athlete and time of the year.  This 10%-20% range can be a tricky balance, so if in question, lean towards the 10%!   An under trained and healthy athlete will out perform an over trained and injured athlete 100 % of the time. This may not seem like much but once you've done a few hard workouts the week will fly by and you'll be facing mile repeats once again! :)  Make sure before attempting hard workouts that you precede them with a 10-15 minute warm up and 5-10 minute cool down and stretch session.  This is very important as hard working muscles need extra attention in the stretching department.

Last up is the Easy Work and certainly not the least important!  Easy work is active recovery of below that 70% Max heart rate range. I call this perceived effort Easy to Comfortable!  Now you can go out and enjoy that long conversation with a friend and enjoy the scenery. :)   These workouts should make up 10-20% of your weekly mileage as well and best fall after your hard workout sessions.  They will aid your muscles by getting nourishing blood flow to the damaged tissue (muscles) and help flush any build up of that mean ole lactic acid.  These workouts are trifold, as they also help with endurance for longer events and provide a much needed mental recharge!

If you guys are like me and have a family, a day job, and training to balance, take the time you have and break down your week with these three perceived workout levels.  You'll  "Run Free" of science and put a little "Rocky" back in your step!

Isn't it nice to have both options!  In all, find what makes You tick and use whatever it takes to get the job done! :)

Coach J

TRiYon Performance

IRONMAN "Know How"

Triathlon is the sport of swimming, biking, and running, and it can't get much better than this for testing athlete against athlete in a competition of strength, speed, and endurance! The sport was invented by a group of guys sitting around chatting about who was the better athlete. Was it the runner, the cyclist, or the swimmer? They discussed some distances, threw them together into a one day race and triathlon (Ironman) was born. Millions of people around the world now call themselves triathletes as races of all distances attract people of all ages and abilities. But the real attraction is I R O N M A N.  So many people are desiring to be an 140.6 Ironman Finisher!  How could you not with all the awesome inspiring TV programs showing average people doing the seemingly impossible.  People are spending thousands of dollars buying the best bikes & equipment, hiring coaches to schedule workouts, and traveling all around the world to compete in destination races.  In my 25 years in the sport I have seen a growing trend of  people entering Ironman as their first triathlon event!  Wow, now this is a big undertaking, and a very challenging one at that!  As a coach I find myself in this situation more times than many and having to design training programs that will help athletes reach their IM goals quickly and stay injury free in the process.  The very 1st thing to remember if THIS IS YOU, is that endurance sports such as IM require big time Physical Strength!  And in my humble opinion the best way to develop this kind of strength is through the perfect combination of aerobic and anaerobic training.  Many first time triathletes find them themselves concerned with the distance and therefore get caught in the trap of long slow distance aerobic training 100 % of their time. This kind of training is commonly called LSD  and is a low heart rate / easy effort training that great for base building and active recovery.   But for the 140.6 miles of an IM, which does seem a bit daunting, quality over quantity has won out every time! Your main objective is to have a slow continual improvement in Strength which will come by adding variety in your training. You will  stay mentally inspired and get to that finish line faster than you ever thought possible!

Adding Anaerobic training to your weekly routine is very simple.  After an 8-12 week period of  aerobic development (easy base workouts),  a new triathlete is ready to start incorporating small amounts of high intensity efforts in their routine.  The term anaerobic means "without oxygen" which can seem a little bit scary or confusing to the new triathlete. For the most part anaerobic just means putting forth an effort that causes an uncomfortable increase in breathing rate caused by an elevated heart rate.   There are scientific ways to measure these efforts through heartrate monitors and testing but for the average person a good rule of thumb is that if your breathing rate elevates and the effort seems uncomfortable, you are entering the anaerobic zone!  This challenging workout is training your body to "deal" with the stress of moving faster and will therefore adapt to it for a future episode. Your body is saying "Hey, what is this new stress? I better build a stronger heart for this increased breathing and stronger muscles for this faster running!"     Think of this... What happens to your skin after repeated friction or irritation?  Well, after the difficult part & discomfort of a blister a Callous is produced! Your body has adapted to the stress and strengthened itself.  Your body in all aspects is a miracle maker!  God's design of this human body in incredible if you just pause to imagine what goes on beneath skin level.  Capillaries, nerves, cells, veins, arteries, latic acid, organs, etc. etc... There are so many fascinating things, that as a normal athlete training to run faster, we don't think of. Stressing the body through anaerobic work will cause a strengthening of your heart muscle and your sports specific muscles.  This new hard/easy approach is going to contnue to build your body into a strong resilient machine :)

As a rule of thumb, change 10% of your weekly training mileage to anaerobic work. So if for example you are running a comfortable 30 miles a week then switch out 3 of those miles for high intensity running.. This may not seem like a lot but once you perform these hard efforts you'll welcome your aerobic workouts 90% of the time. :)  Do keep in mind that this is 10 % in all three disciplines so the stress on your heart will be more than the sport's specific muscle groups.  This is a good thing as your heart is your most valued possession and can grow and adapt just like your bicep. It will start pumping more oxygen rich blood to those working muscles when you most need it and make your life a lot easier!

* Here are a few examples of  some anaerobic workouts for your 1st week getting to know and feel Mr. Anaerobic!

Swim: Broken 1650: Warm up an easy 5-10 minutes before swimming 4 x 200, 6 x 100, and  5 x 50 (Swim each of the 15 intervals at an 85% effort level or Max HR) (Rest 15 seconds after each one)

Bike: Broken 10 mile Time Trial: Warm up 10-15 minutes easy spinning, Ride 4 miles at an 80% effort level or Max HR, 3 minute easy spin recovery, then 3 miles at 80-85% effort or Max HR, 3 min. rec., then 2 miles at 85% effort or Max HR, 3 min. rec., then 1 mile at 90% effort or Max HR!

Run: Broken 3 miler : Warm Up 10-15 minutes, Run 1.0(1600) miles at 80-85% effort or Max HR, 2 min. easy jog recovery, Run 2 x .5(800) miles at 85% (pace should slightly increase), 2 min. rec.,  Run 4 x .25(400) miles at 85%-90%(pace should slightly increase again)!

As you can imagine, training for triathlon can get VERY scientific and become Information Overload with the increase in technology (Heart rate monitors, wattage meters, garmins, etc.)  If your interest or wallet does not lend to gadgets don't fret!   Simplicity can sometimes be your best approach when trying to balance training and normal life!  Let's face it, how many of you are getting paid to compete in a triathlon?  So if you're like the 99% of us who want to set goals, train, compete, and improve overall wellness, enjoy a simple substitution of the 10% anaerobic rule and see the improvements. All while enjoying the process with family and friends!

Have a great Day and puts some Life in your training!

Coach Yon

www.triyonperformance.com 

www.facebook.com/triyonperformance

Burning The Fat Flame!

NOW that the the New Year is in full swing and your training is following suit, you might be feeling a bit full in the boots! The Holiday season was a great time to kick back, enjoy family, and put training on the side burner. For some of us anyway :)   Now, with goals in mind and a record year planned ahead, you need to start melting the extra pounds and gaining lean muscle once again! So what's the best way to get back into race shape and become leaner and faster than ever before?  Well, the first is obvious... a well thought out training program, of course!  Another way, and the one I'd like to help you with today is how to develop a better lean muscle to fat ratio.  Gaining lean muscle while shedding extra body fat. I think of it as becoming the "body builder" of endurance sports if you will.  Everyone likes to look and feel strong, but the most important thing is to help you move your body forward faster by fighting gravity more efficiently. That's what it's all about isn't it? How to cover a race distance as fast as can while maintaining the exertion level you're capable of mentally and physically.  For the most part your exertion level is always going to be the same, your "Best Effort" for the prescribed distance.  Therefore, we look for other factors you can control like body weight in the form of fat.  A coach once told me,  "1 less lb of body weight equals 3-5 secs of faster running per mile." We'll if that's true, which I believe is, there's a Personal Record  just waiting to happen!  Keep in mind, I'm speaking of  1 lb less weight in fat, not muscle!

So how do we start? First, we need to make sure you accomplish two things when beginning an approach to eating for athletic performance. They are to sustain your energy for training & racing and at the same time, burn excess stored body fat.  As most of us already know, total calories is what you consider for weight lose or gain.  It's pretty much cut and dry when it comes to gaining weight versus losing weight.  Eat more calories than you burn and you will gain weight.  Eat fewer calories than you burn and you will lose weight.  However it's not that simple and it can get very complicated because calories come in three different forms; protein, carbohydrates, and fat.  Hmmmm.... now what?? Well the truth is, if you eat too many calories in one form or too little of another you may hinder muscle gain and actually gain body fat.  What!?  In the last 30 years there have been hundreds of books written on the subject.  The author of every book you read is going to tell you a different opinion of the percentages of Protein, Carbs, and Fat you need to eat to lose weight and/or maximize performance.   In the 1980's it was low fat/ high carb diets and in the 90's it became Low carb/high fat diets!  So how do you figure all this out?  We find ourselves questioning what to do or where to start.  I personally have survived each decade's approach and have found an easy way to help you get strong and lean and then prepare yourself for race day.  In January, I do find that a training diet hovering around the percentages of 25 % protein, 25 % fat and 50% carbohydrates is a great early season approach.  You're able to build lean muscle tissue, melt away excess body fat, and still have enough carbohydrates to sustain your energy for training.  You're also teaching your body to recruit fat for energy and therefore start tapping into your fat stores.  Anytime you can use fat storage for energy and spare the carbohydrates you're going to become a faster endurance athlete.  Why is that?  Because you're able to go farther with your carbo load and not have to ingest as many carbs in your race as your competitor. By not having to ingest extra carbs for fuel in a race situation, you're allowing your blood volume to remain in the working muscles where it is needed, instead of moving to your stomach to help with digestion. Blood is your oxygen carrier and your muscles require it to go fast,especially at higher heart rates!

So if you're a calorie counter and know how to figure calorie percentages do a 3 day food log and see where you stand. If you're Not a calorie counting expert and don't know how to interpret a nutritional label here are some key tips to get you moving in the right direction and burn some body fat.

#1 Train in the morning on an empty stomach. Helps promote the burning of fat stores. If training session is over an hour but less than two, add a Fluid replacement drink.

#2 Eat only when you're hungry!  Eat smaller meals and snack 2-3 times per day to keep your metabolism cranking. Note: Don't let yourself go past the hunger pain during the day b/c your metabolic rate will decrease.

#3 Eliminate wheat and flour products as much as possible. In other words eat meals rich in lean meats and vegetables as much as possible. Products that contain Gluten are being proven to hinder performance.  Save high carbohydrate meals for 2-3 days out from a race.

# Avoid sugar as much as possible! It's an empty calorie, promotes fat storage, and contributes to numerous health problems.

# 5 Make sure you're eating healthy fats daily, unsaturated fat (Almonds, seeds, olive oil, etc). They provide sustainable energy, help ward off hunger, and fight heart disease!

These tips should help you get you started down the right path and as you learn to figure out calories percentages, test out your plan and see if you're close to the 25%, 25%, 50%TRiYON Performance approach!

Here's an example of how to calculate a nutrition label!

Your key is:

1 g of Protein counts for 4 calories

1 g of Carbohydrates counts for 4 calories.

1 g of Fat counts for 9 calories.

Example: A NOW Energy bar is 284 calories.

11 g of protein

42 g of carbs

8 g of fat

Therefore do the math: ( 11 x 4 = 44  + 42 x 4 = 164, 8 x 9 = 72)

44 + 164 + 72 = 284

Good luck with training and make sure to Training Smart and Eat Healthy!

Coach Yon

"Fending Off the Fever" Part 3: The Spirit Filled Athlete

Happy New Year Everyone! 

Welcome back to "Fending Off the Fever" Part 3!  In the last couple weeks we've discussed getting stronger in two different areas, physical and mental. We now have a strength program in place and a tight hold of a stronghold!  (Read last weeks blog if you need to know what a stronghold is :))  Our minds and body are in a good place and we're ready to tackle the last key ingredient to a successful upcoming season. This one I call being a "spirit filled athlete."  Let me begin by saying that being spirit filled is not something you try to do. It's an action or reaction that comes from within that other's will see in you as one who is different and special.  Someone that others look to for leadership and direction. A person who attracts others to themselves because they have something that others are missing.  That's it in a nut shell.  I want to be around this person or athlete because I need what they've got!  So how do you get there? How do you become spirit filled? 

Personally, I battled this one for a long time! Always assuming that it must be attained by your own efforts, by trying harder. I'd observe those athletes that seemed to have it all and I wanted to be like them. Each year trying to better myself through getting stronger and faster.  Trying to train harder than anyone else and by doing all the extra things that I knew others weren't.  Well from years of experience, I can tell you this will only get you so far.  Pulling yourself up by the boot straps day in and day out will wear you down to the core.  Your energy tank will be on empty and your achievements will seem oh so so. 

Where does this leave you? Standing at a cross road.  Turn left and follow the wide road or turn right and follow the narrow road?  The wide road leads you the way of the world and the path everyone takes because it's easy, comfortable, and proven to provide commonality. To be like the rest, travel down this fast and wide straight road! On the other hand, NOW try the straight and narrow road as the way. >>>>>  Here's the hardest and best choice you'll make! Choose it and you will find a road full of challenges, ups and downs, and lessons beyond compare!  If you didn't already know, God's Word says, for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there will go. But because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth into life, few will find it.  My advice is be one of the few!  Trust God and release all control and follow Him.  Your life in this world and in athletics will be "Spirit Filled", always sharing in the battles and leading others to glory!  From the words of Robert Frost in "A Road Not Taken" 

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverge in a wood, and I-

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference. 

Hope everyone has an awesome start to the New Year & I'll see you next week!!!!! 

Coach Yon