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Showing posts from July 10, 2016

Adjusting nutrition from short to long course racing

Endurance triathlon racing involves many complex physiological, sociological, mental and motivational factors. Therefore, when training for a multi-sport event of long duration, the human body experiences many metabolic, immune, hormonal and mental stressors in excess of what would be experienced in a single event of the same duration. It's often said that triathletes and runners can get away with a lot in short course racing but without a well-practiced, well-planned and well-formulated fueling and hydration plan for long course racing, the body will not perform to it's full capabilities (and health may be compromised).  This is why many athletes struggle in long course training and racing..... how can you expect your body to perform well, hour after hour, if you do not know how to fuel and hydrate it properly? Sadly, it takes a lot more than motivation and will to get you to the finish line of an endurance race (or to successfully execute a long workout). A succe

Blueberry & cream cheese stuffed french toast

 For over 2 weeks, I had most of my meals prepared by Karel's mom. And we only ate out five times in the 3.5 weeks throughout our time in Austria and Czech. I can't tell you how many new foods I tried or how many times I yummed. It's very common that eating outside of your home environment, whether for a work conference, an event, vacation or celebration, can make you feel a lack of control, thus making you think you are doing something wrong. I also hear individuals talking about how they feel after eating when traveling, using words like gross, fat, heavy, bloated and uncomfortable. After extended periods of eating outside of the home environment, it's common that individuals will say things like "I need to cleanse" or "I need to get back on track" or "I'm going to be really good for the next 4 weeks" or "I need to diet". There can be an immediate need to gain control and in the mind, the "best" opti

Grocery shopping in Czech

Nearing the last day of our European race-cation which included 1 week in Klagenfurt, Austria and over 2 weeks in Karel's home town of Znojmo, Czech Republic (with only 2 of those days as an overnight trip to sight see in Prague), I thought it would be fun to reflect on my many eating experiences that I have enjoyed, while on vacation. It's going to take me a while to put all my food pictures into one blog (I'm thinking I'll let the food pics do the talking) so I wanted to share what it is like to grocery shop here in Znojmo, Czech Republic. While I love eating new foods and meal creations when traveling, I find it important to understand the culture behind food. Whether it's understanding the agriculture (which is an important sector of the economy) or simply learning how to the food gets from farm to table, it's all very exciting to me. With the "local" grocery store just a block from Karel's mom's flat (and in route to his dad's fla

Eating comfort zone

It's often said that traveling is one of the best ways to step outside your comfort zone.  A new routine, a new lifestyle, new sights and perhaps even a new language that you do not understand. Every time you travel, you welcome the opportunity to experience a new way of living. And above all, when you travel somewhere new, there is a good chance that you will eat new foods or new meal creations that are not familiar. Perhaps you are the individual who loves putting yourself into situations where you are forced to try new foods and adapt to new cuisines and eating traditions and customs. But for many people, traveling can be an overwhelming experience because it requires eating foods that are not so familiar and that can make you feel uncomfortable (often more mentally than physically).  While it is good to have a style of eating that works for you on a daily basis, if your eating boundaries are very limited, you may find extreme difficult to step beyond the place wh