Tri Alliance Team Meeting #1

Last night was the first Tri Alliance Team Meeting for the 2013-2014 season. We had about a dozen newbies joined the squad since the last team meeting at the beginning of this year which was great to see.

Ollie (Head Coach, Director) introduced the evening and spoke about things related to athlete benefits (such as discounts with our partners), our athlete IDs and the phase we are currently in which is technique. We will be moving into strength and volume next before speed work prior to the racing season.

Coach Greg then broke up the evening by doing mini-interviews of the different types of triathletes we have in the squad from the new newbies, first season, long course, short course, first time Ironman through to apprentice Coach Dan.

We then went into the specific Swim, Bike and Run parts where some of the coaches who head up those programs came up and spoke about athlete expectations during those sessions and what we don't want to see. We want athletes to Train to Race and not to Racing to Train...we are also encouraging athletes to train within themselves - don't try to keep up with the front pack if it is not your within athletic capabilities. I have written a small article on this and just waiting on the coaches' tweaking before it gets published.

Sarah emailed me early on the day to ask me if I could take the Beginners group when we break to talk specifics and I agreed. This meant that I was not able to join in with my Intermediate Long Course group but I will talk with Ollie about it sometime in the next few weeks.

Some of the things we presented within the groups were:

• What are your goals? Have you set them? - So I spoke to the group about setting some attainable goals and it doesn't have to be triathlon specific - it could range from completing the Active Feet/Gatorade Series, 5km or 10km runs through to learning how to use all the gears of the bike by the end of Sept... If they are aiming for something like a half marathon or a marathon - do you have a running background? Can they achieve this without injuries and speak to the coaches if they want some guidance.
• Training Periodisation - the different phases of the training calendar - technique, strength, volume, speed, race. The distances we will be covering and at what intensity.
• Training to Race and not Racing to Train - (as above) - stay focused on your own goals and don't get caught up with others.
• Training Camps - for beginners, the Lorne Camp is perfect and I think from memory, half the group will be joining us. September pre-season camp is also another one which will benefit beginners.
• Focus Races - Set A, B and C races so that you can prioritise your goals and ensure that you don't compromise your goals. Quality over quantity.
• Coaching Services - we then introduced the services which Tri Alliance provides from Coaches Consults - to help you with goals and overcoming weaknesses through to RETUL and how important it is for injury prevention.

I then mentioned that if anyone has any questions and they are too scared to ask, either shoot me an email, talk to me on the side and if I can't answer them, I will refer to the correct resources. Even though it wasn't on the running sheet, I spoke about nutrition and what we expect athletes to carry on the bike - my rule is N+1 or sometimes N+2, N being the number of hours you anticipate to be out on the road. It is always better to be over prepared than under.

I gained something (skills and knowledge) from last night in conducting a group session as a coach for the first time and I hope that the athletes gained something from me too.

Weekly Reflection 20/05 - 26/05

Favourite session(s) of the week:
1) Went to the North run group for the first time in the 4 years that I have been with the club. Instead of running around the Tan, the North Group do their run set around the Maribyrnong river. Due to the size of the group, the coach is able to provide better feedback (in my opinion) to all the athletes. We also had a chance to soak in the river too after the run session which helps tremendously. The water was cold (not freezing) which is great for recovery but not-so-great for gut or hygiene....lets just say if you fall in, you might want to take probiotics.

The Maribynong River

I will need to work on logistics soon as it took me close to an hour to get home (50km drive) after the session. The runs will be longer and starting in June, we will start our Friday mornings swims which means a 4:30am wake up after getting home close to 9:30-10pm. I may have to prepare dinner to consume on the way home and have all my gear packed mid week.

2) I am still learning so much through the bike skills course and I am so glad I signed up. Cornering is getting better (see Advice below) however I can only do a left turn but still hopeless at right...which means that I can't go around a roundabout at any speed...

Hopefully this will show a better result in my 10km TT after Lorne Camp.

Least favourite session of the week: My swims are coming along slowly as I have lost so much of my upper body strength over the last few months and so I have dropped back in position in the swimming lane. I have noticed too that after each set, I am also short of breath. I enjoy swimming and so I have no hesitations in putting in more efforts in getting my upper body strength back.

Advice of the week: I learnt that by dropping the elbow (towards the side at which you would like to turn), you lower your centre of gravity which results in better cornering. This has helped my confidence and (hopefully) be able to corner at a faster speed.

What I’m looking forward to next week: Fingers crossed that all the sessions will be good. I will have to adapt to a few changes during the week, this includes:

• Thursday am run (instead of pm) due to the Tri Alliance (squad only) team meeting - Good news is that I get to go home early!
• I have to attend a wedding on Saturday at 11:30am. This means that I may have to do my 2-3 hour ride starting at 6am (or earlier), get home to change and be in Burwood by 11:30am (can't do bike skills). Reception is at 5:30pm in Brighton so I may fit in a swim (or nap) in between.

Bike Lights

Here is a link to another article I wrote for Tri Alliance and extract below:

At Tri Alliance, we encourage you to train on your bicycle throughout the entire year and crank out early morning km with a quality set of lights. It is a legal requirement to use bike lights in Australia and the law states that bike lights are a must when daylight fades (this includes cloudy days). This is why it is essential that all cyclists are seen and are safe when riding on the roads especially at night.

My bike (and the way I have my lights)

They ensure that car drivers can see you from a distance and be alerted to you and your bike on the road. Almost all bicycle lights use LED bulbs as they are more reliable and use much less battery power, whilst also offering much higher levels of brightness. Used in flashing mode, they are very good at attracting attention from other road users (this includes other cyclists). It is recommended to use at least two rear bike lights where possible, a common configuration is one flashing and one in constant, this is highly advisable just in case one stops or becomes obscured. In Australia, if your rear light is to be placed on the seat stay, it is recommended that it be placed on the chain side due to visibility of other road users behind you.

BRIGHTNESS – Is the light bright enough? – When riding at night it’s essential to have a light that provides you with the right level of illumination for your riding needs. Light brightness is measured in Lumens, and the more Lumens a light has the greater its power output will be.

MOUNTING – Is the light easy to attach to my bike? – To get the maximum benefit of your light on the road or trails it’s important that the lighting unit is securely fastened to your bike. Lights come equipped with a mounting bracket device and this is meant to create a solid attachment to the handlebars for front lights and seat post for rear lights. Mounting brackets usually require no tools and often incorporate a twist dial to tighten. A simple and reliable mounting bracket is essential as it ensures that the your light will be easy to install and easy to use

BATTERIES – Will the battery be rechargeable? – The vast majority of bike lights today come with a rechargeable Lithium battery which is lightweight. Brighter front lights for maximum visibility will often come with an extra battery pack which is to be attached on the handlebars or top tube separately.

RUN TIMES – Will the light last long enough for my ride?- It’s essential to know that your light’s battery life can last the duration of your bike ride. If a light ceases to work while you’re riding at night it will be a major safety risk for you and other road users. Bike lights are designed to run for a specific time period until the battery runs out and requires charging again. Run times are also dependant on the light systems settings. Many lights have their Lumen outputs split over selected beam displays such as low, medium and high.

BULB TYPE – What type of lighting system is best? – Cycle light technology has moved on greatly over the years, traditional ‘bulb’ lights have been more or less replaced by LED and HID systems. When cycling at night with low levels of visibility we recommend you use a LED bulb as this will provide the right amount of power output.

SURPRISE!!!!

Due to my OCD tendencies, I like being in control, I always have plans and must know what I doing in advanced. So on the program, we had in a Time Trial (TT) for swimming. I asked the coaches yesterday about it as I wasn't sure if it was a programming mistake or not. They told (or lied hid the truth) to me and told me that it was a mistake and they would be correcting it. They either (i) lied not wanting me to know that it is on so I won't be prepared for it or (ii) changed their minds at 11pm last night.

As this was a swim TT and having already done a 10km ride TT on the 11th, I wasn't too phased about getting a time slower than what my previous results had shown. Moving onto the Long Course (especially the Ironman Program) - I had been working on my endurance rather than speed over the last 4 months and combined with taking about 5 weeks off real training - this can only mean one thing - slow times. At least I have a base to compare my performance throughout the rest of this year.

My ride TT was done as part of bike skills. My time was 21:43 and my slowest 10km ever. I knew where I had slowed down (the hillier parts of the 1km loop) so the results were not surprising at all. We will do another TT on Week 6 of the program. I am sure I will be faster but this will also depend on my confidence around sharp corners.

The Swim TT this morning was 1km. I knew my strength was MIA. I had pretty much stopped swimming post Ironman for 4 weeks, stopped Reformer Pilates and any form of band-work. I did my 1km TT by myself (in my own lane) this morning. We only had about 7 ppl over 3 lanes, this was maybe due to the coldness as it was 6 degrees and us Northcote ('Cote) kids swim in the outdoor pool which may or may not be heated. Anyways, my swim TT was 21:23 which was nearly 1.5min slower than my fastest 1km TT. I am not too disappointed as I had no expectations and I knew that my swim fitness was left behind at Frankston on the 24th March.

If the 10km run TT was based on what I had done on Sunday as part of my long run, it would have been over an hour for sure. It was a joke how uncomfortable the run was.

Onwards and upwards from now on I guess.

Volunteer and Support

I follow Ironchicks website and facebook page. One of her more recent post really struck a chord in my triathlon world - it was about support and being a volunteer.

When was the last time you volunteered at a running, cycling, swimming, triathlon or any sporting event?
I know plenty of triathletes who have never volunteered at an event. I know we all have busy lives but if you have time to train and to race, I think the least you can do is volunteer (especially during your off season) and give something back to the sport which you participate in.

Not only is volunteering a great way of giving something back into the sport, it is also fun! One of my favourite days (which I will never forget) was volunteering at Ironman Melbourne 2012. I enjoyed being with my squad members setting up the station - hauling boxes of coke, gels, Gatorade from the back of a van. cutting up fruit, standing on the side through to handing out bananas and powerbar gels. My 3 hour shift became 6 as I didn't want to leave the station. The atmosphere and just seeing the various types of athletes coming through the aid station was just amazing. After my shift, I then went to the 2nd Tri Alliance aid station where I volunteered (as cheering group) for the next 5 hours or so until the last person ran through (Barney).

Volunteering doesn't take too much out of your life, it's only a few hours and what you get out of it is priceless. You will appreciate the volunteers on a whole new level come race day. In addition and this may be my personal thing but I think you also become a better athlete.

Tri Alliance Aid Station at Mentone - Juliet with Craig Alexander

When was the last time you supported a friend or friends during a sporting event?
Triathlon is a selfish sport. We do it to benefit ourselves.

Similar to volunteering, I think it is also important that triathletes support each other - either during a race or more relevant to this blog, during the off season - this means you (not racing) going to support a friend or friends (who are racing).

I love the support from familiar faces on race day. I think it is only fitting that you go out and support your friends/family during their events (this can go beyond sports). I know athletes who blatantly thrive on the support of others but when it comes to their off season, they don't show up to races to support others - why?

----------------

This blog entry is not to purposely place guilt on anyone who chooses not to support or volunteer. I am more curious to know if people think that their actions (of lack of) is a conscious one and if they think it is considered selfish at all in their own mind? Curious to find out.

Weekly Reflection 13/05 - 19/05

Favourite session of the week: I really enjoyed my bike skills course on Saturday 18th May. Even though I had been riding for a few years now, it is always refreshing to ride like a beginner and get to know the bike a bit better. We started off with a warm up lap on Studley Park followed by about 5 laps of the 1km tear drop loop. Coach Daz then told us that we had to ride the loop with all the combination of our chain rings and our gears. So we started off with the small chain ring and the largest cog of the cassette (the easiest combination). Not only did we had to ride the entire loop with the combination, we also had to take a drink from our bottle on the flat (something for the beginners). We then went up a gear just before the sharp corner and then off again. Because I have an 11 speed cassette (Campagnolo Chorus), I did 22 loops whilst most did 20 and some did 18.

Because of my levers, it was also tricky to change only one gear as it is possible for me to change 2-3 gears with one movement. Coach Daz also told us not to stand up whilst riding up the hills on the hard gears too so it was sit back on the saddle and grind (feel the burn!!)

I am still terrible at (sharp) cornering. I just can't seem to shake off the anxiety of falling/crashing/losing control of the bike.

After the 22 loops, it was a one loop on a high cadence and then that was the end of the session. When everyone went to get coffee, I did more laps of Studley Park to get the kms up.

Least favourite session of the week: My Sunday run was not my best. It was my first endurance run (running at pace for a longer period of time) since the Ironman. I ended up doing 10km of running before I stopped the Garmin as the last 2km was a trot/walk due to the pain along the arches of my foot. The pain was similar to when I took off my high heels and walked on Saturday night last week, was slightly worried. I also didn't end up running with the squad, instead I slept in until 10am and did my own run around my house and along Beach Rd.

Advice of the week: Never forget what it is like to start out in the sport of triathlon. We take a lot of things for granted. Things such as knowing how to use the chain-ring and gears on the bike comes 2nd nature to me now but it took me about 6 months of riding with the squad to actually learn what the combinations did. Another example is running, for a non-athlete to be able to run 1km without stopping is a big deal but it will get easier and quicker the more you practice.

Here is a photo of me in 2009 - 4km run. I was overweight and finished the run in over 27min. Running does not come naturally to me and it took me over 3 years to learn how to run properly. Just have to be persistent.

Things I’m looking forward to next week: I have a core balance session at work this week which I am looking forward to do as I have no meetings scheduled in! It is a 6 week program and I haven't been able to turn up to any of the past 5 session due to work schedule/meetings.

I am feeling much better now so I am looking forward to a full week of training, this includes the Thursday night run session at Essendon.

Laugh, Train, Eat and stuff...

LAUGH
Here are some more photos from the Tri Alliance EOSPN and a link to the rest of the photo album (you need to have access to Facebook).

Tim, Belinda, Dave, Kerri, Me and Narelle

Bdette, Mick, Daz, Greg, Des, me and Paddy - Some of the Tri Alliance Coaches.

TRAIN
The 2nd week of training hasn't really gone off to the best start. Due to my lack of going out over the last few months, I was badly dehydrated over the weekend (from the TA party) and as a result, the not-so-good news is that I currently have a kidney infection. I won't go into detail about what I have had to go through over the last 48 hours or so, you can google search that stuff. I will add however that my lower back and my hips feels like it has been compressed tightly for a while. I had kidney infection about 6 years ago which left some scarring on one of my kidneys but I am not sure if the infection is on the same one or occurring on the other one too...anyways, I was home-bound on Wednesday and Thursday due to the urgency of toilet stops, visits to the doctors and this morning (Friday) had a little sleep-in due to the effects anti-biotics. But all that infection/sickness aside, I am feeling ok and grateful that I have access to modern medicine and good doctors.

This weekend's training is to be mixed up a bit to accommodate some minor changes. My ride will start early again at Studley Park before the Week 3 of the Bike Skills course which starts at 8am. As I don't have any plans other than a 3pm appointment near my house, I may stay back and do a few more laps - lets see how I go.

Last week, I could only get in 2 laps (< 30km) prior to 8am and as part of Bike Skills, we only did a 10km TT of the tear drop loop (my slowest 10km TT ever due to my lack of strength) and then some slow bike skills sessions (at which I had a stack). I ended up only having done 40-45km of hills (short and steep) rather than a 90km of Beach Rd. To better prepare me for Lorne Weekend, I want to ride close to 60-80km this week and happy to do this on Studley Park.

On Sunday, we won't be going to Fairfield for the run as Coach Greg is away. I will either join the MSAC group or run close to my house, see how I am feeling on Saturday night.

EAT
On the side, I have also been exploring more recipes - for training (see my other posts on homemade gels) and for meals. I have been following The Natural Nutritionist and so I have been trialing some ideas. I don't follow recipes (never been good at being told what to do) and so I look at the ingredients and just do my own thing.

For dinner one night, I made quinao again. The difference between what I had been doing (which lead me to stop eating quinoa) and what I am doing now is that I am soaking them to remove the stuff which causes inflammation... I followed her quinoa cooking tips and I just cooked something which I felt like eating - salmon with quinao salad (quinoa, olives, avocado, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, celery, lemon zest and juice, white wine vinegar, olive oil, salt). Don't ask me for the recipe as I don't measure - never have as I just cook based on instinct.

This meal took me about 12min to do (the total time for the quinoa to cook). A tip I have is to buy fresh fish rather than the frozen stuff from the frozen food aisle - I find that the fish will be cooked  more evenly (no frozen spots) and you will save on packaging waste - a small plastic bag which can be used for waste scraps when chopping vegies versus cardboard, plastic sealed wrapping etc.


Obligatory food photo - don't mind the Endura bottle on the side.



Recognition & Party

So Saturday night was the Tri Alliance End of Season Presentation Night (EOSPN). My night started off earlier than most as I had to help with the set up. I got dropped off at 6pm and helped with the balloons, confitti and then it was out the front of the hall for the meet and greet side of the evening. I was in charge of ticking people's names off the list whilst Paddy and Des helped to sell raffle tickets.

The evening started off with the secret presentation which was our Flash Dance - a few of us had been practicing for over a week on this dance routine. I don't think many people were paying attention (or cared for much of it?) but it was a good way to start off a fun evening.

We started off the night with the formal awards. The awards are great because it recognises people's efforts not only in actual races but also their training and dedication to the squad and the sport of triathlon. The following people were winners:

Short Course Female: Lisa Dominquez - for her podiums, coming 2nd in the series, representing Aus at the World Champs in London 2013. She was also last year's winner.

Short Course Male: Xavier Flynn - his placings throughout the Gatorade series and general improvements throughout training and racing

Long Course Female: Bri Scarllett - overcoming hardships, raising money for Smiling for Smiddy, best female time for Ironman Melbourne (after from Sarah Grove)

Long Course Male: Nathan Sims - Excellent performance in long course racing and being just a great team player. Nathan is very helpful throughout training and he will be going to Kona 2013.

Best Newcomer: Jess Waugh - travelling from Bacchus Marsh everyday for training and comes to all sessions. This was a close one as her fiance (Glen) was also nominated.

Most Improved: Belinda Griffiths - improvements over all 3 disciplines

Team Players: Ryan Kidd & Simon Gronow (tied) - Ryan managed the 2 aid stations for Tri Alliance during Ironman Melb (Parkdale & Mentone), Simon is a supporter of Tri Alliance at all the events (even when he is not racing)

JC Memorial Scholarship: Brett Archbold (and he also won the Zoolander Award) - Brett has been training with Ollie for the last 8+ years and will be going to Kona 2013. As part of this award, he will receive all his training and Vic Training Camps by TA.

Happy to see that my (coach's) nominations all got throught the list and won awards.

Then the rest of the night was all about having fun - drinking and dancing. The after party was at the Belgium Beer garden and the after after party was at the Electric Ladyland. My feet were not enjoying the torture of wearing heels and dancing and so it gave up during the walk from Belgium to Chapel St. I don't remember enjoying the Electric Ladyland and ended up calling for my lift home at 2am.

One of my fave photos - Sharon, Mary, Caroline, Michelle and Lisa

Nola, Me and Steady (aka John Travolta)

I am sure more photos will emerge soon from the evening. For the moment, I think everyone is still recovering from a massive weekend.

Weekly Reflection 06/05 - 12/05

Favourite session of the week: Windtrainer, one of my favorite sessions of the training week and it was the first one for the season! I just love this session as I get to escape the coldness and get to sweat! I feel so much better having a good sweat session - better for my breathing and my skin. I think that's why I enjoy doing bikram.

It was a packed session and we combined all the groups together - beginners through to long course. I am going to make a conscious effort this season to push beyond my comfort zone on the bike and increase my strength. I have also continued using Dale during these sessions leaving the road bike for the Saturday rides only.

Least favourite session of the week: I fell off my bike....the first for 2013. It was during the bike skills course at which we were riding around obstacles at super slow speeds.

Slow Bike + U Turn = Stack!

Now my left shoulder and arm hurts and I am struggling to squeeze my shoulders to release the tension between my blades. I have minor grazes on my leg but its just surface wounds - not a big deal.

Advice of the week: Never underestimate the need for salts for hydration. I had a pretty big night on Saturday night (more of this in the next post) and so Sunday I was feeling less than average. When I finally got myself out of bed other than to get something to eat or toilet, I had electrolyte tablet and some Himalayan sea salt. I instantly felt a millions dollars. I should have had this regime done before I went to sleep early on Sunday morning. I guess I won't be having a night out like this one anytime soon as the next few months will be all about preperations for a successful season. I don't understand/know how people do this weekend after weekend.

Thing I’m looking forward to next week: Another week of training towards my goal races. I won't be attending the run session on Thursday night due to a work function so I may either do a run on Thursday morning or a ride around Albert Park.

This Sunday will also be my first endurance run at Fairfield so I am looking forward to my first real run back since Ironman.

This Weekend - WHOOP!

This weekend is no ordinary weekend...on the training side of things I have Bike Skills with Coach Daz at 8am. I have signed up to this (Bike Skillz) to be more confident in descending and turning (can turn left, can't turn right). Kenny from Bicycles Inc will be popping by to show us some bike maintenance things and I hope I will learn something new.

On the program, I have a 90km ride. I remember this time last year, the program was a 60km ride (easy T2) as I was on the half ironman first-timer program. This year, I am on the Ironman Intermediate program - a big change!

We will not be covering many kms on Saturday so after speaking to the head coaches, I am going to do a few hours of the boulevard before meeting the crew at 8am. Will be working on my strength as well as trialing my homemade gels.

I have a catch up with some friends for lunch on Saturday and then it is a mad-chooks rush to get my sh!t together for Sat night. Saturday night will be HUGE!!!! Tri Alliance will be having our End of Season Presentation Night (EOSPN). It is always such a fun night. The highlights of the night will be the awards of recognition (both serious and silly ones). All the coaches had a say in the nominations for these awards. The winner of the John Cornish scholarship will also be announced. My money will be on someone who is going to the World Champs 2013 or Kona 2013.

The Zoolander award is also something which people look forward to as it is always presented by Greg (the Zoolander). This award is given to the athlete who has the most disgraceful race photo for the season.  

SSSSSSSHHHHH there is also a secret presentation happening too and hopefully it turns out well - will report of this in my next post. Stay tuned!

Oh, no running on Sunday on the program....obviously.

Challenge....Accepted!

The announcement of the Challenge Series returning to Australia came as a massive surprise to most people. I received an email on a Tuesday afternoon from Supersprint announcing that they will be managing Challenge Melbourne. This race is part of the 3 Challenge races to be held in Australia:

- Challenge Forster 24/11/13

- Challenge Melbourne 2/2/14

- Challenge Batemans Bay 16/3/14

This race is 1.9km swim, 90km, ride and a 21.1km run around Sandringham. This race will be in place of the Sandy Olympic distance (Olympic Distance to be at St Kilda during Jan). The 1.9km swim is a one lap course in Sandringham. The swells can be a bitch sometimes (but I enjoy it), the ride is 3 laps of Beach Rd (roads closed from Brighton to Mordy) and the run is 3 laps from Sandringham to Brighton.

I needed some financial help to sign up to this race as the announcement for registration was too sudden and I just didn't have any funds. My budget was blown out of the water from my last pay as I finally bought a new helmet. To be honest, if I knew this race was coming up, I would have delayed the helmet purchase even further. I was stressed. I really wanted to enter this race as feedback regarding the Challenge Series have always been positive. If I missed out on a spot for Challenge Melbourne, I would have happily raced Geelong Long Course instead.

I had help in paying for the entry this afternoon and so now this race will be my lead in for Melbourne Ironman. If everything goes to plan, this will be my 4th half ironman-distance triathlon. I am looking forward to being part of this inaugural event. Tri Alliance happen to be a training partner for this (working with Supersprint) so we will see more athletes joining us within the next few months.

USM also announced that Geelong Multisport festival will be returning and will be having their events on the week after Challenge Melbourne. I will be heading down to Geelong to support and to stay with family for the weekend. May even do a team entry to keep up with the training routine leading into Ironman Melbourne.

FOLLOW ME!

I recently had a clean out of my old blog and transferring info into the new one. I realised that there were a few bugs and so this would have affected traffic.

So if you were previously following my blog by email - you will need to subscribe by entering your email address again....sorry!!

Homemade Gel #2 - Base Gel Recipe

I had time to gather a few more key ingredients over the last few days to be able to make the basic gel mixture. I wanted to make this base mix based on the nutritional panel of a Gu gel.

Maltodextrin



This is my second homemade gel attempt. I wanted to make a Gu-like recipe. I had a look at the nutritional panel on my Gu packet and noted the ingredients and nutritional info for a Gu is: maltodextrin, water, fructose and some amino acids and salts. 481kJ (approx 100Cal), Carbs 25 g with 6g sugar.

The maltodextrin I was using had the following - 100g mixture with 384 Cal (1598kJ) with 94g Carbs with 16g sugar so based on the ratio of sugar of the Gu mixture, I needed approx 8-10g of fructose mixture to my 100g maltodextrin.

I added the maltodextrin and fructose mixture into a small saucepan and added some water to dissolve. The mixture was cloudy until the powder dissolved well into the water. Citric acid was added to the liquid as per instructions. I didn't want the gel mixture to be flavourless and so I added some vanilla extract and salt. The mixture did not thicken as my previous batch so I added pectin to hopefully thicken it up (didn't work, maybe I didn't add enough or I had too much water).

So this mixture was not as thick compared to what I am use to and the colour was slightly yellow due to the vanilla extract. All the energy needs were in there. When the mixture cooled, I poured it into a flask and left in the fridge.

   

Final  product & its ingredients

Notes:
- The final mixture made 4 servings of energy gel with the following nutritional value per serving: Energy 106 Cal (510kJ), Carbs 26g with 6g of Sugar.
- This gel recipe is not suitable if you have fructose intolerance (as the sugar is pure fructose sugar crystals).
- At first taste, the mixture reminded me of Endura Gel in Vanilla flavour (not my favourite) so I don't know how I will enjoy this...may taste better whilst I am training

Conclusion & Comments
TBC

Swimming!

Tri Alliance has two swim destinations - one at Northcote and one at MSAC. I choose to swim at Northcote as their sessions run in the morning and I also enjoy the pool. The location in reference to my home and work is not great but I made a choice to swim there.

The Northcote swim is in the outdoor pool. The lanes are never too crowded as the majority of the squad swim in the evenings (at MSAC) and they don't particularly like to travel far from the CBD.

This morning the air temperature was hovering around 6 degrees Celsius. There was a fault with the boiler so the water temp was around 18 degreesC. Not only was the pool water cold, the showers did not provide much hot water either.

It was the first official week of winter training yet we were still short of a few regular athletes, maybe the chill kept a few people in bed this morning whilst others are still on holidays.

I wanted to share with you a photo taken this morning, it was also Coach Lisa's birthday.

Weekly Reflection 29/04 - 05/05

Favourite session of the week: There are too many sessions I enjoyed this week but two really stuck out.

I went back to the pool for the first time this week on Monday and I was happy! It wasn't easy. The weeks away from the pool were noticeable but I was just glad to be back and wearing my new Funkita swimwear I bought post Ironman. We swam a total of 1.6km or so but loved being back in the water again.

Sunday Trail Run Group

We also had a great trail run at You Yangs on Sunday which was great. It was the first time at the You Yangs for me. I know plenty of people riding their mountain bikes there but I had never been. I ran (moved) a total of 7.7km including the climb up the Peak lookout. 

Least favourite session of the week: I didn't get a chance to commute to and from work this week due to the not ideal commuting weather (read windy and rain) and work commitments which required me to have my car. On Saturday, I wasn't feeling 100% with pains along my hips again so I decided to just take painkillers and stayed in bed.

Advice of the week: Never underestimate the need to plan your week in advanced - this will help you see clearly what you need to get ready for and pack/cook/wash/prepare ahead of time.

Things I’m looking forward to next week: Next week will be my first full week of training. No more latte rides, no more run fitness sessions, no more sleeping in because its recovery month.

The first week back is still not the full week (no session on Tuesday or Thursday morning, no swimming on Friday).  I have also signed up to do the bike skills course and hope to gain some more confidence on the bike in terms of turning and descending. This is happening on Saturday morning but may ride in addition to make up for the distance.

In addition, I also have a massage booked in on Monday afternoon which I am looking forward to.

Homemade Gel #1 - Juice, Maltodextrin & Citric Acid

As I didn't have some of the basic ingredients in my pantry last night - such as Fructose and Pectin to make the basic gel base, I decided to follow a basic recipe which I found online here.

Final Product - Raspberry Gel #1

Their basic method was 3 parts maltodextrin and 1 part juice. I used Emma & Tom's Thirst Quencher in Raspberry (I like Hammer Raspberry gels) and the maltodextrin I had in the house..not sure what brand it was brand so here is a picture Natural Health Supplements (NHS) . I bought it from Evelyn Faye on Bourke St Melbourne but they also have an online shop.  

What I did:
I boiled the 1 cup of raspberry juice into a concentrate (reduced the volume slightly). I did have a taste of the juice prior to boiling and during to gauge the level of acidity (sourness) and did notice a significant difference with the more concentrated juice. I didn't really noticed how long I simmered it for....maybe 10min.

I then added the maltodextrin - used my old Gatorade scoops and spooned 2 in at a time, stirred until dissolved and repeat. I ended up adding about 6 scoops until the powder refused to dissolve any further.  The liquid was clumpy and cloudy until the maltodextrin dissolved completely into a clear liquid. I added a few drops of lemon juice (the ones you buy in a yellow squeezy bottle in the supermarket) in the mix, don't ask me why, I just did it because most recipes call for citric acid. The finished product had the consistency of honey.

When all powder was dissolved

I took the saucepan off the stove and poured the liquid into a glass to cool. I did notice a thin film was formed on the top quick. 

Once cooled, I poured the gel into one of my flask and placed in the fridge. I will try out the formula on the weekend (half during ride and half during the trail run).

Notes:

1. Even though I had added 8 scoops of powder, only about 6 dissolved properly (approx 100g of maltodextrin): Energy 382 Cal (1598kJ), 94g carbohydrates (16g sugar), <1g salt.
2. 1 cup of juice has about the following: Energy 40 Cal (165kJ), 9g carbohydrates (100% sugar), 7mg salt, Vitamin C (65mg).
3. I am not a food scientist but with basic mathematics skills, the formula which I made is for about 4 servings based on the nutritional panel of some gels I had lying around the house
4. Keeping in mind the 4:1 formula for energy gels (4 parts complex to 1 part simple) - 1 serving of my gel would equate to 100-105Cal made up of 26g of carbohydrates (with 6.5g of simple sugars). Will try out this weekend to see how it goes!
5. Cost of this experiment (4 serves of gels) approximately $4 (Australian).

Conclusion & Comments:

Tried out this recipe (consumed it) over the weekend (5th May) and I am happy to report that it worked well. I didn't have an upset stomach and the consistency of the gel worked once it was out of the fridge.

I will use this same method and use apple juice instead and see how the taste carries in a gel form. 

Homemade Gels - The Introduction

I have always wanted to try some homemade (energy) gel recipes and as we are in the beginning of the training phase, I thought this would be the best time to try and make some energy gels from scratch. No point in trying out new things so close to race day.

When I first started training, a friend introduced to me his method of energy/nutrition on his bike rides - he would mix about 3 tablespoons of maltodextrin into his 500ml bottle, add 1 Nuun/Shotz tablet and add water. Essentially, he had his complex sugars, salts and water all mixed into a bottle. Since then, I have always had some maltodextrin around my house.

Researching further into the ingredients of gels - the ones which I am comfortable about making all have maltodextrin as their base ingredient. Another gel brand uses Brown Rice Syrup as their main complex sugar but the heavy wheat taste needs to be masked with chocolate, coffee or peanut butter flavours. Over the years, my tolerances to flavours have been narrowed to the following:

• Plain - no flavour or least offensive
• Berries/Raspberry - this has to be alike the taste of strawberry/raspberry jam and not cough medicine
• Chocolate - but the consistency is important and also not too fake
• Mint - this is more of a pallet cleansing flavour I need in between other gels or to take away the salt mouthwash straight after a swim

Most gels are made from a 4:1 ratio of carbohydrates complex (maltodextrin) sugars to simple sugars (fructose, sucrose, glucose, dextrose). Some gels use fruit juices (concentrated, not puree), agave syrup, honey whilst others use plain fructose powder. I will experiment with them over the coming weeks and see how they turn out.

First I will start with the Energy Gel Base. This is made up of the simple 4:1 ratio of maltodextrin and fructose powder and with it, added citric acid, salt and water - simple hey?! Will report on how I go soon.

Wearing a Helmet - The Basics

This is an article I wrote for Tri Alliance. I thought I would do a post here as well.

 

In training and racing, we often see helmets being worn incorrectly. This is a guide to the correct way of adjusting and wearing your helmet (on your head).

Safety Sticker

Check that your helmet (bought in Australia) meets the (approved) stringent safety tests. Look on the bicycle helmet for the sticker or label certifying that the helmet meets the Australian and New Zealand standard (AS/NZS 2063) and has passed stringent safety tests.

Be aware that if you decide to purchase your helmet online (from overseas), this sticker will not be present and some sanctioned races will not allow you to compete if your helmet does not meet this standard.

How to wear your helmet

• Always wear a helmet when you ride and make sure you fit your helmet correctly.
• The helmet should fit comfortably and securely when the straps are fastened.
• The straps should not be twisted and nor cover the ears. When done up correctly, the straps should provide a snug fit over the ears and under the chin. 

The following lists the steps for a correct helmet fit:

1.    Have you removed any obstructions – such as a hat? Is your hair in the way?

INCORRECT - Hair in the way

CORRECT - Hair tied back and no obstructions

2.    Have you placed the helmet on your head the right way?

CORRECT

Incorrect – helmet worn backwards	Incorrect – helmet worn backwards
Incorrect – Too far forward (not protecting the back of your head and obstructing view)	Incorrect – Too far backward (not protecting your forehead)
Incorrect – Helmet not protecting the side of your head	Incorrect – helmet not secured (with straps). A helmet is not a hat.

 

 

3.    Can you place just two fingers between your eyebrows and your helmet?

4.    Do the straps join in a ‘V’ just below your ears?

5.    Can you fit just two fingers between the helmet strap and your chin?

Replace your helmet if:

·         It’s been dropped onto a hard surface or involved in a crash or severe fall.

·         You see any cracks in the foam.

·         The straps look worn or frayed.