Feeding the Machine #4: Race week & eating on the road

the eating during race week is probably as important as the final workouts if not more important.  like i have written about i don’t believe in changing anything.  i read one of gordo’s posts or articles a while back and I like how he stated how to eat during a taper.  something like “eat the same food you normally eat, just less”.  simple.

For me that may just mean a little less Nuttzo after dinner and a little less snacking.  My thoughts are that heading into race week the first couple of days we are kind of in recovery mode from the prior weekend’s final “race effort” workouts.  i know i ate good recovery foods after those workouts so at the beginning of week I usually like to focus a lot on quality, lean protein. And since the workload isn’t very taxing I keep the carbs pretty moderate and just consume them pre & post workout.  So a lot of eggs, protein shakes/smoothies, etc.

typical race week dinner from this week.  mega veggies with the new mahi mahi bugers from trader joes on top… and tons of AVO!  The mahi burgers were good but not as good as our typical salmon burgers.

sunday night’s are when beth and usually eat red meat following tough weeks of training.  this past sunday was no different.  an iron replenshing dinner!

grilled grass-fed top sirloin, roasted beats, goat cheese, mushrooms, red onions, sliced almonds, & broccoli overs a bed of spinach & arugula with a homemade balsamic-mustard dressing.

here are some smoothie/shakes from the week.

PB & K: unsweetened almond milk, vanilla whey, kale, peanut flour, macca root, chia seeds, spirulina, & glutamine.

beets & berries: water, spinach, vega sport vanilla protein (vegan), macca root, beet root & greens, frozen organic mixed berries (blue, black, straw), glutamine.

Traveling to races is always tough when it come to eating and nutrition.  Time changes, eating meals different times, and maybe no healthy restaurant options (i.e. St George, UT).  Before we left for Texas Beth did some research, luckily, The Woodlands has plenty of healthy options.  Two places we can’t wait to try are Hubble & Hudson and Pure. On the way from airport in houston to the our hotel in the woodlands we made a pit stop at whole foods for dinner and to pick up some groceries.  WF is pricey for sure but no matter where we are we know we can get what need there so it’s worth a couple of extra bucks.

And then there are things I don’t leave home without with travelling.  Having some good sponsors like Nuttzo, PureFit Bar, and Feed the Machine/SportMulti ensures that I am always stocked with the goods i need.

PF Nuttzo, PureFit Bars, starbucks VIA instant coffee (way better than hotel coffee), Vega shake & go smoothie mix (not a sponsor), & individual trader joe’s trail mix packs (i live on these).

I

don’t leave home without my SportMulti.  if you want to give SportMulti a try (whick i highly suggest you do) you can get 40% off using this discount code: walshSM

that’s it… off to pick up our bikes and go check in for IRONMAN TEXAS!!!!

week nineteen & twenty. ready to race.

i can’t believe this coming saturday day will the culmination of 20 weeks of the hardest, and most focused training i have ever done.  last week (#19) was full of “taper” workouts.  nothing too long just ramping it up for some intervals and then shutting it down.  i can definitely tell the difference of the reduced volume over the last couple weeks…it’s a good feeling.  And the good news I was feeling great all week.  the power and paces I was shooting for came easy, and often higher and faster than I have produced in training so far this year, but we all know that while these workouts were good, they alone, really don’t mean I am going to have a good race.  the cumulative training of 20 weeks and all the work we’ve put it is what matters… bring on the RACE DAY MAGIC!

and so this week (#20) is RACE week.  I can’t believe how much stuff goes into racing an Ironman.  Thanks to B&L, RaceDay Wheels, & Velo Hangar I know my bike is ready to go.  I decided to go with some Zipp 808′s (front & rear) and  I think it’s a good choice.  There is a chance of some wind so I decided to not ride a disc.  So I know the bike is set now, on truck to the woodlands, and I just have to pack everything else.

a lot of people have asked me what my goals/predictions are for the race… and a lot of people have already seemed to make them for me.  based on my previous racing quite a few people have told me that I am going to have a “killer” race.  I am not that naive.  I do have a lot of respect for this distance and the experience of the people I will be “racing” against and alongside.  It’s a long day and anything can happen.  I have never swam an open water 2.4 miles, raced 112 miles on the bike, or ever run marathon.  It’s all new to me.  It’s going be the longest race i have ever done by hours… and I am excited and ready to RACE.

of course I am also little nervous about the race but those nervous feelings are easily overwhelmed with my excitement to get out there and race.  after watching trevor, libby, art, brandon, and a bunch friends throwdown at IMSG 2 weekends a go I am hungry for some suffering of my own.  i don’t know what race day will bring but I do know i am ready.  dirk has put me through the ringer (exactly what I signed up for) but I never felt once like it was too much or I was at my breaking point.  sure there were  tough days where i was tired, wanted to blow off a sunday afternoon 2 hour hour run for some ice cold IPA’s with friends, but the rest & ez workouts incorporated into the plan had me bouncing back quickly while getting stronger and faster.

i know i have mentioned it a bunch on this blog but I don’t think all the this training would have happened while remaining injury free without the help of Bryan and his crew at Rehab United.  the past 20 weeks have, without a doubt, been the highest volume (combined swim/bike/run) I have ever put myself through…. and to get through it without even a minor niggle kind of blows me away.

I started working hard with Bryan last august and it has paid off.  In years past I was quite a bit lighter.  I had a goal to pack on some much needed muscle for Ironman.  I used to race at 132-134lbs and have an everyday weight of 136-138.   I was definitely a little too skinny on an everyday basis and probably wasn’t getting the most from training.  So with all the hard work I was up into the low 140′s by the time january came around and then the S/B/R training started ramp up.  I was definitely able to tell the difference, especially on the bike and in the pool.  more power.  Now I have comfortably settled into around ~138lbs which is what i want to race at and it’s pretty much my everyday weight these days with more muscle on my frame which I think is important when going long.

ok… enough about that… i have too much to do than go on and on about how much my wife, bryan, dirk, and friends (i could on forever) have helped me prepare for this race both mentally and physically.  thanks everybody….

Feeding the Machine #3: Taper time.

ok… trying to stay with the deal I made with myself and get this post by the end of the week.  we are in taper mode now so daily nutrition is definitely on the forefront.  the weeks leading up to a race, including race week, we really don’t change our diets much.  maybe just a little less nut butter after dinner… maybe.

we pretty much stick to the “staples” in our diets.  A lot of fruits, veggies, eggs, & fish.  A little less chicken or steak, but that’s been on an ongoing theme for us in the recent months any way.  So no real change.

so here are some our go to meals.  if you have been reading my blog you have seen it before.  these kind of dinners definitely help pile in the nutrients and get race day lean.

Egg & Veggie Scrambles.  We eat these 2-3 times a week for dinner during a typical week and I eat them for breakfast & lunch quite a bit too.  It’s simple, superfast, healthy, and so good.  I cook our scrambles in separate pans because we both have our own egg to egg white ratios (me: 2 whole eggs/4 whites, beth: 1 whole egg/4 whites).  So it’s easy.  I chop a ton of veggies, throw them in the pan and let them cook for a bit, then add some greens (spinach, kale, chard, all are good).  Then when all the greens and veggies are ready toss in the eggs.  It’s not rocket science.

top it with some fresh avo, nutritional yeast, and ketchup of course… i also add siracha and beth loves some salsa.

we also eat a lot of fish and a lot of different kinds.  I am always on the look out for new wild caught options.  Typical it’s mahi mahi, halibut, salmon, red snapper, and tuna.  Last night we tried something new.  I was Seaside Market and they had just gotten some wild caught Opah from Hawaii.  I quickly marinated it in some Bragg’s Healthy Vinaigrette, lemon juice, and salt & pepper.  I grilled the fish and it came out awesome… piled on some mega veggie & spinach salads….and always add avo…

and now… here’s some of my random smoothies/shakes from the week.  these taste WAY better than they look.  trust me.

#1 – unsweetened almond milk, vanilla Vega Sport protein (vegan), blueberries, strawberries, kale, beet root, macca root, chia seeds, spirulina, and glutamine.

#2 – water, chocolate whey protein, banana, peanut flour/powder, spinach, macca root, spirulina, and glutamine.