How to care for your bike after a race by Tech Dan

Cycling Cleaning and Bike Maintenance by Lisa Lou Joaquim

Immunity through the racing season by Melaina Marion

Off season preparation by Andrew Haas MD

Hills and Trails this Winter! by Pascale Butcher

Dear Doc by Andrew Haas MD

Favorite hill run routes by Chris , Westport CT

Goal setting by Pascale Butcher

Massage for the triathletes by Massage Envy

Keep your immune system strong through the training season by Melaina Marion

We all know that winter months are prime cold and flu season but how disheartening is it to ramp up your training season just to get knocked out of the game for a week or two because of a cold?

Recently, one of my clients complained of being sick a lot.  He has trained and competed in several endurance events in the past year and subsequently came down with a cold five times over a 10 month period.  He said he felt like he was sick more than he was healthy, and one day his wife said to me, “with all the exercise he’s doing, he sure is sure sick a lot”.

Sad but true! 

As athletes we have special nutritional requirements, and the increased physical stress that our bodies endure not only puts us at risk for injury but for lowered immunity as well.  There is strong evidence to support that exercise promotes increased strength, function and immunity.  However, endurance athletes whose training regimines are often long and intense are prone to getting sick more than recreational and moderately active athletes.

One way we can help improve our immune system is through nutrition.  Eating a varied diet with plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein is important.  While we hear this information a lot I think it is important for people to understand why.

Fruits and vegetables

Fruits and vegetables contain vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, which all increase our body’s ability to fight off infection.  For example, vitamin C rich foods such as citrus fruits, strawberries and green peppers contain protective properties that enhance immunity.  Sweet potatoes, carrots and dark leafy greens such as kale and spinach are rich in beta carotene, which increase the number of natural killer and helper-T cells.

Grains and seeds

Wheat, oats, nuts and seeds all contain vitamin E, which enhances the number of immune cells that produce antibodies that destroy bacteria thereby increasing our immunity.

Protein rich foods such as meat, eggs, milk, and cheese affect our immunity by increasing antibody responses.  These foods contain essential amino acids, which cannot be synthesized by our bodies, and must be supplied by the diet.  In addition, lean beef, pork, turkey, lentils, some beans and yogurt contain Zinc, which can decrease our susceptibility to infection and decrease the duration of a cold.

Omega-3s

Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in foods such as salmon, tuna, flax, nuts and seeds.  These foods increase white blood cell activity, speed up healing, and strengthen our resistance to infection.

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to staying healthy through nutrition but as you can see, eating a varied diet can boost your body’s ability to fight off a cold, which will keep your immune system strong so you can train and race at peak performance!

Melaina Marion, our sports nutritionist can be contacted at melaina@trifitness.net

Hills and Trails this Winter! by Pascale Butcher

Walk to run faster? Hill walking can be performed
during the transition phase and early base training of
your program without the high impact of running. Just
find a steep incline and head up, up, up! It is almost
as good as running and can teach you about balance,
stride and foot placement. All good things to focus on.

Try steep walking intervals. Walking fast on a steep
incline can get your heart rate up almost as much as a
slow run and there is less impact and eccentric load.
And it
is a great way to strengthen the gluteals, hamstrings,
and calf muscles for tougher work to come.
When you "take to the hills", listen to your body and
think about which muscles you activate different from
running. What do you feel? Would you be faster
running? Sometimes a fast hike is better than a slow
run for fitness and overall speed, as many trail
runners and Escape from Alcatraz triathletes know!

Connecticut has a great selection of trails! Near by we like to go
to Trout Brook off Bradley Road in Easton. There are a lot of
steep hills on varied terrain and you can perform a lot
of repeats in beautiful surroundings. Let us know your
favorite hilly run route and will post it on our website.

A selection of some of your favorite hill run routes:

By Chris Woods, Westport CT

Dear Doc

by Andrew Haas MD

November 2008

Triathlon.  For most of us this word carries with it a ring of excitement, challenge, and is met with a broad smile.  We have chosen to become part of a rapidly expanding group, that of people who find joy in swimming, biking, and running, and often all three in a row.  We revel in the memories of races past and look forward to the dawn of our new race season in 2009.  As we enter the dark winter months, we use those memories as inspiration to keep us in the pool, on our windtrainers and on the road early before the sun rises.  Why do we choose to train and race?  We each have our own motives and are driven by our own objectives. 

For some we are trying to win, our age group or the race itself.  We may be professionals or may be so driven and competitive with our fellow athletes that only a win is acceptable.  For some, the glory of being in the race is enough of a victory in itself.   John Collins, the creator of the Ironman Triathlon has said, “Ironman has always been about finishing what you have started.  About being able to do what you have set out to do.  Maybe not as fast as the person in front of you, but certainly faster than the person who never started.”  Collins’ words can carry beyond the Ironman to triathlon in general. 

Triathlon by nature draws competitive and driven athletes to its fold.  We love the camaraderie of our peers and we love that challenge of the race.  As we look forward to our next season we draw from that deep motivation and push onward.  I have been racing triathlons for 20 years and have been as competitive as the next athlete.  I have also had the privilege of caring for numerous triathletes, marathoners, cyclists, swimmers, and other endurance athletes as a sports medicine fellowship trained orthopedic surgeon.  I believe in triathlon as an avocation, a sport and a lifestyle. 

John Collins’ words, however, ring more true to me now than ever before.  I believe strongly in the privilege of being on the starting line and the opportunity to cross the finish line is reward enough.  This was not always true.  There was a time when I would be crestfallen after a fourth place finish in my age group, knowing I was one spot away from the podium.  That was before 2005 when I was training for Ironman Hawaii and I was the victim of an irresponsible driver while I was on a training ride.  I was severely injured in the collision that ensued and I spent the next three months fighting for my life.

My injuries included a fractured pelvis, 15 fractured vertebrae, multiple facial fractures, an open triceps laceration, two collapsed lungs and severe blood loss. While I was in a coma, my family was left to wonder whether I would survive.  There were no thoughts then about Ironman.  In the years since, I have risen from my wheelchair, learned to walk again, returned fully to medicine and began to train again.  Three years after my accident, I found myself on the starting line of the Trifitness Fairfield Triathlon.  It was a glorious day and, despite my race time, the race was a true victory.

I have come to appreciate even more the jubilation involved in participation in triathlon.  Do I want to challenge and push myself?  Of course, but I understand even more the pleasure and privilege of lining up at the starting line.  I still aim to race Ironman Hawaii.  I still am fortunate to be able to work with athletes from the orthopedic side of triathlon.  In the coming months I look forward to being able to answer many of your questions regarding training and racing injuries and injury prevention.  I hope that my participation as the Trifitness Orthopedic Consultant will help the Trifitness athletes to achieve their desired goals from the sport that we all love so much.  Again the words of John Collins ring true.  In speaking about the first Ironman race in 1978, Collins said,” The name of the game is to finish.  We didn’t have a first place.  It was finish as opposed to not finish.” 

I hope that our conversations and my columns over the coming months will help to make sure that you train well and healthfully and reach the finish of every race you start.

Dr. Haas is a sports medicine fellowship trained orthopedic surgeon.  He is the Orthopedic Consultant to Trifitness.  He has run 7 marathons, with a PR of 2:59, and dozens of triathlons, and can be reached at 203-325-4087.