heaven on earth

hapuna bay, HI. in other words: heaven on earth. the water is so clear and warm. megan and i did a swim this morning. we started out on the south side of the beach, went out to the end of the point, swam north and then back. we were out to about 20 feet deep and could see straight down to the bottom filled with reef and fish! we swam back in to get the camera just in time to find our turtle friend.

the most epic place ive ever experienced for a "race." if my swim time is off saturday it will be because i was off course following a turtle.

more updates to come-

aloha,

C

TAPER

^{Webster's Definition:}

³taper

Function:

verb

Inflected Form(s):

ta·pered; ta·per·ing  \ˈtā-p(ə-)riŋ\

Date:

1610

intransitive verb1 : to become progressively smaller toward one end2 : to diminish graduallytransitive verb: to cause to taper

Colleen's Defention:

T-  Thanks.  Thank you to my body for putting up with me pounding you with miles and miles of swim/bike/run the past few months.  We just have 70.3 to go!

A- Anxious.  The feeling you get when you are about 2-3 days out from a race.  Haven't done much training the week prior and are anxious to get the race started!

P-  Prepare.  Not filling the extra hours of your day with training, you have time to prepare for your race.  Of course in tri-geek type-A terms this is usually a cause of being over prepared.  Wheels-check, wetsuit-check, water bottles-check, sunscreen-check, laces, shoes, etc. etc.

E-  Eating.  Eating well, not quantity, but fueling and hydrating your body properly the week leading up to the race.  Extra electrolytes, good carbohydrates, protein and plenty of water!

R-  Rest.  The most important aspect.  Allowing your body to absorb all of the hard work from the past months.  Getting enough sleep, kicking the feet up and letting your body recover.

Leaving Wednesday for Hawaii 70.3 and cannot wait!  Cheers to taper!!

To your health,

C

plant protein

The search is over.

I have never been a big supplement person. However, protein powder has been a staple in my diet for as long as I can remember.  Why?  Two main reasons: its an easy way to consume a complete protein and it is a quick way to consume a complete protein.  When you finish a hard workout session one of the first things that sets in is hunger.  More importantly then settling an empty stomach is re-fueling your body with the right food!  Within 30 min. of a hard workout you should be consuming quickly digesting carbohydrates with a small amount of protein.  Your body will digest both the carbohydrates and protein best post workout in a liquid form.  Drum roll please... SMOOTHIES!  My favorite post workout fuel.  My smoothies usually consist of either water or homemade almond milk (recipe to come soon) as a base, un-sweetened acai smoothie packet, frozen or fresh fruit (mango, blueberries or banana usually) and a scoop of protein powder.

In the past year I have been using Hemp Protein powder.  Hemp protein contains all 10 essential amino acids and is very alkaline forming in your body.  However... the texture and taste in my smoothies was just not cutting it.  I had also been reading that the combination of pea protein isolate and rice protein was the best in terms of absorption and digestion.  Pea protein is absorbed easily and full of amino acids.  Rice protein is high in iron and potassium.  I recently discovered Lifetime's Life Basics Plant Protein.  It is a combination of pea, rice and hemp protein!  And it contains Chia seed (high in omega fats)!  Not only does it contain all of the ingredients... but it tastes good!  almost too good.

Plant proteins are easy to digest and are alkaline forming in the body.  The Life Basics Protein has 22 grams of protein in 1 scoop!  Here are more details from the company:

Life basics® Plant Protein is an easy-to-digest, energy-boosting protein source for vegetarians, athletes, or anyone seeking a superior-quality protein source they can use every day*. Rich in omega 3-6-9 essential fatty acids, amino acids, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, Life’s Basics® Plant Protein features the following groundbreaking vegetarian protein profile:*

• Pea Protein Isolate - Brimming with vital biological value and balanced nutrition, pea protein isolate is highly regarded for its ease of absorption. Pea protein isolate is also well-utilized by the body and is not deposited as fat. Packed with amino acids, pea protein isolate may offer benefits for healthy weight management and peak athletic performance.*

• Rice Protein Concentrate - This complex carbohydrate delivers a broad profile of amino acids, in addition to naturally possessing essential nutrients like thiamin, iron, phosphorus and potassium. Life’s Basics® Plant Protein stays true to nature, using only the most sophisticated, cutting-edge methods to extract its high-quality rice protein concentrate.*

• Organic Manitoba Harvest Hemp Protein - A balanced, complete source of vegan protein containing all 10 essential amino acids, hemp has achieved “whole body superfood” status for its far-reaching health-promoting properties. Hemp’s soluble fiber may help to promote healthy digestion, while its essential fatty acids have been shown to help support overall well-being.*

• Chia Powder - This exciting superfood was a staple for Incan, Mayan and Aztec cultures for it endurance-boosting and medicinal properties. Today, health-conscious masses have rediscovered chia’s power to support peak vitality! Chia’s soluble fiber absorbs more than 12 times its weight in water, which may help to promote a feeling of fullness, prolong hydration, and enhance endurance – perfect for anyone on a healthy weight management and exercise regimen.*

To your health,

C

Breakthrough

Breakthroughs.  In my world, for the most part, they are quantitative.  For myself and my clients they are things such as pounds on the scale.  A new max of weight lifted.  A new distance completed.  Sometimes it is an arrival time (yes coming to a session on time) or an average pace accomplished.  As a trainer and coach I get to experience these almost daily, not for myself necessarily but for my clients!  It is one of the best parts of my job!

We hope and plan for at some point of having a breakthrough, whatever the measure or goal may be. However, breakthroughs are not always expected.  And they are not always recognized.  They can be small increments for which we measure our success.  When we put in the hard work day in and day out that it can become draining.  Why do we put ourselves through the grueling effort of a hard weight workout, swim session or run?  The effort is for the instance, the moment, when you realize you have accomplished something you may not have done before. It is the feeling of the hard work paying off!

Today was a personal breakthrough just for me!  We are back to running here, but hey, it keeps me going!  400's (1 time around the track for us non-runners) was the set.  Although I have run faster in my past, I have not run as fast as I did today for a long time.  My 400's and track work so far this season have not been that impressive to me.  It is early in the season but when you suffer around a track (me) it is nice to know you can try to be close to your best.  Today my average pace was about 6 seconds faster then what I have been holding in the past weeks!  yahhoo!! not my best- but better- and I'm proud of it!  The hard work does pay off.

Give yourself credit on those small breakthroughs.  It is making breakthroughs that keep you going and motivated.  They are the glimpses of accomplishing those bigger goals and barriers.  Keep moving and recognize your success!

To your health,

C

MORE FIRE

more fire.  the title of the book i am currently reading.  and the current reality of the santa barbara community.  all of my thoughts are going out to my friends and their families that have been evacuated and risk loosing their homes.  the picture of me on the top of the blog is the top of gilbraltor mt.  i literally had just finished running 6 miles straight up hill.  one of the most empowering running moments of my running life.  the greenery along the ridge behind me, the picture was a short 3 weeks ago, is currently blazin away right now.  check out the photos on latimes.com, it is a scary reality for the SB community.  i hope everyone is safe, including my firefighting friends that are up there saving homes.  if anyone needs to evacuate to solana beach- there is an extra room waiting for you!

more fire, how to run the kenyan way, written by toby tanser.  the book i am currently using to enhance my mental aspect towards running.  i am a fish out of water running.  i have been called a mermaid, dolphin and other things that would associate with being fast in the water.  never once have i been compared to a gazelle, cheetah or anything that runs fast or remotely runs fast for that matter.  so i am doing my homework.  i want to be a little faster at running, but most importantly i want it to be more enjoyable. 

 i figure kenyan's do it right so ill see what they do. well, let's just say, im not going to be running like a kenyan any time soon.  this book is so inspiring because it is filled with pages upon pages of the types of training these elite athletes do.  they run 3 times a day, run from township to township, practice technique and eat pretty much like birds.  even though in actual practice i may not run 3 times a day, there is so much more to the book.  many elite athletes and coaches are interviewed and quoted.  so you can be guessing you will see more in the future from this book as i finish reading and re-reading it.

"believe you can do it."  main lesson learned thus far. if you cannot believe it, you are limiting your full potential to ever attain it.  i learned early on as an athlete how important it is to set goals.  real goals.  ones you write down.  that you may or may not share with people. ones that are short term and ones that are long term.  if you have those goals you must believe they are attainable, even if they seem near impossible. "aim high, and then higher."  i still have saved a piece of paper from high school, 16 years old, that i wrote my goals down for swimming.  i shared these with my club coach at the time.  you would assume at first that goals, for swim or run, would be in terms of actual time.  while some were, most were not for me.  long term goals: to be team captain of a ncaa division I swim program.  i was 16!  still 2 years off from even going to college.  what happened, i was team captain 2 years of my 4 at ucsb.  goal was far off, but not un attainable.  for some reason at 27 i am relearning these lessons and trying to apply them to more then just running.

go ahead, write them down, commit and set some goals.  "believe you can do it," only then, will you reach your full potential as an athlete.

to your health,

C