Friday, May 7, 2010

Time to Experiment!


Something that is still ambiguous to me is the whole idea of "race day nutrition." Since the beginning of this process people have been casually talking about electrolytes, gels, gu, etc. but somehow always generalizing and leaving out specifics. Well the reason for this is because everyone is different. What one person swears by, will make another hug a port-a-potty on race day. So to a certain extent, you are on your own to figure out what your body needs and the best way to give that to it. Inner thoughts: "Great, now on top of everything else I need to become a nutritionist!"

I've been reading as many articles and product reviews as I can find to see what works for others. One of my best resources has been quizzing the vets in our program for what worked for them. Since I'm not really interested in crazy chemical mixes and have heard absolutely nothing appetizing about gu or any kind of those liquid shots, I'm going to try everything else first and hopefully find something that works.

Here is the list I'm starting with:
Drinks - Accelerade (for before & during the race) & Endurox (recovery)
Bars - Clif Bar, Luna Bars (during) and Clif Builder (recovery)
Gels - Clif Shot Bloks, Jelly Belly Sport Beans, Luna Moons

So today at lunch I went out and purchased a couple of each: a new version of the phrase "a bag of tricks!" My plan (not very scientific) is to see which one's I don't mind consuming and/or if any make me ill. Since an Olympic Tri isn't insanely long (time wise) and my goals are conservative (finishing!), I'm not overly focused on which one can help shave off some time or give me the most bang. I'm just looking for some supplements that are easy on my body and will help me finish with as minimal harm and deficit as possible.

Tomorrow's Full Brick offers a great opportunity for the first test. So I'm going home, making sure to prepare a simple healthy dinner, setting up an easy breakfast, and without looking stick my hand in my shopping bag and pull out the lucky first contestant. Wish me luck!

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