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Sorry Jim, but what you do is very weird and different, but it really works.  As you all know, last week I was in tough shape with my back.  I went to Jim Lynch, from Back in Motion in Northboro, last Wed and again today.  I am like a new person.  The difference between what Jim does and what other Chiropractor’s do is that he uses the activator technique Vs adjustment of the spine by cracking like motions.

He is a kinesiologist (sp?) and trained chiropractor that fully believes that our pains are in response to something being out of place.  He uses this gizmo thing (after he finds the locations of your alignment issues- which is a treat all unto itself- don’t ask, you HAVE to experience it) to push back the one little area that is out of place.

If you go to his office for an initial exam, I’m sure you will say what I did/do everytime I go “this can’t possible work- and wow, this is weird”.  But, here I am good as new and ready to take on the world again…until my next set-back

I’m sure Jim will respond to this with LOTS to say (LOL), but, if you have an ailment that you can’t get feeling right, it’s worth a shot!

Yes, one has to remember that everyBODY is different. But, one also has to remember that every race is different.

Race distance is key for nutrition.  I know for myself if I am racing in a sprint distance triathlon, I can not take in any more than one bottle of sports drink and the rest has to be water.  I can not do any gels, blocks, solids, or anything.  I would risk to say that most people, when doing sprints, feel similarly.  They may take one gel instead of, or in addition to a sports drink, depending on how long the sprint is and how long they think they will take to complete it, but that’s it.  The reason for this is because our heart rates are maxed out for as long as the race takes us to do in a sprint distance triathlon.  This max heart rate make it impossible to digest food or move nutrition from the stomach.  Why, you ask?  Because all of the blood that would have been used to digest what you are eating is diverted to the heart and brain to keep up with the high intensity of exercise you are doing.

In Olympic distance triathlons, I have to take in a little more nutrition, like maybe adding a gel or 1/2 a cliff bar on the bike to a bottle of sports drink, but that’s it.   ALthough not as high as in a sprint distance race, my HR stays pretty high (especially when I get to the run) so I still need to be careful.  However, I’ve also run in to the other situation where I wasn’t hydrated enough when I got to the run in an olympic distance tri and watch out those cramps are a killer!  This also happened to me in my first 1/2 marathon.  As Bonnie, Charlie and Beth can attest, I was throwing up all afternoon because I ran too hard with not enough fluids.  Now THAT was fun

Races are one thing, but we need to remember our nutrition for training too.  For example I am riding the Spin for Hope tomorrow.  Jason and I felt it would be a great time for me to get used to drinking one bottle of sports drink/hour.  This is NOT easy for me to do.  1. because I won’t be that thirsty in the first hour; 2. because I’m not running afterwards, so I won’t feel I NEED all of this nutrition; and 3. the calories (I know, I know)….  But, I’m going to do it because 1.  I’m doing an IM this year and the little mistakes you make in your nutrition in shorter races (even 1/2 irons) magnify in the IM so I need to figure out what will work for me in training; 2.   I will feel better after the run, and for my next workout.  So, watch me drink away on Sunday morning!!!

Nutrition is a tough one when it comes to endurance athletes.   Or for that matter, non-endurance athletes as witnessed by the billions of $$ spent per year on the diet industry.  Not to mention the “getting fit” reality shows we seem to be obsessed with.

Every book I read, or seminar I attend, the common theme is, EveryBODY is different.   There is no one-size-fits-all.  Nutrition happens to be a passion of mine to read about and keep learning about because I have one of those obsessive personalities.  There are so many variables to doing this right with triathlon, I want to keep trying.

I was so excited  when I finished my 1/2 Iron last year and felt that I had done my nutrition PERFECT for ME.  I did not have one cramp on the run, yet had enough energy to finish it strong.  The other thing one has to remember with nutrition is that every race is different..

Danskin® Women’s Triathlon Series (DWTS) FlierDanskin® Women’s Triathlon Series (DWTS) Flier

As you know, I’ll be co-coaching the MetroWest DWTS training with Marsha Whitman. Attached is the flier for the training. The kickoff will be held on 5/31st at the Westboro Tennis and Swim Club. Registration is now open at www.heartzones.com. Just click on the training links, or search by state. There is an early bird special of $279 for the 8-week program. There will be two levels of training depending on experience. It’s a great price and you get to meet lots of great people to train with. This all culminates in racing at the Webster Danskin race on July 27th (registration for the race is at www.firm-racing.com).

I thought this was interesting.  Any thoughts? Comments?

Dr. Gabe Mirkin’s Fitness and Health E-Zine

Muscle Fatigue May Be Caused by Calcium Loss

February 24, 2008

New research from Columbia University in New York shows that muscle fatigue during and after exercise may be caused by loss of calcium from muscle cells and that drugs that block the release of calcium from muscle cells may prolong endurance (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, February 11, 2008).

When you exercise, your cells use food to generate electricity that causes nerves to send messages and muscles to contract. The energy from food generates electricity by driving minerals inside and outside of the cells, creating an imbalance of the minerals between the outside and inside of cells that causes electrons (electricity) to flow. A major source of this flow of electrons is from muscle cells pushing calcium outside their cell walls. This paper shows that muscles lose calcium continuously during exercise, and eventually do not have enough calcium to continue pumping calcium outside of cells, and therefore cannot generate as much electricity. This causes the muscles to weaken, hurt, lose coordination and feel tired.

The authors timed mice exercising to the point of exhaustion. Then they gave the mice an experimental drug that blocks the loss of calcium from muscle cells, and they were able to exercise longer. The researchers demonstrated the same process of calcium loss in the muscles of trained cyclists. However, they have not taken the next step of testing the drug to see if it improved endurance, because the drug has not been approved for use in humans.

I am co-coaching the Danskin Triathlon Series MetroWest Boston team with Marsha Whitman this summer.  It starts on May 31st with a kickoff at the Westboro Tennis and Swim club, and goes for 8 weeks through the Danskin Webster, Ma race on July 27th.  There will be two levels to the program. Level 1 for beginners and Level 2 for people wanting to go to that next level.   This program is how I got started in triathlon!  6 summers ago Ellen Riley told me I should do it even though I didn’t own a bike, hadn’t swam in 20 years and couldn’t run more than 1 or 2 miles.  As they say, the rest is history.

Registration is now open if you’re interested in the program at www.heartzones.com.  we are coaching the Boston MetroWest team.  There is another team out of Braintree, if that is more convenient for you.

If you’ve never been to a Danskin race, they are well worth attending.  It is so much fun to see women of all shapes and sizes cross the finish line.  I literally get tears in my eyes.

Not to mention, I am still friends with people I met at my first race doing this Danskin training!  Right Bonnie, Andrea and Amy !!

OK, I HAVE to ask.  Do you think ACL injuries can be due to heredity biomechanical issues?  My son just fell skiing and tore his ACL, MCL and Miniscus all at once.  I feel so badly for him.  But, he is the perfect example of a great attitude.  With his skiiing season over, he is just trying to move forward, go to PT and get ready for his surgery in June, once school is out.

As most of you know, I tore my ACL twice on my left knee and really am not looking forward to his recovery- I know how hard and long it is.  The only saving grace is that these days (my surgery was 15 years ago) the surgery and recovery isn’t supposed to be AS difficult, but still I’m sure it’s going to be painful.

Thanks to Eric and Amy at South County PT for getting him right in there and taking good care of him pre-op.  I’m sure they’ll be just as great post op.

But, I digress.  Do you think mechanical alignment has anything to do with this injury?  If you know me, and you know my son, our visual mechanical alignment is completely different.

I don’t know, just a thought………………… but wish him luck on June 17th

If you don’t know, I’m doing the 3 hour spin for hope on Sunday March 2nd at the Westboro Tennis and Swim Club, to raise money for cancer research.  Come join me for all 3 hours, or, you can form a team.  It should be a lot of fun and very rewarding.   I think I’ll practice some race nutrition too on this ride.  Jason, I was going to ask you what you wanted me to try first for this 3 hour adventure.

If you don’t want to ride, but want to sponsor me, feel free to visit the website for this event at  http://community.acsevents.org/site/TR?fr_id=3740&pg=entry and enter my name.

If you don’t want to donate, no problem, just wish us all a great workout!

On Saturday, I attended the 1st annual N.E. Triathlon Summit in Salem Mass put on by B&S Fitness out of Salem State College.  This was a one day event with presentations on Tri 101, stregnth training, open water swimming, run methods, bike methods, injury prevention, and nutrition.  The key note, held at the end of the day, was by Karen Smeyers.

For me, the highlights of the summit were the nutritionist and the talk  by Karen.  If you ever think you can’t finish a race or even a training swim, bike or run, read about what Karen has overcome and your “issue of the day” will become very trivial!  I plan to use this strategy a lot this summer

The nutritionist,  Jenna Bell-Wilson, was phenomenal.  She felt that she wanted to do an IM so she could fully understand what an IM athlete goes through.  In addition to being very well educated (she even has a PHD), she was very funny and knew exactly what concerns we would have and addressed them all with her discussion.  Being a neurotic when it comes to nutrition (I know, I’m shocking you with this statement), I found her information very helpful.  She dispelled a lot of the myths Triathletes often “swear” by but her main message was “everyone is different” and “practice in training what you are going to do in the race.  You don’t want to find out during the race that the nutrition bar you had planned on eating melts when it is too hot and you can’t really eat it on the bike”.  Additionally, she has quite a sense of humor.   She told a funny story about how she was on her bike and rather than eat while she was riding, she pulled over and ate her PB sandwich on the side of the road.  She said, “I don’t know why I did that, but I felt like it, so I did”.   There were some slides that will be very helpful to me on fluid intake, carb loading, etc.. .that I will use for my own training.  Call me if you want some more details.  I think we are going to be emailed the presos from the event.  If not, I have hard copies.  Also, she doesn’t train individuals on-line (she is from New Mexico) – or maybe she just didn’t want to train me but, she gave me the name of another nutritionist she recommends if anyone is interested.

One thing that REALLY got me going though, was the guy that spoke about running.   To summarize, he was advocating that triathletes run EVERY day!   I won’t get on my soap box here, but how many people do you know that could run EVERY day (even if for 10-20min on the short side) and fit in all other aspects of training for a triathlon and still have a life?  Not to mention the very real issue of injuries occurring from running every day.  Enough said, but my comments back got the room discussing the issue.  The problem is, I bet 2/3 of the people in the room that day will try to do this.  UGH…………………………..

Another unexpected surprise and highlight of the day was seeing Duffy and his new wife, Maggie.  If you don’t know, I met Duffy and Chris at IM FL this year while we were all there to volunteer at the race.  We all became fast friends and we all live in Massachusetts so we will become training partners too (although I am quite sure that Duffy and Chris are MUCH faster than me- but oh well- how fast can they really do those century rides (he he he – no, this is NOT a challenge)).  Anyways, Duffy decided to drop quite a bit of his muscle mass and has trimmed down quite a bit (Chris, you won’t recognize him) to maximize his IM training and racing.  I’m sure this will bode very well for him.  Good to see you guys.

That’s it for now.  PLEASE BLOG WITH ME

As Valentines Day is approaching and I’m feeling kind of thankful, I thought I would take a moment to talk about the “team” aspect of training.  As with anything else, when you are trying to accomplish a goal, it helps to have a support system in place.  My support system consists of many people, but specifically I am surrounding myself with people that care about my goal and have the expertise and desire to help me to succeed.  With my success, they feel they have succeeded.  What more could one ask for?  In training for a long distance triathlon, a lot CAN go wrong, and often does.  The older I get, unfortunately, the more this is a reality.  The good news is, when you have a team to help you, you can nip minor issues in the bud before they become larger issues-or worse- show stoppers.

So, who is on Team Stokes?

First and foremost my family.  Without the support of my husband and children, I would not be able to accomplish my goal to be an Ironman this year.

Secondly, my friends.  I have to say as most of you know, I CAN be a little obsessive sometimes–OK, a lot and often.  You guys keep me grounded.  Thank you for putting up with me and being supportive.  I can imagine this year will be trying for you too!

My coach, Jason Gootman of Tri-Hard coaching.  I am often asked, you are a coach, why do you need a coach?  My answer to this is, professional athletes have coaches.  Enough said.  In any event, having patience is definitely a forte of Jason.  I often think I must be driving him crazy with my schedule change, lack of desire to take days off, and nutrition headaches.  Sorry Jason, but thank you!

My Physical Therapist Eric Cardin of South County PT.  I can’t tell you how many emails and “drop by” conversations we have had. He is always there to help me and has great advice when something isn’t quite right.

My massage therapist Jessica Reyes.  Jessica is amazing and really helps me to stay healthy, not to mention relaxed (well, as much as I can relax).  Nothing is better than a weekly massage to keep the circulation flowing and to workout tired muscles.

So what, you say.  Why is Diane blabbing about this?  I’m just saying……….maybe YOU need a team too