Preparation and nutrition key to Abu Dhabi Triathlon success

Rachel Omolewu 10:48 06/02/2014
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  • Time to deliver: Triathletes compete in last year’s event.

    Thousands of triathletes will flock to the capital on March 15 for the Abu Dhabi International Triathlon (ADIT). Now in its 5th year, the race has grown in popularity for world class, amateur, and age group athletes. Participants can choose to enter in long, short, or sprint distance racing routes; on a course designed to showcase the beauty of Abu Dhabi.

    Training for triathlon requires careful planning and nutrition in order to achieve optimal performance in all three legs. Here Trace Rogers, certified triathlete coach and founder of SuperTri Dubai Triathlete Club offers her training tips and sports nutrition recommendations to help you achieve your race goals.

    Rogers will host a two-day training camp on February 20-22 for those athletes planning to race ADIT. Her goal is to give athletes tools to optimize their final key training sessions.

    The camp will take place at the lovely Cove Rotana Resort in Ras Al-Kaimah and will include training sessions for all three legs of the race. It will be an opportunity for athletes to participate in quality training coupled with luxurious recovery time with their loved ones and friends.

    Here Rogers provides us with a training regime to maximize the last weeks before a triathlon. Incorporate these training boxes over the last four weeks of training:

    Overdistance: These workouts are performed at low intensity—slow and comfortable. An athlete could do up 25% more of the distance than they will cover on race day. This applies to the swim and the bike leg as the body recovers faster in these two disciplines when compared to the run.

    In the run, the Sprint and Short course athletes could do up to 25% more of the distance (depending on the individual’s personal goals and athletic abilities). Long course athletes would either train up to 75% of the distance to be run in the race Triathlon preparation & nutrition the key to success in Abu DhAbi’s big race or cover the distance two weeks or more before the race.

    Interval training: This is training at higher intensity for short periods of time with sufficient recovery to allow for repeats. This should be performed in all three disciplines as it will develop the athlete’s ability to move faster.

    Brick sessions: This is doing a back to back session of two or more of the disciplines. (e.g. Swim followed by a bike session, bike ses-sion followed by a run.)

    Recovery: Recovery is key. Make sure that you allow for sufficient recovery between workouts to prevent overtraining. It would therefore be unadvisable to do two high intensity sessions in one day. More experienced athletes should include active recovery (shorter easy sessions) in their training plans.

    Taper: The last two weeks should be used to wind down the training to allow sufficient rest and give the body enough time to build up energy stores for the race. The training volumes should be halved and then halved again in these two weeks. The workout focus should be short with plenty of recovery between training sessions and also between the last session and the race itself.

    What are the best foods to eat during training?

    Aim to eat natural foods and minimize your intake of processed foods. Eat a balanced diet with nutrition dense carbohydrates (fruits, whole grains) and proteins. Quinoa, nuts, nut butter, and beans are good sources for protein in addition to fish and meat. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. There are ten essential amino acids the body needs to function properly; meat, eggs and dairy are the best sources for these.

    For vegetarians different sources of protein such as beans and seeds should be combined together, to receive the benefits of the accompanying amino acids. Soy is also a great alternative for vegetarians.Be sure to incorporate mono- and polyunsaturated fats such as walnuts, almonds, avocados, and olive oil. Fats provide adequate sources of energy for long training days.

    What foods/drinks should athletes eat the night before the race? The morning of?

    The night before should be a balanced meal like any other day of the week. A big mistake (based on antiquated beliefs that we need to “carboload”) athletes make is to overeat the night before.

    This can make it difficult to sleep and have you arrive feeling “heavy” at the start of the race. Drink plenty of water leading up to the race to stay well hydrated but do not overdo it.

    Listen to your body – when you are thirsty drink, when you are hungry eat. Take the weather into consideration – hot means more water, less food whereas in colder weather you will require less water, more food.

    Eat foods you are familiar with the night before and for breakfast on race day. Make sure you know what nutrition is available at the race and train accordingly. If the products supplied do not agree with you bring your own. Practice race day nutrition during your training and never try new foods on race day.

    What foods/drinks athletes should eat after the race for recovery?

    After the race celebrate, eat your favourite meal, anything you fancy but again, make sure you balance your carbohydrates, proteins, and fats to replace muscle glycogen stores burned during the race.

    Do you recommend any sports supplements?

    Sports supplements are something that should be discussed with a nutritionist or dietician well in advance.

    We wish all the best to athletes competing in the Abu Dhabi Triathlon race. Train hard, train smart, race optimal!

    For more information on the Abu Dhabi Triathlon, visit abudhabitriathlon.com.

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