Ask A Nutritionist – Are smoothies nutritious? July/Aug
July 5, 2018Ask A Nutritionist: Probiotics
September 10, 2018
Robin came to HEAL after her first IM as she didn’t have the race she was hoping for and wanted some nutrition help for the next one. I helped Robin identify the areas for improvement and over the season we developed a plan to get her to the finish line meeting her goals and the result 30 mins faster than the previous race and no GI problems! Congratulation on your awesome race Robin!
“Last year was my first Ironman and I was a little unhappy with my results. I had GI issues and I really faded on the run. I believe it was because of my poor nutrition plan. So this year when I decided to tackle my second one I knew I needed some nutrition help!
Tara and I went over my nutrition plan from last year and figured out what went well and where we needed to improve. I practised my plan on all my long rides and runs. I was training my stomach as well as my body!
So when it came to race day, I was ready. I was eating/drinking regularly throughout the bike and felt great. It was probably one of the most evenest rides I’ve ever done. I knocked 14 minutes off my time!
When I hopped off the bike and started the run, I had to slow myself down. I still had lots of energy. Last year this is really when my nutrition plan went off the rails!! Because of my issues swallowing gels/blocks last year Tara created a kind of plan “a” and plan “b.” So I started plan “a” for about the first third of the run and I was still running really well, but then I started having issues finishing gels. I didn’t panic. I knew I had a plan b!
So went nutrition plan b where I focused a bit more getting in liquids rather than solid foods/gels and kept running. No problem.
Last year there was a lot of walking during the marathon. This year there was absolutely none! Yes, I got slower, but I still had enough energy to finish running that marathon! I ended up with a marathon that was 15 minutes faster! Thank you Tara for helping me with my nutrition over the last year. I’ve learned a lot. Your plan for the Ironman was just what I needed and it worked so very well!
Robin Greenwood, Toronto
