Triathlon treats

Today was the big day...it finally arrived! 3 months of focused training in the pool, gym, trails and the saddle all came together for an amazing day of fun, fitness and feasting!

Food was extremely integral to the success and subsequent enjoyment of the day. Poor pre-race and during race nutrition can make an event like this hellish and torturous.

My day started with an early rise at 6am in order to eat a large-ish breakfast early enough before the race start time of approx 9am. I went with the oatmeal cooked on the stove with almond milk and I added a chopped banana and some maple syrup for good measure. I also drank some Emergen-C dissolved in water (vitamin supplement) and a cup of green tea with some honey for the caffeine. After that I got dressed and did a final check of all my gear before taking my bike out for a quick spin around the block to check that the tyres hadn't fallen off or the brakes detached spontaneously overnight. They had not.
I then loaded up my bike on the rack and called ahead to MJ to tell her I was en-route to pick her up and would be there at 7:40am. I took with me some gels and some chocolate to snack on just before the race started.
Ms MJ was almost ready when I arrived but had not yet eaten and was debating what to eat pre-race. She opted for low fiber, high carb white bread rolls with almond butter. Good choice!
We headed off to the race to set up our transition zones and get ready. The nerves started to set in when I was changing into my swim gear and they were then calling our heat to start in the pool. Am I ready? Did I train enough? Did I eat enough/too much? Will I ever get out of the pool? I think the caffeine was hitting at this point.
The race went great, the swim was slow as expected but it was soon over and on to the bike portion. I started to feel hungry in lap 1 of 4 which was worrying but I had a gel mixed with water so that helped and I was focused and spurred on by my team of supporters at each turn. The hunger subsided as I headed into the transition zone for T2. I quickly took off my helmet and gloves and downed half a sticky, sickly sweet gel pack. Just enough to get me to the end of the race. It worked. The first 1k was uphill and hard but after that I found my pace and was high-fiving and woo-hooing all the way to the finish line where, along with my loyal supporters, an array of oranges, bananas and bagels awaited my empty stomach and weary body.

I felt really good about my race day preparations that stretched back to two days prior when I started my rest, hydration and balanced eating. I had good energy and finished strong. It could not have gone better....the saying is true "luck favours the prepared".

So now for the good stuff...post race re-fuelling!
After watching my co-competitors finish and taking an array of victory photos, we got in line for a free massage which was amazing. Jen Turner from Moveo clinic spent a good 20 minutes un-tightening my upper traps and lower back. I didn't know how tight they were until she got to work on me with her magic hands. Afterwards I felt like I hadn't even done any exercise but my stomach was telling a different story and needed more than fruit and bagels.

We got changed and went to The Raven pub in Deep Cove. Always good food and hearty portions. And Beer.

Yam fries were a given but what to have with them? I opted for a sandwich which jumped off the page at me: chicken breast fillet, bacon, avocado, salad and salsa on sourdough. That's exactly what I need! I ordered it without mayo but with a beer to start. Post race celebrations, debriefing and minute by minute accounts ensued as we waited patiently for our well deserved food. The sandwich was a perfect accompaniment to the Yam fries and the sourdough was doorstep style...they must have know what we had been doing, either that or we looked in need of a good feeding.

I thought I would not need to eat anything else for the rest of the day but lo and behold hunger struck around 5:30 so I polished off the final leftovers of the mushroom ragu and tucked into a box of chocolate cookies with Ms K who popped over as she was in the area. Tomorrow I will have to get back on track with reducing my wheat content or I'll feel groggy but today was worth it. Nothing better than a post race ice cold beer with friends.

I'm already thinking about my next tri, there is one in 2 months time so I can just piggyback off my current training and hopefully improve my swim time, which leaves a lot to be desired.

Pre-race pig out

Tomorrow I am competing in the North shore Spring Triathlon. Therefore eating today had a specific purpose...fuel me through a good, fast race. For this to happen I must not eat any of my allergens (wheat, dairy, eggs, sulphites) and also get a good balance of protein, carbs and fat. Off the menu was anything too rich, too salty or too processed. I also needed to reduce fiber intake and anyone who has done any kind of race before will know why!

Breakfast
Cornflakes and Rice Milk
I don't usually eat a lot of cereal, not for any particular reason, but I had this in my cupboard and I am currently on a quest to eat through some staples to make room for some new foods. These particular cornflakes are Nature's Path and were good and crunchy. I prefer the french translation of their name though "Flocons de Mais". Sounds more glamorous. Due to my dairy intolerance I drink and use various types of milk substitutes, mainly rice milk or almond milk. I usually buy whichever one is on sale for 2 for $5 or whatever. I actually don't miss milk at all as the substitutes are really good and they are slightly sweet so perfect for cereal.

Lunch
Sushi

En route to pick up our race day packages, my co Tri-competitor and good friend MJ hit up Gen sushi on Lonsdale for one of our favourite meals. We both indulge in this treat at least once a week, sometimes together, sometimes separate, at various establishments around town. We are very spoiled to have so many to choose from here and they are all good and mostly very cheap. Today we decided to share some rolls so we could eat more of a variety. I do have my favourites but branched out today. We chose to start with tuna and salmon sashimi. This is raw fish and we ordered it with spicy sauce on the side. I love this dish as it is so clean and simple and of course, tastes delicious. Before moving to Canada I had really not eaten sushi and had zero desire to eat raw fish but just try and stop me now, I'm "hooked" haha!
The slices were pretty thick but we devoured them fast. MMmmmmMMMM. We chose 3 rolls to share. Avocado roll which is my absolute favourite roll. The avocado was particularly soft today, just the way I like it. We also chose Yam Roll which had tempura batter on it but it was such as small amount that I ate it anyway and hoped the allergy gods were being nice today. Usually a small amount does not cause a problem. Our final roll was one neither of us had tried before, mango roll. We enquired as to what was in it as you never really know from restaurant to restaurant what the choose to put in. This one contained mango, cucumber and imitation crab. It was a huge roll and was covered in a bright mango sauce and topped with salmon roe. It was really good and the mango sauce was very fresh and tasty and did not seem to have been sweetened at all..au naturel. We were both suitably stuffed and then headed off to pick up our race numbers for tomorrows race.


Dinner
Pan fried chicken breast with caramelised onions and cranberries
Served with sauteed zucchini and oven roasted herbed baby potatoes
Drizzled with honey garlic balsamic reduction

I've been waiting to try this recipe from Clean Eating for a while. I went to the store to get all the ingredients and got to work. The original recipe did not have any potatoes but I wanted to add some starch to boost my energy intake. I quartered the potatoes and mixed them with olive oil, dried thyme and rosemary and salt and pepper. Wrapped them in a foil package and baked in the oven for 45 mins.
While they were cooking I started on the onions which also take at least 30 mins to caramelise properly. I also put the balsamic drizzle on to reduce down. This was also an addition to the original recipe. It's really simple and goes well with fish, chicken and also as a salad dressing when cooled.

Balsamic Drizzle
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2-3 tbsp honey
1 clove garlic, crushed
3 tbsp olive oil

put all ingredients in a small, heavy based pan and whisk together. Bring to the boil and then reduce heat and simmer 15-20 mins until it thickens.

Once the onions were caramelized, I added some organic dried cranberries. These are expensive but the sulphite level in non-organic dried fruit is so high that I get a reaction from it. I then pan fried the chicken and the zucchini and then assembled everything on the plate. It looked good but was a quite labour intensive meal. The balsamic reduction and onions both need regular stirring and then I had to keep and eye on the chicken to make sure it didn't burn. But, it was so yummy and all the flavours went well together. The sweetness of the balsamic reduction off set the tartness of the cranberries and complimented the onions which weren't quite as caramelised as I would like but I got impatient waiting and caved. As I stood over the stove stirring and sauteeing, my thoughts went to tomorrows race and I started to think about how it will all be over by this time tomorrow. I'm sure I will be smiling whatever happens in the race.

Chocolate
Today's chocolate of choice is Lindt Intense Mint. It's a dark chocolate and I put it in the fridge as usual. I prefer the texture change and I tend to eat less when it's chilled. So far I have eaten 2 squares but I'm looking longingly at the fridge door knowing what is just behind it is beckoning to my taste buds and can only add to my race day energy, right?

My final food thoughts of the day revolve around breakfast tomorrow. I need to eat a good breakfast but not too much that I will be too full, especially important seeing as the swim is first up. I will leave home at 7:30 am but the race does not start til 9:10am. I'm leaning towards oatmeal with honey and banana...carbs all the way, baby!