Prehab with Chris Stirling

As triathletes we all love training, the longer and harder the session, the better. Triple workout days, bricks, max effort time trials and the list could go on. I certainly enjoy my hardest sessions the most and always look forward to pushing the boundaries in training.

But what about stretching, strength and conditioning, prehab/rehab and recovery?? Not so exciting?? Boring?? Struggle to find the time?? Me too! However…

The bottom line is that without it, all those hard sessions will not mean a thing if we become injured, struggle with niggles and fail to make the start line of our A races. Having experienced this in the past and looking at it in this way it seems a little less boring to me.

If my body is functioning correctly, moving freely, strong and balanced all those tough training sessions are so much more effective. There is no better feeling than standing on the start line with confidence in this. The more mobile you are the more power and speed you can generate efficiently. Interested?? Read on.

Here a few things I do and I have definatly found to be very effective. Any amount of time spent on this stuff is never wasted, make time for it. 10 minutes a day is better than none. Be consistent, get into a routine and visualise the benefits.

Stretching

After sessions I always spend 10-20mins stretching the main muscle groups I have been using. Keep it simple, I have 5 stretches I use for the lower body including the back and 5 for the upper body, they are easy to do anywhere and some even involve lying down. There are loads of stretches on YouTube, but here are a few I find really effective-

The Couch stretch

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JawPBvtf7Qs

4 Point ITB stretch

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0e8FPL787E

10-15secs is enough for maintenance, 30secs will improve flexibility.

The Foam Roller

For me this simple bit of kit has been a revelation. I now have 3 rollers, a golf, tennis, hurling ball and a mini rolling pin! The idea is MyoFascial release or unsticking and freeing up the fascia between the skin and muscle to increase and maintain mobility. Other benefits include increasing blood flow to the area, flushing out and promoting recovery. Best thing is it’s all done lying down, you can watch tv, talk to your partner and once perfected you can even drink a cup of tea. It can be a little uncomfortable to start with but should never hurt. Work on key muscle areas as with stretching.

Try -

Hard race? To promote recovery after a race, use a soft foam roller, lightly roll calf’s, hamstring, glutes, quads, lower and upper back. Keep the pressure very light, working towards the feet. 10-15 rolls per group is all that’s needed. This helps increase blood flow to the area, flushing out the toxins built up through racing.

Tight spot? If you have a tight spot (calves are often a culprit for me), Take the roller and start to lightly roll around the tight area, gradually increasing the pressure. Once warmed up, roll over the tight spot, gradually working deeper and increasing the pressure. When you have located the tight spot (you will feel it!), apply a constant downwards pressure. I sometimes find a little side to side movement over the area can be very effective at this point. Repeat the process a couple of times. Sometimes you will feel it instantly releasing, but the benefits keep going for a few hours after.

Check out this guy’s site, Kelly Starrat, a living legend, king of the foam roller and gold dust if you want to be more mobile, flexible and injury free

http://www.youtube.com/user/sanfranciscocrossfit

Since really deciding to invest more time on these two key areas, I have been niggle free, recovered quicker and am seeing and feeling the benefits of this in my training and racing. Remember that without it it’s probably only a matter of time till the next missed session, niggle or worse still injury. Make some time, become more mobile, faster, stronger and stand on that start line with full confidence! Train smart.

Swim Session with Dan Wilson

Zone3 athlete Dan Wilson has written us this fantastic swim session to help you take control of the production and removal of lactic acid from your body; A vital skill for any triathlete. 

This is a great session that works on producing and removing lactic acid from your body. Swimming the 50m’s hard and fast works on producing lactic acid, which you need to develop good speed, and then the 100m’s are done at a solid aerobic pace, teaching your body to remove lactic acid whilst maintaining good pace. It’s particularly relevant to triathlons where it’s vital to be able to get out hard and fast to gain clear water, but you also need to be able to remove that lactic and maintain good speed over the back end of the swim.

Warm up 1-2 km

8 x 50m fast on 60

5 x 100m @ 40 Beats Below Max HR, on 1:30 cycle

6 x 50m fast on 70

5 x 100m @ 40 Beats Below Max HR, on 1:30 cycle

4 x 50m fast on 80

5 x 100m @4 0 Beats Below Max HR, on 1:30 cycle

Warm down 1-2 km

Tip 1: Swimming in the open water in a wetsuit is a lifetime away from swimming in a pool. Try to get out into the open water as often as you can, to become familiar with the feel of the open water, and the subtleties of adapting to different conditions.

Tip 2: Try to get into the habit of holding a streamline and some underwater butterfly kicks off every wall. It’s not something that you’ll ever need in a race, but a 5km set presents 100 chances to get a good thoracic extension through your streamline, and good core workout with your kick. Every wall, every swim set, that adds up to a big workout by the end of the week!

Tip 3: A lot of triathletes get into the habit of reaching for the pull gear often and early in every set. It’s ok to throw the pull buoy in to give the legs a rest every now and again, but make sure the majority of your work is done without, so you don’t get into the habit of having a lazy core because you are used to having the pull buoy get your legs up!

Random Fact: I’m very easily addicted. Triathlon, peanut butter, guitars, green cordial, the Boston Celtics, coffee production/extraction/consumption, and most recently, sushi. It’s straight to 100% every time!

Favourite Quote: Normal is not something to aspire to, it’s something to get away from.

Check out Dan's blog to keep up with his progress throughout the season.

Fuel up with Matt Lawrence's healthy Veg Lasagne

Understandably training probably takes up a lot of your time these days. Too much time really. You can train as much and as hard as you like, but without the correct nutrition you aren't going to be getting the most out of your workouts.

After a hard session there is nothing worse than getting home only to be greeted by the knowledge that you now have to either (a) slave away preparing and cooking a healthy and, unless you can actually cook, probably dull and tasteless meal, Or (b) demolish that disgustingly unhealthy ready meal you've left at the bottom of the freezer, only to instantly regret the decision and question why you even bothered to train.

Luckily for you guys Zone3 athlete, and pro chef*, Matt Lawrence has it covered with his quick and easy veg lasagne recipe. It only takes 10 minutes to prepare and 45 to cook; leaving you plenty of time for a quick bike session whilst it's in the oven...

Veggie or not here is Matt's favourite food for time crunched athletes. This will feed 4-6 or you can always have some for lunch the next day. Lots of goodness and easy to prepare, you can use a variety of ingredients to suit your taste.

Ingredients (Feeds 4-6)

• 1 x courgette – Large
• 1 x pack of mushrooms
• 1 small bag fresh spinach
• 8 slices ham
• Dried lasagne sheets
• 2 x carton chopped tomatoes (flavours can really help here)
• Bag grated mozzarella cheese
• Tub half fat crème fraiche (300ml minimum)

Optional Extras

• Broccoli – cooked and added
• Lean Chicken Breast – cooked and added
• Kale
• Pasta sauce instead of carton tomatoes for quicker prep! 

Preparation

Start by pouring a small amount of chopped tomatoes into the cooking dish - enough to cover the bottom of the dish.

Cover the base with dried pasta sheets – slightly overlapping

Layer the sheets with more of the chopped tomatoes.

Chop your courgettes and mushrooms (if you have any other veggies have them prepped now too)

Add a layer of veggies on top of the chopped tomatoes (not all of them as you will need more for the next layers)

Lay the spinach on top.

If you are sticking to vegetarian then skip the addition of the ham. If adding ham the simply layer on top.

Add a tablespoon of crème fraiche to each quarter and spread around the surface trying to cover as much of the surface as you can. Use a spatula if needed.

Once spread add a small layer of mozzarella

That is your first layer. Next simply add pasta sheets as before along with tomatoes and build another layer as before. The dish will get full but don not panic. When you finish the second layer of veg add one more layer of pasta sheets and gently compress.

Last thing to do to complete is add the remaining tomatoes and big dollop of crème fraiche and mix - making sure to cover the entire top.

Finally add a layer of mozzarella and a grating of pepper to taste. Voila!

Cooking

Put it in the oven on about 180 degrees Celsius for 45 minutes. Top should be golden and bubbling when you remove. Serve with side salad and warm ciabatta bread!

Calories 213

Calories from Fat 85

Total Fat 9.5g - 15%

Saturated Fat 4.6g - 23%

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 46mg - 15%

Sodium 445mg - 19%

Potassium 249mg - 7%

Total Carbohydrates 17.7g - 6%

Dietary Fiber 1.5g - 6%

Sugars 3.1g

Protein 14.5g

*This may not be true.

Follow Matt on Twitter to keep up with his progress throughout the season.