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Females - all things tri
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Hi everyone,
I'm looking at writing a few posts on all things female and wanted to see if there's any interest in this forum on what female athletes would like to know more on from a professional athlete perspective?

Angela Naeth
http://www.angelanaeth.com
http://www.iracelikeagirl.com
Last edited by: tri3bullet: Dec 9, 15 5:41
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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Ladies? Anyone? I think this is a good chance to get great info from a pro who also has a physical therapy and health sciences background.
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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I didn't reply originally because I wasn't sure what you meant by "all things female." Like, balancing work and family? There are already a million tips for waking up early, meal planning, yadda yadda. Like, squashing the patriarchy with your amazing athleticism? I'd read that for sure. Like, this season's cute tri kits? I have no interest in that. Like, the science that goes into training? I could read that if it weren't too into the weeds.

Are you looking for ideas or just gauging interest?

http://mediocremultisport.blogspot.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [Midtown Miles] [ In reply to ]
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Basically opening up to anything someone would want to ask a Pro Female and gauging interest!

Angela Naeth
http://www.angelanaeth.com
http://www.iracelikeagirl.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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I think pro perspective on a lot of the post topics that come up in this forum would be helpful. I would love to know your thoughts on things women should do differently than men from a nutrition perspective, both pre and during race. What tips do you have for racing on days when your hormones are having none of it? When do we need female-specific equipment versus just using the guys' stuff in a different size? Which method works best for you for getting your hair out of the way? Thanks!
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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Hi Angela! Thanks so much for the offer here on ST. I would love to learn more about prehab and injury prevention and what things female pro triathletes do during their training week. Do you have specific routines and exercises that you feel help you stay healthy? Do you do more prehab in the winter/off season? What recovery devices do you swear by (i.e - compex, norma tec booties, etc). I also second the request of best hair removal methods (to make the 6 hour bike ride less uncomfortable those last couple hours).

I'm also always eager to learn about training volume and what your training schedule might look like. And what do you recommend for the female age grouper with a full time job? It's a huge general question with a million variables, but I always love the perspective from female pros.

Thanks again!

Joyce

Death is easy....peaceful. Life is harder.
Last edited by: Herding Cats: Dec 10, 15 13:30
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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Hi Angela! Thank you for coming by. This forum isn't quite as active, as you can tell.

If you do a quick skim of the subject lines in our forum you will see some good topics. Saddle comfort seems to be a regular discussion. Women specific bikes, yay or nay? Do you think there are race nutrition strategies unique to women? Good options for supportive clothing.

I also think run form is a good discussion. We aren't shaped the same way as the men are, are there injury prevention exercises you recommend?

Other topics have included how to balance training, home, and family. How to cultivate a supportive partner.

You won't find as much discussion on losing weight as you do on the main forum, thankfully, but I think everyone could use some advice on solid nutrition for training. Women typically typically need fewer calories then men but if you read the main forum they don't have a very healthy perspective on calorie intake. People are either "whales" or look like they are ill. (Not my words, that's what I read.)

You may not want to answer everything I mentioned above so feel free to choose whatever you think is interesting.

Those are a few ideas but I also just think answering questions as you feel comfortable is always appreciated.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Jen

"In order to keep a true perspective on one's importance, everyone should have a dog that worships him and a cat that will ignore him." - Dereke Bruce
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Re: Females - all things tri [Jelana] [ In reply to ]
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Jelana wrote:
I think pro perspective on a lot of the post topics that come up in this forum would be helpful. I would love to know your thoughts on things women should do differently than men from a nutrition perspective, both pre and during race. What tips do you have for racing on days when your hormones are having none of it? When do we need female-specific equipment versus just using the guys' stuff in a different size? Which method works best for you for getting your hair out of the way? Thanks!

I would like to hear about those things, especially the hormone aspect. My energy levels bottom out within 2 days either side the start of my period, and I would be interested in hearing how to deal with that.
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Re: Females - all things tri [happyscientist] [ In reply to ]
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+3 for how your feel your cycle impacts your racing. I feel like everyone says it has no impact on athletic performance but my n=1 experience is that it definitely does!

Also, I'd be interesting in hearing more about your in-race fueling plans. There's so much information about how the dudes approach it but not enough from the pro ladies
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks for offering to do this! I always like to hear how athletes went from newbie to amateur to pro (or from a background in one sport to triathlon). I feel like we don't hear about the female perspective as much in that regard.

I'd also like to hear about how female pro athletes time/plan/anticipate pregnancy and what their views are on post-pregnancy performance (ie can you really ever get back to where you were?). I understand this doesn't understand to all women but it must be at least discussed in pro circles? Or maybe not. In any case, I've always wondered about it.
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Re: Females - all things tri [kells] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks for all of this. I have some work to do now. I was going to post on the forum but may need more blog writings to really attack all of this. Please feel free to connect with me anytime if needed. I love helping out! Contact me on my website. Thanks!

Angela Naeth
http://www.angelanaeth.com
http://www.iracelikeagirl.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [happyscientist] [ In reply to ]
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Quote:
My energy levels bottom out within 2 days either side the start of my period

How different from mine! I have my absolute BEST training and racing the day before I start my period.
I kill it and feel like a million bucks.
Then after the race or the next day, I feel like crap because it's period day 1.
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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Welcome to the forum!
Your bio says "pre race meal: Red Bull and Applesauce".
Curious to know, after the gag reflex, how this combination works nutritionally (jk). Or is it just a 'comfort' thing?

Anne Barnes
ABBikefit, Ltd
FIST/SICI/FIST DOWN DEEP
X/Y Coordinator
abbikefit@gmail.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [determination] [ In reply to ]
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EXACTLY how it worked for me too.
if my period hit the day of a race, I felt numb and energy-less.

Anne Barnes
ABBikefit, Ltd
FIST/SICI/FIST DOWN DEEP
X/Y Coordinator
abbikefit@gmail.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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Coming back from injury!

clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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I am probably an anomaly, but I am more interested in hearing about pro life as a female pro, rather than advice to me as an age grouper. For ex., the main forum had (I think) two recent threads on being "committed" to the sport -- Andy Potts "isn't committed enough" to Kona or he would travel more to Europe, spend less family time, etc., and Chrissie Wellington wasn't "the greatest" because she retired to do other stuff with her life after only "a few" wins compared to say PNF. My guess is that Chrissie and Andy and most of you all respond with "who really cares what they say on ST; it's my life," but I suspect many of the female pros confront these issues, especially the family issues, and probably more than the men do. Hearing your stories, deliberations, concerns doesn't make me a better athlete, but it interests me and does make me feel more connected to those women pros, who tend to be lower profile than the men (maybe in part b/c you all do have other things in your life). I also like hearing about how hard it is (or not) to find a properly sized bike, comfortable saddle, narrow-heeled shoes, and other things that we all encounter, but with some perspective from someone who's probably had more opportunity to try it all.
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Re: Females - all things tri [Gee] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks everyone. I was curious if posting here on the forum about these issues may be better or actual blog writings for more info?

Angela Naeth
http://www.angelanaeth.com
http://www.iracelikeagirl.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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I'm more likely to read stuff on the forum then people's blogs.
The most interesting thing for me to see is training details - a week's worth of workouts and the times you do them (for instance I tend to do 2 sports a day, pretty much back to back, and I like seeing how other people structure their time). Also with workouts the details like pace, intervals, what the swim workout was, not just total distances or times

maybe she's born with it, maybe it's chlorine
If you're injured and need some sympathy, PM me and I'm very happy to write back.
disclaimer: PhD not MD
Last edited by: tigerchik: Dec 12, 15 15:17
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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I will eagerly follow the forum thread if you choose to answer here. I am interested in how you balance weight training with SBR. There is a lot of controversy on the main forum regarding strength training. As a woman what is your perspective and experience and how do you balance it with SBR workouts?
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Re: Females - all things tri [tri3bullet] [ In reply to ]
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tri3bullet wrote:
Thanks everyone. I was curious if posting here on the forum about these issues may be better or actual blog writings for more info?

By posting here, people could have follow-up questions.

clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [Jelana] [ In reply to ]
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Jelana wrote:
I think pro perspective on a lot of the post topics that come up in this forum would be helpful. I would love to know your thoughts on things women should do differently than men from a nutrition perspective, both pre and during race. What tips do you have for racing on days when your hormones are having none of it? When do we need female-specific equipment versus just using the guys' stuff in a different size? Which method works best for you for getting your hair out of the way? Thanks!

1. I don't believe there should be any difference on a nutrition perspective for men/women except the obvious - amount. The smaller you are the less you need.

2. Tips for race day when hormones go array: ... I've had this happen a few times and dealt with it the same way I would have if I didn't race. If I'm having cramps, I would start the race by taking some pain-releivers (small amount). I never had this happen during an ironman but if it did, I'd be prepared with some goodies in a small bag if needed after the bike and during the run.

3. Female-specific equipment: size of bike matters. I'm 5'5 and fit my current bike (Scott Plasma) at a size small. Going with a brand that fits you in size is key. The biggest equipment I find that is important is bike seat. I tried a ton of these and love my current one. Nothing feels more crappy than a bad bike fit/seat. And the obvious is clothing and chamois. Personally, I love the male chamois in a tri kit because I get too much chaffing down under with a narrower one of the females. For training, the chamois in my bike shorts work awesome.

4. Hair ties! :-) I use to have really short hair and bangs and hated the wild strands. A good old png tail and or braids work awesome.

Angela Naeth
http://www.angelanaeth.com
http://www.iracelikeagirl.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [flowersofmoss] [ In reply to ]
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flowersofmoss wrote:
+3 for how your feel your cycle impacts your racing. I feel like everyone says it has no impact on athletic performance but my n=1 experience is that it definitely does!

Also, I'd be interesting in hearing more about your in-race fueling plans. There's so much information about how the dudes approach it but not enough from the pro ladies

I used to have a lot of issue with my cycle. After doing a bunch of research, chatting with others, seeking out advice from doctors I decided to get an IUD. Never looked back.

Race fueling - I can definitely dive into this. My husband just wrote something about this and I posted it on my twitter account. My lead-up to the race is similar. I don't think there needs to be differences in the approach, just amount. I'll work on writing this out on a blog in the future (longer than a forum post!).

Angela Naeth
http://www.angelanaeth.com
http://www.iracelikeagirl.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [ABarnes] [ In reply to ]
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Haha, no gag reflex for me. I don't have it together.

Applesauce, banana and soem protein powder is what I have three hours before. I sip on sports drink and have a Redbull in that last hour leading up to the race. It's a perfect all around morning mix... sounds disgusting I know but seriously the best on the stomach for a race!

Angela Naeth
http://www.angelanaeth.com
http://www.iracelikeagirl.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [ironclm] [ In reply to ]
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This is definitely something I can relate to and go on about. After Kona this year, I had to lay low for quite some time because of a foot injury (didn't get to finish the race). It's a long process mentally, physically and emotionally.

I try to break the come back to injury in weekly increments. Luckily for me, I was headed right into my off season so that helped... a little.
Each week I look at what I can do and work with my coach on a daily/weekly basis for things I should focus on. For the first 4 weeks (yup!) I did literally nothing. I read a lot of books. Then we progressed with some swimming and seeing how my body felt with the increased activity. Etc.

The goal is to work weekly and see what if you can handle the slightest increase in training. It's a slow progression but to break it up in chunks is better for the mind mentally. I also worked on a lot of other aspects of myself as an athlete - mental, emotional and well, figured out why the injury happened in the first place.

If you have specific injury issues PM me. or other info you want, let me know!

Angela Naeth
http://www.angelanaeth.com
http://www.iracelikeagirl.com
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Re: Females - all things tri [Gee] [ In reply to ]
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What questions do you have specifically?

Angela Naeth
http://www.angelanaeth.com
http://www.iracelikeagirl.com
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