Podcast - Lonestar 70.3 Review

Click here to listen!

What a great race! Check out the show as we discuss how the event went down, tips on how to race long distance, and even some triathlon news.

I hit a new PR of 5:29 and met a bunch of great people.  I can't wait for next year!

Outro music is from Metal Shakespeare Co. Check them out here.

Click here to listen!

Listening to Your Body

It's like learning a whole new language.  You shouldn't expect to know what, "Glark! Glark!" means.  But if your body says it and then kicks you in the balls, you'll know next time you hear, "Glark! Glark!", you better cover your nuts.

On Test - Best of the Week - Zoot Arm Coolers

I tried out a bunch of new things for Lonestar 70.3, and the Zoot Arm Coolers ($30) were the most interesting.

These things WORK.  You can read from this blog that I have an affinity for arm sleeves, so I just had to try these out.  The Moeben and Primal tattoo print ones I have would work OK, but just taking these out of the box, I realized the Zoots are playing a whole different game.  Here's the list of why these rock:

• Super light and wicking.  When things got hot during the run, I poured water on them and WOW, immediate and dramatic cooling effect.
• UV protection.  Slows down fatigue from Sun exposure.
• Absolutely amazing fit.  These babies went from up high on the arms all the way to the wrist.  No coming up short here.  Heck yeah!

I came out of the water and had them already rolled into two donuts in my helmet.  I put them on over my wrists and headed out on the bike.  As I biked, I worked them up my arms and got them into place.  

The run got hot, with full Sun in the Texas mid-day.  Of course the sweat wicking cooled me a bunch, but getting them intentionally wet at aid stations was amazing.  I am 100% confident that I will use them in every race and long training day possible from now until something better comes along.  I truly cannot endorse them enough.

They are simple, cheap, extremely effective, and look cool.  No negatives, all positives.  

On Test - Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Sun Screen

Alita, @TexasDevin's wife, was kind enough to give me sunscreen on race day that was far superior to anything I've used before.  I finished the race with just a few red spots where it had rubbed off, which is typical of all sunscreens.

Triathletes need to take Sun protection extremely seriously.  We spend far too much time in the Sun and skin cancer is probably going to take us out before a car ever does.  The damage adds up and everybody should have a conversation with a dermatologist for a good scare.

As a former lifeguard and general idiot, I've spent way too much time in the Sun.  I go to great lengths to avoid it now, training early and late in the day and indoors as much as possible.  I also keep on top of sunscreen developments and try to use what is best.

You will notice the bottle above has broad-spectrum Helioplex in it.  You want something like that.  There is two kinds of rays that burn: UVA and UVB, and most sunscreens don't protect against both and don't qualify as "broad spectrum".

This stuff went on easily, rubbed in without a mess, and has a crazy-high SPF.  Good stuff for working out or racing in the Sun.

You can search Consumer Reports for their tests on sunscreens in the past few years.  They proved that not all of them are created equally and the UVA/UVB issue is very real.  Do your research and get the best for your skin; you'll be wearing it for the rest of your life.  How long that is depends on you.

On Test - Vegan Diet

Lonestar 70.3 was my first triathlon after going vegan in January of 2010.  I could tell by my training that it was going to pay off in a huge way, and it did.  I bested my previous results by at least an hour and felt great after finishing.

Above is a photo of my pre-race dinner.  It's actually similar to most of my meals since I started.  Veganism means you're staying away from meat and animal related by-products, so no eggs or cheese either.  

It isn't that hard of a diet to stick with.  What seems to be harder is choosing the right kinds of vegan foods.  If I eat bread, I put on weight fast.  If I steer clear of it, I lose weight fast.  If I eat lots of fresh fruits and veggies, I get lean and have tons of energy.

Eating vegan taught me how to eat more raw fruits and veggies, and that's where the real secret is at.  They are packed with vital nutrition and helped me recover tremendously faster and get back out training day after day.  

The biggest inspiration to keep me on track with eating right was Rich Roll.  He found a lot of energy after going "Plant Strong" and has done quite well racing Ultramans.   Make sure you check him out as he attempts five Ironmans in five days in Hawaii on May 5th.  

The true test of gear or a method is if you return to it after the test period is over.  I am sticking with veganism for the foreseeable future.  It works for me and I definitely have noticed many health benefits.

I want to be very clear on one thing: Just avoiding meat does not equal a healthy diet.  You could drink colas and stuff your face with chips all day long and still be vegan.  And meat itself is not inherently bad.  The truth is that most of us are eating processed food that is hugely lacking in real nutrition.  That missing nutrition can be found incredibly easily in raw fruits and veggies.  Go get yourself some and enjoy the benefits!

Tomorrow's post will cover some new sunscreen and the day after that, we'll cover the most interesting racing tech I've used in a long time.  Stay tuned!