Thinking Ahead

Our new season starts on Tuesday so it's time to start thinking about your goals for the season.  How about competing in a postal or a meet?

Here are two upcoming events to consider:

2011 USMS 3000-yard and 6000-yard Postal National Championships - Individual or Relay Team.
Must be swum in its entirety on or between September 15 and November 15, 2011.

What's a Postal?  Swimmers swim a distance in any 25-yard or 25-meter pool during the sanctioned dates.  You record your time and submit the results electronically (formerly mailed thus 'Postal') to USMS so you can compare yourself to other swimming doing the same event.  Postals were originally developed so that swimmers in areas without nearby clubs and sanctioned meets could still compete.  

Sink or Swim Classic - November 6, 2011 - Vernon Hills, IL
$5 entry/event + $5 fee

Free - 400, 200, 100, 50
IM - 400, 200, 100
Breast - 200, 100, 50
Fly - 200, 100, 50
Back - 200, 100, 50
Mixed Male Relay - 200
Mixed Female Relay - 200

13 Days until our Season begins!


For more info on registering, click here

Please contact me if you have any questions: lyonsmasters@gmail.com

See you VERY Soon!

Coach Steve

Red Bull Trail Daze

Anyone have any interest in joining in on the fun?  Its a trail running race in Palos.  I did it last year and it was SPECTACULAR!  I've got a small crew already committed.  Don't miss the fun!

Red Bull Trail Daze - Dec 10th

Let me know if you sign up!

Trail Run

What:    Trail Running
Why:      Fun, Exercise, Team Building
Where:  See Below
When:   Saturday @ 8:15am
How Far:     Roughly 3 miles
Whats it like:    mostly "singletrack" with a lot of ups and downs



Email me if you are going to go, so I can have a rough head count.  There may be only 2 of us(Katy and I are going).  There may be 10 of us.



THIS IS NOT AN OFFICIAL MASTERS EVENT......just a fun activity among friends.  All are welcome.


Directions:

Willow Springs Road south to 
Archer Ave(right) to 95th st (soft left)
Take the first right turn into the woods.
Go straight all the way to the last parking lot on your right.
Get ready to run.
Cambr Palos Map

Official Sponsorship

I am excited to announce that the Lyons Masters Team has been officially sponsored by:


I will be sending out an email with specifics on pricing, etc... once Fall Registration is completed, but if any of you are looking to purchase one soon, please email me directly.

This is a great opportunity to get a new wetsuit, just in time for one of my new favorite activities; COLD OPEN WATER SWIMMING!  It's a lot more fun than you might think!  Dominik and I are getting ready......You should be too!

ITU World Championships

While a lot of us were competing in Big Shoulders over the weekend one of our Lyons Masters swimmers was competing in the ITU World Championships in Beijing.  Tom Kaptur finished 8th in the WORLD for his age group.

Tom, we are very proud of you!  Its an incredible acheivement!  We look forward to a race report in the near future.

For his race results, you can click here

Big Shoulders was a success!

I have to say, I couldn't be happier with how everyone did today!  Big Shoulders is not an event that most people would choose to do.  It's pretty difficult and can be quite scary, but you guys handled it very well!

Today really was a beautiful day for the swim! 

This is how my shoulders feel right now!
I think it speaks volumes to how hard all of you worked this season to prepare for it.  You should all be proud!  We also learned today that possibly the only thing that can stop Katy is hypothermia!  BTW, thanks to everyone for helping my lovely wife warm back up!

See you all on October 4th!  Pay attention to the bulliten board for some fun outdoor adventures!  All are welcome......if your tough enough!

Thanks again for all your hard work,
Coach Steve

A few last things

You are all champions in my book!

A couple quick things to mention:

Katy and I are going to be heading down around 6:00-6:30 and should get there between 6:30 and 7:00am.

Bob is hosting a post swim party starting around 3:00pm at his house. You can email me for directions if you need them.

Get hydrated today! Get a good night sleep tonight!

YOU ARE READY!

Good Luck,
Coach Steve

Big Shoulders Race Day Information

2011 BS Safety Plan Map

Fall Registration Reminder

Registration is now open for the Fall Season.  Please keep in mind that registration INCLUDES your membership to USMS for 2012. 

USMS forms will be made available soon.  You will need to fill them out and submit them to me at swim practice.

See you soon!

Register Here

Race Day Nutrition

I have been asked to talk about my thoughts on nutrition on the day of your event.  First off, I am no expert, not even close!  However, I have tried a bunch of different strategies and can tell you what I have found out that works for me.

The more I researched, the more I realized how hard it was to find a definitive answer on what you should be doing.  So this is how I think about things now, as simply put as possible, I break my training/racing into two categories:
  • less than 3 hours
  • more than 3 hours
For either "category" I focus on starting the event properly hydrated, which to me means starting the day before.  I consciously make sure I am consuming plenty of fluids and even start taking electrolyte supplements through out the day before.  That night, before I go to bed, I drink a pint glass of water with about 2TB of chia seeds in the glass.  Chia seeds are a pretty cool thing, you can learn more about them here.

For events lasting up to 3 hours, I have no set routine for my caloric needs.  I usually just use what ever I have laying around which typically is a few Gels, apples, some type of bar ( I have been making my own "larabars" lately ).  Sometimes I will even make a few tortilla roll ups with peanut butter and honey in them.  I generally am not to worried about my exact nutrition needs during a 0-3 hour training session, but for a race I try to consume about 250 calories per hour(based on my weight).  A product like Hammer Nutrition's HEED is perfect for this.

Where I have really struggled in the past is how to fuel myself for long duration workouts which in the last few years have been on the bike and have lasted 6-8 hours of a steady effort.  I use to follow my same game plan as I previously stated of just using what I had laying around, but most of the times I would be a mess by the time I finished the ride.  My legs would have no power left in them and I would come home almost nauseous with hunger.  The next day typically I would be sore in the legs which I believe to be my muscles being cannibalized from insufficient caloric intake. 

This year for the first time I have found a system that I love.  A friend of mine told me how he had been fueling during his endurance cycling events and I gave his advice a try after a little research.  I have used it now on a hand full of rides lasting 6+ hours and have finished the ride feeling great and not even hungry when I got home.  I also experienced no muscle soreness the days following.  I now swear by Hammer Nutrition's Perpetuum.  I think the best flavor is Strawberry Vanilla, fyi.

I wish I was a Hammer sponsored athlete!

They are a pretty incredible company to check out.  Their website is a wealth of information on how to fuel properly for events.  Sign up for their catalog and literature via email about endurance fueling.  They are a tremendous resource.  For more information on nutrition from Hammer Nutrition, click here

The system I follow is this:

I break up my efforts into 3 hour blocks and consume the following during each 3 hour block:

  • (3) 22 oz water bottles
  • (1) 22 oz "multi-hour bottle" of perpetuum
    • I mix a 3 hour bottle, which means I use 6 scoops of perpetuum and fill the rest of the bottle with water
    • which equals a 270 cal per hour intake; slowly sipping the bottle every 10 minutes or so
  • I also use their "Endurolyte" tablets and I really enjoy Cliff Bar "Shot Blocks" which give me a little burst of flavor to break up the boredom of everything else.
So after 3 hours, I stop and refill my water bottles and mix up another batch of perpetuum (6 scoops(based on my body weight) which I keep in a ziplock bag).

Whats important to note is that I consume NO other foods than what I listed above.  It was a hard thing to grasp in the beginning, but I have found that keeping it a liquid diet the whole time, my stomach has been a lot more stable and I am not even hungry when I finish my ride.

So back to where it really matters for right now.  Big Shoulders.

My plan is to rehydrate the day before and in the morning I am going to consume a bottle of HEED before I get down to the lake and another bottle in the thirty minutes or so before the swim starts.  I am not much of a race day breakfast eater, which is why I think I like the whole concept of a liquid diet.

You may think differently, but this is what works for me.

Does anyone have their own opinions on nutrition?  I would love to hear about your experience and methods!  Please comment below.

Good luck Everyone!

Coach Steve