Racing and Lessons..never a boring day.

First, I want to start off by saying that it is always sad when a great athlete retires.  A couple of week ago a really big role model of mine retired, Tracy Cameron (Lightweight Rower, 2008 Olympic Bronze).  I won’t get into the “why”, but I will say that I am really thankful and privileged for having met her and raced against her.  She is up there with athletes like Chrissie Wellington (Ironman).  So thank you Tracy for everything you have done for our sport in Canada and around the World!

Now, onto my life here in London.  Busy times to say the least!  I have been juggling work with training, and I must say that I fully understand why full time athletes don’t work 9-5pm jobs.  First off, the hours don’t allow for it.  We row either twice a day and do weights as a third workout, or row twice and then cross train as our third workout.  It’s getting a bit harder now that the weather is getting hotter too!  Recovery is most important, and so making sure fuel and fluids are taken in a timely manner is crucial.  So, on most days I find myself at my computer/blackberry in between workouts and in the evenings to keep up and get ahead of the upcoming day(s) – no more late night showsL….but I may make an exception for The Bachelorette tonightJ, don’t hate.

The “Under 23” category crews have been selected.  They had a defining race this past Friday in the form of a time trial that finalized who would be in what boats, and I must say that I am super impressed with these women – they are strong, fast and determined!  I’m really motivated and fortunate to train with them each day.  Although not officially part of my selection, I also raced this past Friday in the time trial.  I say “not officially”, but really, we are in selection EVERY DAY!  A couple of us Senior athletes competed as well to see how fast we could go against the clock, each of us in our single sculls (that a boat, not a typo - skull).

These are my rowing blades on the dock at the London Training Centre at 5am.

I weighed in at my target weight and then went off to fuel before the race, set to start at 7am.  It was 5am and so I thought I had more than enough time to eat and drink as I usually do before practice.  But unfortunately I didn’t follow the “usual”.

My “excitedness” (yes that’s a word!) got the best of me and I double dosed on some of my pre-race drinks/meals in hopes that it would make me go faster…not so much Laura, not so much.  This double dosing is what I feel led to a VERY uncomfortable post-race experience, ha!  I couldn’t properly warm down after the 2km time trial because, well, my stomach didn’t like me all that much.  As I struggled to carry my boat back up to the boathouse after the time trial, I started to gag every other step…gag….step…gag…and so on.  Honestly I was scared that I might drop my boat!  At the same time some athletes from the local rowing club were taking their boats up, and so I would lie if I didn’t say I was trying to hold it in.  But on I went with my loud gagging noise.  I think I looked behind me at one point to pretend it was coming from somewhere else…”who did that?”J.

After I got my boat up I took some time to try and recollect myself so that I could get back to normal, but sooner than later my stomach won the fight and it was racing hard to get all my fluids out the door!

What had I done?!  I guess between nerves and double dosing, my body didn’t absorb the contents and instead they just sat in my stomach from 5am until after my race.  It could be that the force and pressure from racing acted as the final motivation for the contents to sit still no longer.

So, the lesson to be learned – do NOT try anything new on race day!  Practice new foods or drinks during training sessions so that you could see how your body responds first.

Sometimes we know these things, but practicing them is another story.  I will continue to make a conscious effort to always learn and apply what I have learned in the opportunities ahead. 

Now I’m off to apply what I have learned about relaxing…it is done best when watching “The Bachelorette”, ha!

"How much do you weigh?"

Hi!  I havent written in a little while because there's a lot going on...balancing work (yes I'm still working but it's remote while I'm trying out for the National Development Rowing Team), full time rowing here at the National Training Centre, and family/friends.  In a week I'll write more about the selection process and the new lifestyle I am now living, but for today I'm going to write about something that most people try to stay away from...weight!

"How much do you weigh?"

How rude to ask!  Would you feel offended if somebody asked you this?  Weight can be such a touchy subject, but if you should ever find yourself sitting with lightweight rowers then you’ll see how “touchy” is thrown out the window.

Most of the time when lightweights are brought together, we talk about foodJ.  Athletes in general love food as #1) food is DELICIOUS and #2) it is looked at as fuel for the machine, your body.  The added dimension for lightweight rowers (as well as wrestlers, martial artists and other weight restricted athletes), is that we have to perform at a specific weight.  For female lightweight rowers there are two standards:

1)      If you are in a 1x (single boat) then you can weigh no more than 59kg

2)      If you are in a 2x (double with 2 people) or 4x (quad with 4 people), then the average of the boat can be no more than 57kg!  This means that there could be an athlete below this and above this number, but the average of all four has to be 57kg.

The last time I think I weighed 57kg was back in Grade 9!!  And guess what, should I make the team that Canada sends to the Non-Olympic World Championships, then my target weight would be 56kg..that’s 123.2 lbs!!  I think I was 2 years old when I last weighed that …clearly kiddingJ.

In addition, lightweight rowers have to weigh in 2 hours before their competition.  This tight timeframe between weigh in and competition is meant to decrease the amount of sweat runs or other things that athletes do in order to lose weight – it has proven to be quite dangerous and some have paid big negative consequences due to poor preparation.  This is why I started preparing back at the beginning of April.  I was a solid 60kg then, and over the past 2 months I have dropped down to 57.6kg.  May not sound like much, but it takes time to teach your body to adapt and become steady at a new weight.  It’s also hard when you are trying to put on muscle because as most of you know, muscle weighs more than fat.  So the balance is to lean out, gain muscle but keep losing weight, and increase performance…fun times eh?!

I learned some hard lessons back in Triathlon (although not a weight restricted sport), and I have grown to truly understand my body and learn a great deal about food/water intake: what, when and why...

In general I’ve learned that:

-          Carbohydrates s are NOT bad for me, I need them…and I love them!

-          I perform best when I eat WHITE bread (breaks my heart because I was always against it) with almond butter and a banana before competition.  It digests better and doesn’t overwork my system for race time.

-          Drinking water the day before a weigh in will not negatively impact my weigh in, but rather it’ll continue to help cleanse my internal system and better prepare me for competition/training.

-          Protein intake is essential for muscle building…I used to be set on only eating egg whites, but in my own reading and research I have found that whole eggs are more beneficial and the cholesterol quantity won’t impact me as I previously assumed.  Of course speak to your own doctor if you have concerns…I am not a doctor.  It also helps to have a dad who has his own chickens, so I am fortunate to have some of the best eggs out there each week.  And no, the eggs are not the ONLY reason why I visit my parents every week-end ha!

-          I need my protein smoothies within 30 minutes of training completion so that I benefit from my training and have a solid recovery.  The best part about this piece is that here at the National Rowing Training Centre it is standard for every rower to have a smoothie as soon as we get off the water.  YUM!

-          Eating many meals throughout the day is better than eating 3 large meals in a day…and breakfast IS the most important meal of the day, so make it fun and exciting by mixing it upJ…greek yogurt with berries and granola, eggs with a whole what English muffin and fruit, banana/oatmeal pancakes, etc.

I can go on forever, but my message here is that if you are/aren’t an athlete, it is important to look at what you eat.  You are what you eat.  And so “yes”, some days I feel like a triple Oreo McFlurry, and that’s okay, but in general it’s good to understand that what you are putting into your mouth can affect your mood, energy and more.  I can definitely tell you that when I've had that Oreo McFlurry I experienced a mood change...for the better, ha.  I haven't had one since April though, but when I do I will be a VERY happy person!

Next week a number of us here at the centre will be getting body assessments, blood work and a consultation with a Nutritionist.

I’m keeping a log for the next 5 days of what and when I eat, so we’ll see what the Nutritionist has to say.  I’m looking forward to learning more and finding out if there are ways I can better perform through food!

Keep you posted;)

I'll leave you with some pictures of meals I've had in recent days:

Sirloin Steak over brown rice (with sliced Onion, Red Pepper and Garlic), and a fresh home-made juice of Beets and Apple.  Don't worry I have gum on hand:)

Cooked Orzo (a type of pasta) with Red Pepper, Mushrooms, Onion, Carrots, Grilled Chicken and Avocado.

Happy eating!