Bring it On 2014!!

As I begin to buckle down, plan my race schedule and start to refine my focus for 2014, I'm so lucky to be able to say I have partnered with some amazing sponsors for this season.  I am particularly fortunate because all of the sponsors I am working with this season I know personally in some way; I have either worked with them/for them at events or I attend regular rides with them.  In addition to being familiar with their fantastic products, I can also say that the people behind them are great and a pleasure to work with! 

I will start local--I am lucky enough to call myself a member of "the Tribe".  Tribe Multisport is a shop located right next to Old-town Scottsdale.  In the shop you will find everything you could ever need to swim, bike and run your heart out, not only that, but you will find a friendly and knowledgable staff to help you find the right gear for you (or just chat about endurance sports--they're all about this stuff)! They can make excellent shoe recommendations (which I have personally taken advantage of--they solved a shoe crisis for me just a couple of months back!), and when you bring your bike in with a problem or just need some maintenance they won't make you feel stupid (everybody has met the mechanic that scoffs at you for bringing in a simple fix)--they will do an excellent job taking care of your bike and they'll make you glad you stopped by.  They also offer some awesome group workouts: two group runs and two group rides a week.  I encourage you to check out their shop, come along for a ride and join the Tribe!!  Next time you shop use this code: TRUXES to receive 15% off (and you can buy straight off of their website now, so if you don't feel like driving or live out of state, you can still join the Tribe!!).

Shop Here!

Next we'll fly over to San Diego, where my favorite wetsuit company resides.  XTERRA Wetsuits not only make super buoyant, flexible and fast wetsuits, but they are also really cool people--so cool I wrote an entire post about my experience on set with them last Summer.  I will be racing wetsuit legal races in their "Vendetta" full sleeve suit and non-wetsuit legal races in their "Velocity" speed suit.  Click the link below to do some shopping and use SA-TRUXES for 60% off!!

Shop Here!

Finally we'll end in San Clemente, CA where the corporate headquarters for Rudy Project is located.  Rudy Project makes super comfortable helmets and trendy Italian-made eyewear.  The coolest thing about Rudy are all of the little technical details in their products.  After working at a couple of Ironman Expos and having the honor to work with them at Interbike, I am well versed in the cool technical specs about the Rudy Project gear and am more than happy to help you find a comfy helmet or a rockin' pair of shades--just ask!

Shop Here!

I am so excited and so thankful to have these awesome companies on board for my 2014 season!!

I do have one more exciting partnership to announce in the coming months, so stay tuned!!!

Until next time!

@nicoletruxes

Let's Be Real

Hello again, I am back to blogging from my almost-two-month hiatus.  I have had a great two months "off"-- lots of unstructured training, time with family and friends, and time to plan and get excited for

My boyfriend Lucas and I enjoying Xmas!

2014.

Since this is my first post during my prep for 2014, I thought I would focus on something that affects everyone this time of year: Holiday weight gain and New Year's Resolutions.

There are lots of magazine articles and "conventional wisdom" from your Aunt or Uncle that runs sometimes, "Be careful with those cookies. You know, the average person gains 5-10 lb every holiday season and you're not getting any younger".  However, when you research the facts, you will find it's all in your head.  In one study, 24 out of 34 participants aged 23-61 perceived that they had gained weight from the day before Thanksgiving until about a week after New Year's Day, but in actuality only 4 participants gained more than 2 kg (~4.5 lb).  So while it feels like you're slowly turning into the cookie monster and you've completely jumped off the "health-food-wagon", don't feel

Delicious Holiday Goodies!!

so bad, you probably have gained little or no weight this holiday season.

All of that ^ being said, you can still make your New Year's Resolution to lose weight, but I encourage you to change your mentality a little bit...  Instead of feeling obligated to make this your resolution because you need to shed that extra holiday layer, make it a commitment to changing your lifestyle and becoming a healthier person.  Getting wrapped up in the NYR hype with the many other Americans who have also vowed to wear their "skinny jeans" this year (losing weight is the most popular resolution next to volunteering more and eating better) can make it so that you go hard the first week and crash with your over zealous workout binge.

What do I mean by lifestyle change?

Watching many of my family and friends try to lose weight, or change their health habits year after year has given me lots of insight into the different ways people approach these daunting tasks.  Some people cut themselves off and go "cold turkey" into a new lifestyle.  For some, this is a decision they made and their "iron will" allows them to stick to this promise they made to themselves. For most, this is the worst approach because you end up feeling like you're shorting yourself and cutting yourself off from the life you used to have.   The other thing I have noticed is that people set unrealistic expectations: I want to lose 15 lb in a week, I am never eating sweets again, I'm going to the gym every day from now on, etc.  Make goals that are relatively small changes from your current status quo and increase them often--this is much more realistic.

What I recommend:

-Steadily increase your activity: If you are completely sedentary right now, start by taking a 15-20 minute walk three days a week, then add in a couple of minutes of running the second week.  If you incrementally add running into your walking and slowly increase the time, you'll be running 10 miles before you know it! Slow and steady wins the race.

-Make small, manageable lifestyle changes: If you are currently a smoker, who eats like they're a 15-year old boy (aka whatever they want), and are slightly overweight...do NOT throw out all of your smokes, forbid yourself from going through a drive-thru, and force yourself to spend hours at the gym every day.  This is not realistic.  Make short term goals that you can reach and feel good about: smoke less packs per week (so that it is eventually NONE!), eat one healthy and home-cooked meal per week, go to bed half an hour earlier, etc.  Just as I mentioned above, incrementally changing your lifestyle is the easiest way for your body to adjust to a "new you".  If you are consistent with small changes, it will never seem like you made a huge change so it will be easier to deal with.  Be realistic about the short term goals you set and you will have long term success. Be REAL.

If you're curious about my New Year's Resolution... I am making the promise to myself to Be Real, not necessarily with weight loss or diet, but with life in general.  It is easy to get caught up in expectations that are far from realistic, not only in weight-loss but in training and life commitments in general.  My NYR for 2014 is to take a second to look at myself and make sure what that my expectations, priorities, and goals are realistic and healthy!

I hope you are armed with some realistic goal-setting knowledge so that when you toast at midnight tonight you can feel good about the resolution you made rather than feeling anxious or nervous!

Check back soon (or next year, hehe) for my 2014 race schedule and some exciting news for next season!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

See you in 2014!!!

@nicoletruxes

Faster Than Your Eyes Can Blink

Take a millisecond to blink and...it's over! That is how this season felt.  I started racing in the end of February and finished up my last race about a week and a half ago at the end of October--I never thought 8 months could feel so fast (hopefully it goes that way when I'm pregnant someday?).

I originally gave myself a November 1st deadline for this post...wanting to have the season fresh in my mind and not let too much time pass before I took a second to reflect on the past 8 months...but of course, I procrastinated--mostly because I hate goodbyes and I feel like this is somewhat of a goodbye (or at least I'm hoping).  No, I'm not saying goodbye to triathlon, this sport can't shake me that quickly, I hope to be saying goodbye to the "rookie-ness".  I hope I can take all that I learned from this season and apply it to next year and the year after that...etc.  The reason I write race reports (and encourage others to do so) is not because I feel like a self-important celebrity who has millions of fans and followers, it's because I like to look back on the past and take lessons from it.  Each race has so many lessons and it is so easy to forget all of them.  When I started this blog it was private so NO ONE could read it and I would write how I felt at different races and what I ate beforehand so I could look at it later and see what worked for me.  I have since archived those blog posts somewhere offline so that no one can read how ridiculous my thoughts are before, during and after races. I still look back at those offline posts and even at the posts on here and read valuable nuggets that I wouldn't necessarily remember had I not written them down!

Aside from the performance benefits of documenting your races, it really is fun to look back and reflect on different trips and experiences throughout the triathlon season.  All triathletes, no matter the distance or level of racing, put their heart & souls into their training.  Many people go to bed early, refuse that shot of vodka, and stay in on Friday nights, all for the sake of training.  There are definite costs associated with training and racing--what better way to know the sacrifice will pay off and "keep your head in the game" than to look back at the highlights of your trips to races and your racing experience.  I get super stoked when I look back at posts from good races or even just fun trips that didn't necessarily have my best race attached.  When I am having one of those days where I say to myself, "What am I doing with my life?" I have all of these great accounts to look back on and realize I'm having fun with my life!

So now that you understand the why...here is the what...What happened this season? What lessons did I learn? What do I look forward to next season?

What happened:
I raced my "rookie" season and made lots of "rookie" mistakes, but also had a blast learning and living! (for a more detailed report...there are many blog posts from the season :) )

Lessons I learned:
-It's not as easy as it looks to put together a race where all three sports turn out to be stellar performances
-I'm NOT invincible, care needs to be taken to give my body the recovery it requires to match my level of desire and drive
-Focusing on training and racing does not equal shutting out the rest of your life outside of training and racing

What I look forward to:
-Taking the racing experience I gained this season and applying to all of my races next season--hopefully yielding some new results (and new lessons) !
-Taking a different approach to training: being mindful of the recovery work and workouts, not just the quality sessions; not putting blinders on towards the rest of my life, consider the whole picture
-Something I look forward to always: making new memories, and learning new lessons

So, the moral of the story... stop and smell the roses, create tiny pieces of your experiences that you can look back on and be thankful for!

Photo Highlights!

Thank you so much to my coach, Brian Grasky (graskyendurance.com), for great season with lots of improvement and more to come in the future!!

Thank you to my sponsors, XTERRA wetsuits and Trisports.com...getting me all the right gear to race fast this season!

Thank you to my family who has always supported me in my athletic endeavors.
And, of course, thank you to my wonderful boyfriend and biggest supporter, Lucas <3

Here's to the off-season! (Even if it is only a week or two ;) )


@nicoletruxes

XTERRA Lava Pants

Recently, XTERRA Wetsuits launched a new product that is truly unlike anything else out there right now.  This hot new item are the LAVA Pants (wetsuit pants)--they are thick and extremely buoyant and are recommended for use instead of a pull buoy.  When I first got them I was hurt and unable to swim, bike or run, but I was really excited to try them so I thought, "Why don't I try them for water running?".  It turns out, these pants were unknowingly MADE for this purpose.

The Lava Pants!

First off, just to clarify, water running is where you run in relatively deep water, where you can't touch the bottom.  You still go through the same motions as you would running on land, it just prevents you from further injuring yourself because you aren't pounding your muscles and joints.  Usually to help you stay on top of the water, you wear a floating belt.  I personally find these belts extremely uncomfortable and very unnatural feeling so I 'm usually stuck water running very hard to stay on the surface--this makes it difficult to do variable speed workouts.  The lava pants solve this problem--you can go easy when you want and hard when you want and still have a natural feeling run in the water.

There are two main reasons I like the lava pants for water running:

1. It allows you a more natural feeling than the water belt, but still keeps you on top of the water the same way.

2. It allows you to really vary your speed while trying to do a workout--you can focus more on your form during high intensity intervals and then during rest intervals you really can take a rest and not struggle to stay on the surface.

After being able to really shift intensity during my workout, my coach suggested using resistance to further simulate an actual workout on the road (or track).

So, for those of you who are injured, or need to take some time away from running on the road...I HIGHLY recommend the lava pants as an addition to your training arsenal :)

Want to try your own pair, click here!

Happy [water] running!

A Wild and Crazy Week!

Last week I had what I would call the ultimate bike/tri-nerd week...everything was all bikes (and sunglasses), all the time.  I attended both Interbike and the two-day Outdoor Demo preceding the major bike convention.  For those of you who are not ultimate bike/tri-nerds...Interbike is a very large bike industry convention--

Some Expo fun with the Rudy Girls!!

everyone comes to show off their new stuff for 2014 to all of the Retail Buyers in hopes of getting their gear in some new stores for the upcoming year.  I also learned that Interbike is one very large party--it takes place in Las Vegas, which I now find to be very fitting :)

I had the privilege of spending the week working for Rudy Project with a really fun group of people! Thank you all for a great time, and a wonderful experience!!

After a week of walking, talking, laughing, stickering, selling, and overall just being social I was EXHAUSTED, but I couldn't rest yet...I returned home late Friday night and had the day to get set to race in my hometown at the Lifetime Fitness Triathlon in Tempe!

Me, Moka, Hannah and Reba across the front!

It is always a great thing to have a race in your hometown--eat at home, sleep in your own bed, have all of your family and friends there.  I was at even more of an advantage because I live about 2 miles from where the start line was!  I have been excited for this race for months! I LOVE racing at home :)  So when I woke up Saturday with a gnarly cough, I told myself, "I'll be fine, I just need lots of sleep tonight!". So I went on with this mindset until I crossed the finish line the next day.  I was not going to let anything get between myself and racing at home!  When I finally came to terms with being sick, the verdict was that I had bronchitis so a Z-pack and some serious sleep were in order!

Rockin' my Rudy and definitely in a world of hurt!

I won't bore you all with the gory details of my race (because I assure you it wasn't my best!), but I will mention a few highlights: I completely forgot to take off my speedsuit...so I raced in two suits the whole race :). I managed to have relatively fast transitions despite being a little confused and out of it the whole race, but this was probably mostly attributed to leaving the speed suit on ;)  Also, I finally got to try a new kind of bike rack in transition--it was the kind you set your wheel in rather than rack your saddle on, very cool!  Did I have the best race of my life? No, definitely not :) Do I regret racing? No, definitely not :) I'm so happy I had the opportunity to prove to myself that I can race under any conditions.  While I did not have the most spectacular race of the season, I still went out there and had a good time!  

Still in my Speed Suit :) oops!

I'm looking forward to the end of October where I'll be competing in my final race of the season...I can't believe my first pro season is almost over--it went by so fast!!

Until next time :)

@nicoletruxes

A Lesson in Patience and Perspective

Normally around this time I am deep in the heart of race prep--fast track workouts, ferocious bricks and lots of recovery--but since you can't always control what is ahead of you, instead, I am slowly but surely becoming Aqua-jogging State Champ material.  Yes, you guessed it, I've got a little bit of an injury going on.

There are two main reasons I wanted to write this post:

1.  Injury is part of the game--you push too hard, and don't listen to your body then you have no choice but to..."Go directly to jail, do not pass go, do not collect $200"...but seriously, you're forced to sit it out
and let your body recover.

So yes, it's part of the game.  Luckily this is my first time dealing with an injury related to triathlon.  I have a mild overuse injury in my hip that will go away soon enough with proper rest and TLC. I did make one big mistake in dealing with injury already, however.  I was on my way to a speedy recovery and figured that since it only hurt a little bit this meant I could go a little harder--this eventually resulted in a piggy-back injury in my foot/ankle.  While this injury is also mild and I will recover "soon enough" I could have entirely avoided this by truly listening to my body.  So I guess the first big reason I wanted to share this experience with you all is--- have PATIENCE! I know it's hard, most of us that compete in this sport love it because it entertains our type A personalities.  The same drive that inspires us to push ourselves to the absolute limit acts as an Achilles Heel when it comes to injury.  I think we sometimes feel that we are superhuman and if our body gives us one sign of recovery, this must mean we are ready to push the limits again--WRONG, be patient!  Because I lacked patience with the initial injury in my hip, I now don't get to compete in the race I was most excited for this year--Chicago.  A large portion of my extended family lives in the Chicago area and this race is a "home away from home" for me and because of my lack of patience I don't get to compete this year.  So let this be a lesson for all of you---patience is key, your body will recover just let it!!


2.  Injury is NOT the end of the world.  There are so many reasons why a small injury can be a good thing.

Believe me, it feels like gloom and doom to find out you are injured (even a minor injury).  Two days feels like two months and a week feels like a year when you are pulled away from your regular training regime (welcome to my life the past couple of weeks!). It can be quite depressing, however, there is a BIG world outside of triathlon and taking a step away can put things in perspective.  It is so easy to put ourselves in this myopic view of the world when training for a big race (or season), but to be honest,

Quick Read w/ lots of Awesome Recipes

there are a lot of activities, people, things that you don't realize you are neglecting until all the training hours are taken away.  For me personally, these past two weeks have been filled with hobbies that used to be a high priority--drawing, music, reading, cooking.  Not to mention having the extra energy to devote to relationships (Lucas, my family) has been really nice. Do I miss the sweaty, mind-testing hours of training? HELL YES! Am I hungrier than ever to get back to training and do all of the little things right? HELL YES! I'm enjoying my time away, stopping to smell the roses, but I'm also counting down the days until I can build back into some beastly training sessions.

So the lesson has be learned and my world has been put in perspective, but it is all part of the journey.  Even though I'm super bummed about the timing of everything, it could be so much worse! I'm lucky that I can make these realizations without having a HUGE career-ending injury and hopefully by sharing this experience with you it will add to your arsenal of lessons that you can draw from in your own training!

So please, enjoy the heck out of your next long run for me!

Until next time :)

@nicoletruxes  

Rookies and Reunions

Last weekend I competed in the New York City Triathlon.  This race has you dive into the Hudson River, ride up the hilly Mosholu Parkway to the Bronx and then run a loop around historic Central Park!  This was not only my first time competing in this race, but my first time to the Big Apple!  Definitely an awesome experience!

Allie and I after the race!

I was lucky enough to meet up with some familiar faces in the city.  My long-time friend and fellow swimmer, Allie, was kind enough to host me at her apartment and take me around the city for the weekend. I was extremely excited about this because it’s been 10 YEARS since we’ve seen each other!! I had a classic New York experience on our Subway rides- maintenance, a street dance, and a new definition of personal space :) I also have some family that came to support me at the race and would later show Allie and I to an AMAZING East Side dinner post-race!

Little Blue was such a trooper and a welcomed ball of energy!

The race itself was really exciting:

First of all, the bars in Phoenix close at 2 so I was expecting an empty train for Allie and I. Little did I know... in NYC the bars close at 4 so there were PLENTY of people on the Subway when we were en route to race start at 3:30am! Funny stares and some sentiments for good luck made for a fun ride :)

Overall the race went really well.  I've been improving every time I race this season in one way or another, but I'm still a rookie and there were a few big signs in this race ;)

The Swim:

First sign of “rookie-ness”-

Yes, there is a current in the Hudson, but not all currents are created equal-- I learned this the hard way.  After reviewing video of the start I was right out in front with the lead girls, but they caught the stronger current closer to the middle of the river and were on their way to some super speedy swims!  I still had a decent swim and felt smooth in the water, but know for next time to find the fast lane ;)

The Bike:

After coming out of the water further back than I wanted, I was on a mission for the bike.  I knew this was a challenging course compared to what I’ve been used to racing this season so I was prepared to feel the hurt! I gave it everything I had, but I'm learning that the bike in a non-draft requires much more self-focus than a draft legal race where there are so many things going on you don't notice your exertion level!

The Run:

Second major sign of “rookie-ness:-

Like I said…I was really excited, the energy at this race was so high and I was really feeding off of it.  I took my first mile out in my best mile time ever (I’ve never raced a mile on the track, so the time is not that impressive, but still a little more quick than was advisable!).  This momentum really carried me through the first 4 mi…but as you can imagine, all good things must come to an end, and my runner’s high ended right between miles 4 and 5.  I hung on and fought to the very end, but unfortunately for me, it came down to a sprint finish…Meghan Newcomer had a fabulous finish, edging me out for 5^th by 1 second--congratulations Meghan! 

This was by far one of the most exciting non-drafting triathlons I’ve ever done!  The energy of the volunteers, spectators, and other racers was tremendous! Thank you for a great event everyone, I definitely will make the trip back to NYC some time in the future!!  Also, a big thank you to my sponsors Trisports.com and XTERRA wetsuits and of course my coach, Brian Grasky, for the continued support!!

Post-race with my awesome support crew :) Thank you guys!

Big&little excited for some gelato!!

Some non-race fun :)

After the race I got to experience a little bit of the city itself.  Allie and I went to dinner and gelato with my cousins Anna&Blue and their adorable baby- little Blue!  If you're an East Sider, or just in the city to visit, I highly recommend Pala--AMAZING pizza and pasta with Gluten Free and Vegan options (they even have Daiya cheese!!!)

Waiting in line to see Aten Reign

We also had the luxury of visiting the Guggenheim! Anna works there and was able to explain the background of the featured exhibit, Aten Reign by James Turrell.  The whole museum was really amazing, but I highly recommend stopping in to experience Aten Reign yourself--it's the only work of art I've ever enjoyed laying down, and it is amazing to see what can be done with the right amount of light and space!

                Learn more about the exhibit!

Sunset over the city

Catch you next time :)  @nicoletruxes