BRAT TRIATHLON CLUB TRAINING SCHEDULE

2008 - FREE BRAT Club Training Sessions
The BRAT club run free  training sessions, ideal for all levels from beginners, age groupers to pros, all are very welcome.  All training sessions are conducted by BRAT Club volunteers & Coaches. 

Note: You must consider your health and ability and must be confident that your health and safety will not be at risk by taking part in a training session. BRAT Club will not be responsible for any loss, damage or injury arising from your participation in the free training sessions including any medical condition (pre-existing or otherwise), physical or psychological (to the extent permissible by law).You must be a financial BRAT member to partcipate in the below training sessions.

Bondi Running and Triathlon Club has a number of coaches and training groups to cater for athletes of all levels including Juniors.  Please see the Coaching section (click here) of the BRAT Website

TRAINING TIPS

What is good nutrition? The training diet

Whilst much focus of athletes centres on what to eat immediately prior and during a race, like your training base, what you eat on a day to day basis is what ensures optimal preparation, performance and recovery. Good nutrition during a busy triathlete's life does not have to be difficult. All that is needed is some knowledge on quick and easy meal options that will give the body the right fuel at the right time.

The most common nutrition issues I see are the result of a lack of organisation, which sees individuals without the required foods at the required times. Triathletes training more than two hours each day will need to consume at least six small, carbohydrate/protein meals each day just to ensure they are satisfying their basic fuel requirements for training and recovery.

An easy way to remember this is to think of your carbohydrate foods as your plant foods such as bread, rice, cereal, pasta, fruit and sugars and your proteins as your animal foods such as lean meat, fish and chicken, eggs and low fat dairy. Then simply combine one food from each of these groups to make six small meals each day. Some examples are an egg and wholegrain toast, cereal and milk, meat and salad sandwich or yoghurt and fruit

It sounds simple, but I regularly see athletes who are relying on too much of one nutrient in their food choices, for example consuming just fruit or just cereal bars especially for their mid meal snacks. These food choices are not providing a complete nutrient balance for sustained energy levels and are likely to cause hunger and fatigue later on.

Quick balanced meal options for people on the go include liquid meal drinks such as Up & Go or Sustagen, protein/carbohydrate drinks and bars such as Protein Revivals or Protein + bars. While these food options are more expensive, they often suit busy people who can grab them between meetings or eat them in the car on the way to appointments when there is no time to either make or have a balanced food choice prepared for you.

The most important thing to ensure good nutrition practices on a day to day basis is being organised so you have the right foods available at the right times. Plan to do a weekly shopping trip and stock up on your protein and carbohydrate rich foods. Must have food items include reduced fat cheese and crackers or corn thins, grain bread with lean meats such as 97% fat free ham, turkey, chicken and tuna, pasta and pasta sauce, nut and protein bars, liquid meal drinks, packets of ready made pasta and frozen vegetables. Take your foods for the week to the office on Monday mornings and keep a supply of protein bars and drinks in the car for emergencies. On nights when you are at home, cook up a big pasta or rice dish so you have leftovers for a couple more nights during the week when you get home late. Lastly identify good takeaway options close to home such as Vietnamese or Thai which have light stir fry’s with a little rice, meat and vegetables, or a takeaway shop that has lean hamburgers and light pastas that you can order when you are too tired too cook but still need good quality food for recovery.