EverymanTri.com

Review: The ASICS 33-M Running Shoe is built to withstand serious punishment

There’s so many ways to go when runners and triathletes are looking for shoes. I’ve tested several makes and models for which many manufacturers produce to address every category came up, and some that have never been thought of until the shoe was made. Not all shoes are the same across a genre, and not all athletes can use just any shoe. Many learn painful lessons that just because a shoe is the latest and greatest and has the highest price tag, it doesn’t mean that’s the magic shoe to end all foot pain and running issues.

CitySports.com  reached out to me to review their latest “natural” ASICS running shoe, the 33-M. The 33-M is built for the natural running experience to lessen interference from the shoe to the body’s running form, assuming it’s a normal pronation and doesn’t need any work per say. With my test pair, I logged nearly 100 miles over six weeks and you can read on for my take from an everyday age grouper on how the 33-M stacks up in the real world.

Review: The ASICS Gel Lyte33 is a good running shoe for shorter workouts

Every triathlete is out there looking for the perfect combination of comfort, affordability, performance, durability and aesthetics when it comes to running shoes. Some have more money to explore the latest and greatest shoes and some have their tried and true $35 pair of specific brands and models that they live and die by.

There are so many choices between minimalists, lightweight, stability, motion control, neutral and a heck of a lot more. The best bet and starting point is to get your feet measured at your local running store and start trying shoes out. If you have some cash burning a hole in your pocket, hit your local chiropractor or sports exercise specialists for some screening and gait analysis to find out your foot structure and what types of shoes would best fit your feet. That would at least arm you with ammunition to start with the right shoe section.

The key is to not go out training for an Ironman in a shoe simply because it's the latest fad or looks cool. A couple of long runs in the wrong shoes could amount to a lengthy setback of physical therapy, rest and recovery or worst case surgery. Not all shoes and styles work for everyone.

That being laid out,  (www.asicsamerica.com) was kind enough to shoot over a pair of Gel Lyte33's that I tried out. After a couple of months on the road, paved trails and treadmills, here's a look from an every day triathlete.

Review: Clif Builder’s Protein Bars are not just for Body Buiders but also Endurance Athelets

If you pay attention to your Facebook or Twitter feed, you undoubtedly see all kinds of add and posts about the need for high levels of protein in your diet. Whether you’re a weekend 5ker, Ironman, cross fitter or obstacle course racer, every fitness related food maker and their dog are racing to get their latest and greatest protein products in your hands.

If you’re at all interested in eating better to go along with all those hours you swim, bike and run, then you have probably realized the importance of eating the right combination of fats, carbs and protein. It’s not just about the protein. It’s a delicate dance of factors from desired weight to expected race performance. If you’re not fueling the engine right with more than just protein, it doesn’t matter how many hours you train to reach your goals.

Review: Quest Protein Chips are tasty, gluten free, soy free & not fried

If you’re at all interested in eating better to go along with all those hours you swim, bike and run, then you have probably realized the importance of eating the right combination of fats, carbs and protein. It’s a delicate dance of factors from desired weight to expected race performance. If you’re not fueling the engine right, it doesn’t matter how many hours you train to overcome that.

But, how do you make sure you are getting what you need from your healthy snacks without sacrificing taste and appeal? Not everyone can kick back a can of tuna and a cup of cottage cheese and “enjoy” it. We’re all human. We like to enjoy taste and texture of what we eat.

There are all kinds of approaches from paleo to all natural grass fed no antibiotic hand combed cows and chickens, but lets get real. This day and age, if you want unaltered ingredients or something “simple”, you’re looking at higher prices and something that virtually financially unsustainable for a family. If it’s not mass produced and chalked full of preservatives for shelf life, it’s going to cost more.

Review: The Hatfield Strapworth is expensive but worth considering for PF relief

Planters fasciitis is an ugly word in the world of triathlon. When you're out there pounding the pavement for hours on end during training and running anywhere from 3 miles to 26.2 miles on race day, you're bound to experience it in some form. Some people live with it day in and day out while others might see a flare up on occasion.

Regardless of how often and the severity you have or will experience it, it's a pain in the ass... or rather the foot.

Doctors and physical therapists will recommend anything from proper stretching to ART therapy to relieve the aches and pains, because as we all know, no triathlete worth their salt is going to lay off the training for things to heal up. You might have also seen the sleeping socks that pull the toes up with a strap connecting at the shin or other imaginative solutions. Any way you slice it, there are a lot of opinions on how to mitigate the effects of PF.

Review: Power Crunch Bars tic almost all of the boxes for active triathletes

All triathletes have been put on the spot before or after a workout looking for the right fuel or recovery snack. We might even be pressed to find something in a pinch to gobble down for in-workout fueling for long days. We don’t always have the luxury of being at home to raid the pantry or time to cook something up for a proper workout snack, be it before, during or after the workout. Heck, it doesn’t even have to be a workout day and you might find yourself with an angry gut wanting sustenance but you don’t want to raid the candy machine for crap food.

What’s a health conscious endurance athlete to do for those healthy on the go snacks? There’s a LOT of choices out there. ClIF bars, Kind bars, Picky bars and so many others you can’t count them on all of your fingers and toes. Beware that while some bars contain natural and healthy ingredients, moderation is key. If you’re snack bar is 700 calories and you’re wanting to maintain “race weight”, it may not be the best option for your 10am snack, or you will have to raid calories in other meals to balance your daily intake.

Review: Surge Dynamic Fluid Resistance Training tool is a complete gym is a box

More often than not, triathletes tend to overlook strength training. Most are lucky to get the required swim, bike and run workouts in, but strength work can be just as vital to a triathlete. Strength training can enhance body control, increase power, stave off injuries and mix up an otherwise dreary training existence to name a few benefits.

Now, whether you hit the traditional weights, go to crossfit or do a combination, there’s right ways and wrong ways to go about it. You don’t want to hit the weights so hard as to bulk up and lose flexibility if your goal is to improve your triathlon performance. You also don’t want to go too heavy and possibly injure yourself. There are many plans and variations that triathletes can find on the internet.

The other obstacle is getting a gym membership or buying home gym equipment. If you have children, then your weights and racks will be competing with doll houses and motorized jeeps for storage space. Some just can’t afford the gym membership just for the weight lifting component.

That’s where this review on the Surge Dynamic Fluid Resistance Training tool by Hedstrom (http://getthesurge.bosu.com) comes in to play. Its design and applications address a lot of tough questions faced by triathletes about space, price and proper workouts. We tried one out and read on to find out what we thought.

Review: Zukay Beet Ginger Kvass drink is all about taste & antioxidants

One of the big buzz words in nutrition today is antioxidants. You can’t bet your bottom dollar that any triathlete on Facebook, Twitter or the internet has seen at least one article about a study on which superfoods give you the best antioxidant bang for your buck. But, just because it may be deemed healthy by a scientist in California doesn’t mean it’s really meant to be consumed by the masses.

For several reasons, something that’s deemed edible and “nutritious” isn’t always meant to be eaten by sane people. First and foremost, if it’s not appealing, the mainstreamers are going to shy away from it.

Who wants to ingest something that looks like it belongs in a pig trough? Secondly, if you pass the eye test, texture is an issue.

If you’ve ever seen the amino acid paste that looks like snot or runny oatmeal, but promises to supply you with all the nutrients you need, who’s going to eat if if they don’t have to? Lastly, taste. If you can’t get it down and keep it down, chances are you won’t be coming back for seconds.

Review: EnduroPacks offers a unique supplement solution for triathletes

Triathlon nutrition is a tricky wicket. Too much and you’re gaining weight, too little and you could hurt yourself, eat this, don’t eat that, take that supplement, don’t take that supplement. The latest major study even states that multivitamins do nothing to improve health (http://www.cbsnews.com/news/multivitamin-researchers-say-case-is-closed-supplements-dont-boost-health/). What’s a triathlete to do?

There’s so many factors that go into deciding what’s right for you. Are you wanting to lose weight? Are you wanting to add muscle to your frame? Are you racing sprint triathlons? Are you out training and exercising for 20 hours a week for fun? Are you trying to win your age group at the 70.3 distance?

Triathletes are a little different than your average person on the street, in many ways. But, for this review, more specifically the diet requirements are very particular. Some use triathlon as a ticket to eat whatever they want. Some use triathlon as a lifestyle to usher in health and a permanent way of a life. Hopefully your spouse and family is on board with that, but back to the review.

Review: The Marc Pro EMS is a great addition to the recovery toolbox for triathletes

How do you recovery after workouts and racing triathlons? It doesn’t matter if you are new to triathlons, racing short courses or an experiences ironman athlete of 15 years, you can’t ignore recovery. Sadly, many newer triathletes think that swim, bike and run are the only thing that matters. If you want to keep swimming, biking and running for a long time, then you need to set aside time and funding to properly recover.

You can recover through nutrition, active recover through less intense workouts, watch some tv on the couch, sleep and use products out on the market aimed at easing your sore muscles. From “black box” products that market to cure any ailment to tried and tested recovery shakes and multiple recovery products, there’s something for everyone.

Review: The GYST DB1-14 transition duffel bag is worth the expense

I may not be toting around the Denver Broncos with all of the logistics of transporting an NFL team around week after week, but  triathletes have a lot of crap to carry around to workouts and races. They probably travel MORE than an NFL team when you consider daily workouts traveling from home to the gym, from work to the gym, from the gym to work, from the gym to home and wherever else a workout may take us. I also don’t get a personal locker at our workout facilities to house our crud while not at the gym. Those NFL players are so pampered… but I digress. Lets not also forget transporting swim, bike and run gear to destination races.

Ugh.

TYR, Nike, Reebok, Louis Garneau, Zoot, Orca, Xterra, 2XU and more then I can list here make very sufficient options for triathletes to get all of their gear from point A to point B, but not all bags are created equal. When you need to carry gear for swimming, biking, running, strength training, yoga, pilates or whatever else you incorporate into your training and racing regimen, you need space, you need functionality and you need convenience. What’s the point of all of the zippers and pockets if you can’t get to your stuff quickly, the bag catches on everything when you walk around with it and it won’t fit all of your stuff?

Guideline Eyewear Eclipse sunglasses stand up to Ironman triathlete training needs

Triathletes take glucosamine, eat protein, wear sunscreen, braces, compression gear and spend a lot of money on recovery and proactive health treatments in the fight to stay healthy and injury free. One item a lot of us forget about is our eyes. We spend more than a part time job outside at times training, but neglect something so obvious.

Some people just don’t think about it, and some people don’t like wearing sunglasses, but your optometrist will agree that if you don’t do something about the sun in your eyes, you will pay the price. Just ask them about sun spots on your cornea.

Nuttzo peanut butter is quick, nutritious and a great energy source for athletes

Mass production of processed food is in full swing in this day and age of the “your way, right away” mentality of instant society. In this fast paced world we live in, everyone is looking to squeeze the most out of every hour of every day and no one is particularly fond of spending inordinate amounts of time preparing nutritional and natural meals.

The stats have to top 95% of all people that have at least partaken in a fast food run to save time for a meal. McDonalds, Wendy’s, Burger King, Subway and the list goes on of all the available places to get a quick bite and get on with your daily routine. There’s no judgement here. We’ve all done it. Some indulge more than others, but it’s almost unavoidable to utilize fast food for a busy day.

What can we do? We can control what we have at home for quick easy meal prep. Not all meals have to a fine-china hours on end type of affair to prepare. There are several natural and more healthy items out there to choose from to stock your cabinets with. The key is to be prepared and that’s why we’re here with this review.

My Athlete Tracker is pricey but worth considering for race day tracking

How do you keep your loved ones informed where you are on those long rides and runs? It’s a simple matter of safety that you’re not out there for hours on end and no one knows where you are. There are several devices and methods to keep track of where you are, so there’s no excuse.

There might be issues of carrying a phone, where to put it, having a smartphone that will work with an app and many more practical issues. There’s also the scenario where the tracker apps on smartphones kill batteries and drain them within a few hours while the GPS tracking is enabled.

Review: Door to Door (D2D) organic grocery delvery service is like Christmas for Triathletes

Triathletes have to eat. It’s a simple fact that we need energy to ride for 7 hours, run hill repeats and swim one-armed drills in the pool. This can come from your race and training nutrition, but if you’re not fueling properly for your daily meals, you’re already behind.

What’s a triathlete parent of 2 working full time with a full time working spouse to do when it’s time to drop some change at the local grocery store? It can be so time consuming to load everyone up, properly budget and make sure you don’t grab too many goods to exceed your budget. Lets not even go into all the crud that food producers seem to be filling our guts with these days in the non-natural food market and processed foods.

Review: Choosen Cherries Red Recovery Kit makes for a tasty recovey aid

Swim, bike and run are king in the world of triathlon for attention. You have to train each sport to make it to the end of a triathlon, unless you like to wing it or you are a super stud. But, did you know there’s other disciplines in the triathlon world?

Nutrition and recovery are sometimes often overlooked red-headed stepchildren of triathlon. Seasoned long course triathletes know all too well that without proper nutrition and recovery, you won’t get to the finish line upright. Newer athletes just getting into endurance sports in general may think they ran into a brick wall when going long, only to realize that adjustments in nutrition and recovery can result in significant gains in races aside from just increasing training volume and intensity.