Training for your first triathlon? Frustrated with the endless varieties of equipment? How do you know what you need right now?

Let’s take a look at 5 must-have items for beginner triathletes.

1. Good quality sneakers - foresee all the time you are about to use your feet training, it amounts to hundreds of hours. Look into the following brands; Zoot (neon colors), Adidas, and K-Swiss. Lightweight waterproof sneakers are key.
2. Swim gear - caps, goggles, suit. Search swimoutlet.com or similar sites and do not buy simple plastic Speedo goggles from Target or Wal-Mart. Suck it up and spend some quality money.
3. Heart rate monitor - a necessity to track exercise intensity for endurance athletes. Super article on HRM monitors here. Even some sports bras have a lip to hold chest HRM chest straps.
4. Logbook - do not ignore your training ups and downs. Write everything down if you have the time. What did you eat, how did you sleep, felt great or bad? You’d be surprised what you learn from reading your journal/log at the end of the month.
5. Oxygen machine - in case you go off the deep end in a long workout. That’s a joke.

Note: Bikes weren’t mentioned in this article as many can be rented for a triathlete’s first race at a decent price. Plus, if you are just starting out and dipping your feet into the sport, you may regret purchasing a $11,000 tri-bike.

   For more triathlon articles please visit my site Glutenfreetriathlete.com and peep my Examiner tri site here.

Did abs at home, since the gym ab machines are likely sweaty and greasy which is a bit disgusting. Leg climbs, bicycles, planks, and more. Also got back to my South Beach ab routine of doing a Superman-like move with my plank - stick an arm out straight ahead and lift the opposite leg. For instance, if you lift your left arm straight out ahead of you, lift your right leg about 6 inches off the ground and hold for 30 seconds. Great burn! It’s a great mind trick exercise as you aren’t actually moving, but you’re attacking your core in a big big way.

Hit gym several hours later after having some Maple Syrup mix I have been promoting as of late. It’s so delicious and perfectly sweet - if you haven’t tried it, you’re really missing out on a great healthy natural energy boost.And it’s gluten-free!!

So working on my nutritonal site (Buy Healthy Junk) with my partner and soon to list more items soon for all you guy & gal athletes to check out. >Stay on me about it!

Thanks for all your support in 2009. I made this site to help others with allergies who are determined to become endurance atheltes no matter WHAT. So far I got great responses and if I assist one person in their goals, mission accomplished.

Keep reachin’ high,
John

 

Caught up in your kids’ lives? Finding little time to work out right? There are a lot of women who enjoy home workouts more than going to the gym. They can exercise in the privacy of their own home and not have to worry about getting to and from the gym and scheduling extra time to workout. Easy right?

For on the go moms, home workouts may be their only option for any kind of exercise at all. Here are some easy to do at home workouts for women.

Workout DVD’s
There are thousands of DVD titles to choose from these days for women looking to work out at home when time is open. The P90X series, Denise Austin exercise tapes, and Jillian Michaels (The Biggest Loser trainer) are just some of the most popular titles. When weather, time or laziness prevent you from hitting the gym, you can always work out in a 8 x 8 foot space. There is no excuse then right?

Walking/Jogging
Although you may not be able to walk or run at home, unless you want to invest in an expensive treadmill, walking or jogging can be a great workout for a woman. If you live in a nice neighborhood or have a park nearby your home, a nice walk or jog can be a great alternative to being cooped up in your home. Spring and fall are great times to run or walk as they offer cooler weather that is great for exercising in.

Quick Home Workouts
No matter if you are a busy stay at home mom, a single professional, or mom with a job outside the home, you most likely have a packed schedule and may think that you don’t have time for workouts, even simple at home ones. There are a couple of different options that you have for quick home workouts. Tony Horton’s 10 minute trainer is actually a workout DVD but offers a very efficient workout in only 10 minutes. You can quickly sneak in a workout before you get ready in the morning, after dinner, or while the kids are napping. Other quick workouts involve jumping rope for 10-15 minutes, running stairs for 10-15 minutes, and a quick circuit training routine that you can make up.

Women of all ages and sizes need to make sure that they are taking care of their bodies and exercising on a regular basis. It does not matter if you are a size 18 and trying to lose 50 pounds or you are a size 4, every women needs exercise to be healthy. Home workouts for women offer a great way to make sure that exercise is part of your daily life.

Want more tips? For more free tips on exercise and fitness please visit my website Glutenfreetriathlete.com and you can follow my tweets at twitter.com/Glutenfreetri.

A triathlete’s day is never dull.

Tim Tadder

Triathletes are a breed of extreme endurance athletes looking to expand their physical control and mental barriers. There is not one triathlete in the world who did a triathlon by thinking about it, it takes effort and time.

Let’s take a look at how a triathlete’s day looks on a typical working weekday.

1. 6am wake-up
2. 6:15am - breakfast loaded with caffeine, sugar, or protein depending on their picky choices
3. 6:45am - 5-10 mile run outside no matter the temperature (freezing cold wakes you up)
4. Mid-morning breakfast (eggs, fruit, coffee)
5. 8:30am-12:30pm - work of some sort
6. 12:30pm - carb snack before afternoon mid-day run
7. 1pm - run during lunch hour or bike if possible at corporate gym (luxurious rarity these days)
8. 3:30pm - hunger kicks in and 2-3 pieces of fruit shoved in stomach
9. 5pm - panicking and wondering if you brought workout socks for the gym in gym bag
10. 6:30pm - head home, shower, and straight to the gym or spare bedroom converted into makeshift gym.
11. 7:30pm - 1-2 hour bike session followed by 15 minutes stretching or mild yoga (some pain ensues)
12. 9:30pm - consume large protein-packed meal (fish, lean meat, salad, eggs); then shower
13. 10pm - unpack gym bag
14. 11pm - sleep for 7 hours and repeat

This routine isn’t made up or of wishful thinking. Many triathletes struggle with the family/home life aspect and the sport they love. The fine balance of time and pleasure takes many months or years to adjust to as daily training can take 2-3 hours each day (3-4 hours for Ironman triathletes). If you’re already a triathlete, hats off to you. You’ve done something 99% of the world has not been able to do. If you’re training for a triathlon, hats off to you. Most people would never attempt such a sport.

For more information on helpful triathlon training tips please visit Glutenfreetriathlete.com and visit my Examiner page here.

Today I will be posting some interesting gluten-free and celiac sites today that reflect the best of the best in the gluten-free world. Some have been around for quite some time and some are fresh/new!

I’m now off for a 6 mile run in 20 degrees. Wish my extremities luck.

Yikes… I may regret this one.

Colorado residents Brian Smith and Rebecca Dussault won the 2010 USA Triathlon Winter Championships.

The 2010 USA Triathlon Winter Champions repeated their wins from 2009 as Colorado residents Brian Smith and Rebecca Dussault took the victory at the Battle at Solider Hollow on Saturday.

Men’s race

Smith tackled his second straight winter victory with a time of 1:09:32.9 in the super quick run-bike-cross country ski event. No swimming takes place in the winter events. Jay Henry (Avon, Colo.) placed second just over a minute behind Smith with a time of 1:10:38.7. Superhuman fifty-year-old Mike Kloser (Vail, Colo.), who won the 2007 and 2008 titles, took third at 1:13:55.1.

Women’s race

Rebecca Dussault placed fourth and won the women’s title with a time of 1:16:55.5. In a duplicate of last year’s event, Emma Garrard (Park City, Utah) finished as runner-up (1:23:47.1), while Heather Best (Fairbanks, Alaska) took third (1:29.14.0).

Note: The top three finishers on both the men’s and women’s side qualified for the U.S. squad for the 2010 ITU Winter Triathlon World Championship in Eidsvoll, Norway, taking place on Feb. 13th.

A member of the U.S. Olympic Nordic Ski Team in 2006, Dussault will wait to see if she is selected for the 2010 Vancouver team. If not, she is expected to join the Team USA contingent in Norway next month.

In addition to serving as the USAT winter championship event, Saturday’s race was also an ITU Winter Triathlon World Cup and the Pan-American Championships.

For more triathlon news please follow me at twitter.com/Glutenfreetri and head on over to my more updated Examiner website.

Triathlon training doesn’t end on holidays, as many of you know. It supercedes birthdays and national holidays. If you’re not prepared for a triathlon, it will smother you. So yesterday I decided to head out for a nice long slow 9 mile run in honor of MLK Jr.

My ran began in historic Merchantville, NJ (info here on the city). I travelled past my old high school, Camden Catholic, and down 2 miles to Cooper River. There’s a 3.8-mile loop around the park that has a stupendous view of Philadelphia’s skyline on a clear day. Here’s a link to the park and some of its views. Pretty neat. There are several volleyball courts, bbq areas, a rowing center and a 1/4 mile beat up track. I used to jog the gravel track back in my high school track days.

So this run was the same as Friday’s 5 mile run except I added the 3.8-mile loop. This time around I didn’t hit the local playground and crank out push-ups and pull-ups. I kept it more sane and relaxing. Bikers, joggers, walkers were all in abundance on the sidewalk and dirt paths with a beautiful blue and 55 degree temp.

PS - Today I wrote a brief “How-To” article for my Examiner page.
Topic: How and where to sign up for a 2010 Pennsylvania triathlon. Please support me and click here to take a peek.

So that’s all for now. Tomorrow I will be providing some more fitness reports from my fresh 2010 triathlon training season.

-John F

Triathlon training doesn’t come easy, not even for professionals or seasoned veterans. It’s a challenge each day, but to overcome is the real reward, not the race. SO to add to my 2010 training I went for a 1 hour run in Camden County, NJ - my hometown area.

Run recap

Started at 1:30 pm which seemed to be the warmest part of the day. Good 10 minute pace for the first 5 miles. Legs good, no neck pain, shoulders moving in sync (sometimes my right shoulder aches a tad)… Stopped at local playground and cranked out some pull-ups, push-ups and abs. I wasn’t satisfied with just running today. Keep “you’re crazy” comments to yourself, thanks. I actually ran an old high school cross country route that my coach used to make us do 3x/week. Was weird to see everything looking exactly the same - 7-11 store, run down playgrounds.

For runners and readers, I posted my run route (click here to see) over at mapmyrun.com so you can try the route sometime if you’re ever in my area. If you’re not on mapmyrun.com or a similar site, get on it. It’s ez and very cool to share workouts and outdoor training routes with friends and fellow athletes. Pretty neat huh?

Today’s Examiner Article

Lastly, don’t forget I write for Examiner and I just posted a sweet short article about triathlon swimming tips on my Examiner page (click here to read). Thx for the support friends. Talk soon.

-John

Jenna’s Food Review of New Jersey restaurant Pasta Pomodoro

As an 18 year old who lives Gluten-Free, I like to go out to eat with my friends, especially to places with Gluten-Free Menu’s. I frequent Pasta Pomodoro in Voorhees, New Jersey most often. It is one of my favorite restaurants. The staff there is so friendly and they even recognize me when I go in!

The place is very inviting and there are tons of signs outside advertising Gluten-Free food! When you walk in there is a table to your left with brochures and other information about Gluten-Free lifestyles. Pasta Pomodoro has a Gluten-Free Menu with about 15 items on it such as pizza, garlic bread, pasta, and sandwiches, but 90% of the items on their menu can be made Gluten-Free if you ask. The only negative side to this restaurant is the fact that the bread they bring you is not Gluten-Free. Hopefully in the future they will put Gluten-Free bread baskets on the tables, instead of bread you have to order.

I ordered a balsamic chicken sandwich with lettuce, tomato, and roasted peppers. It is a very big sandwich and very filling. The bread is very good and is the same type of bread they use for the garlic bread, so I would not suggest ordering both at the same time.

• Pasta Pomodoro Rating: I rate my experiences here 5 stars.

Jenna’s Little Bio

Jenna is a young student at Alrbight College in Pennsylvania. She will be contributing to the site with firsthand food reviews and much more! Please support her efforts and welcome her to the site! You can follow her on twitter at twitter.com/sillyyak11.

You can follow all my tweets as well at twitter.com/Glutenfreetri

Gluten-free nutritional store coming SOON!!

Hi gang! I wanted to announce I will be partnering with a local New Jersey company to create a gluten-free friendly nutritional and supplements store. Yes, you read right!

So - what’s the store all about?

There will be specific items for sale that meet the needs of both the celiac and gluten-free communities. Everything will be certified by my amazing nutritionist to make sure all items are safe! Awesome huh?? And yeah, the store will carry items for those not a gluten-free diet too - I know you were curious!

Gluten-free sports supplements and nutrition STORE coming soon!!he store will also carry other “regular” items for those not on a gluten-free diet as well in case you’re wondering.

SO I’m thrilled to get the store out to you guys!!

I decided I’d be a part of this back in December… but my neck injury sorta thwarted those plans. Anyway, look out for the store coming REAL soon. We are kicking around names at the moment so if you have something catchy and on point with the goal, leave a comment below! I’ll give you a super nice % off coupon on your first order with my store and a free shout-out on my site here… and a thumbs up photo from my treadmill ( had to add something silly in there c’mon!!).

So anyway, the store will be up and running within a week. The company I am working with is absolutely fantastic and they’ve been following me for years during my triathlon endeavors.

Talk soon peeps!
John F