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Seeing the Bigger Picture...

sponge-bob-sandwich.gifBy Deanna Pomfret (usatriathlon.org)

At a recent party a spunky 10-year-old came hopping into the room, grabbed a cracker off the cheese and cracker platter and started bouncing away. Her mother called after her, “don’t you want some calcium and protein with that cracker?” The kid just looked at her mom blankly and quickly backed away.

When on earth did we start calling cheese, calcium and protein? Why not just ask her if she wants some cheese? And why the need for cheese? Who cares anyway if she just has a cracker. She wouldn’t be able to bounce around so well weighted down with cheese in her belly anyway.

Children are more instinctive than we adults who get bogged down with nutrient facts and what is good or bad for us. This child knew what her body was looking for, saw the choices available and picked the cracker. She didn’t think too hard about it. She didn’t know this, but she needed quick energy to get back on task — which was playing. We don’t need to teach children about protein and calcium as much as we need to learn from them how to eat without so much analysis....

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Get Over It!

eeyore_cloud.gifUPDATES: ZITUR three-peated at WALKER TRI this morning. HOSCH trashed the men's CR. RESULTS

Guess who won the HOOT LAKE TRIATHLON today? We'll give you some hints. He's a local guy who's won the race several times before. His name rhymes with JAVID DENSEN. RESULTS

 

By Duncan Larkin (triathlon.competitor.com)


Ask any Olympian about their experiences competing at the top of his or her sport and it’s a good bet they’ll not only mention the highs of their career, but also the lows.

Even elite athletes are human beings and being human means having to deal with setbacks. For endurance athletes, whether you’re an elite athlete or an aspiring age-group competitor, lows usually come in the form of a bad race or terrible workout that fell far short of expectations. It’s when we let these bad experiences fester that training and racing can go from something that brings us joy and peace to something that makes us feel irritated, stressed or even depressed.

Next time you have a race or workout that doesn’t go as planned, employ these tried-and-true tips from elite-level athletes to move past an unplanned setback....

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"...Bemidji...Always a Special Place..."

ryan-and-women.gifBy Ryan Wippler

PAUL BUNYAN TRIATHLON RACE REPORT - Race Day: I was feeling a bit beat up still from Granite Man Clear Lake, but the only bummer of the day was that due to road construction we were not able to run past the giant Paul Bunyan and Babe statues.  That trivial disillusionment aside, Bemidji will always be a special place for me; I guess because I probably wouldn’t exist without it.  My parents met at Bemidji State, “the university on the lake”, as my late father, Patrick would reminisce.  Growing up I remember attending a myriad of fairs, festivals, 4th of July fireworks, parades, picnics, days on the lake-heck, even hockey camps, in this fine city.  [Fun Fact #1: my mother, Diane Wippler, was voted Miss Congeniality of the 1971 Miss Bemidji Contest.]  Although, the weatherman had threatened severe storms with damaging hail overnight, the early morning ambience at Cameron Park could have not been more agreeable with the sun rising and reflecting off Lake Bemidji bathing the triathletes in a warm morning glow as they busied themselves with transition setup.  Times like these make me forget about 3:45 a.m. wake up times followed by 2 1/2 hr drives.  Man, I love our state. ...

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Psychological Recovery...

Stretch-lady.gifBy Molly Breslin (usatriathlon.org)

Unfortunately, most of us have experienced an illness or an injury that has sidelined us from our athletic pursuits. It's challenging enough to deal with these events from a physical standpoint. Managing the psychological aspects of the recovery process is just as important as managing the physical ones and can make or break your return to optimum athletic performance.

We all talk about the rational mind — but the mind can be terribly irrational when dealing with events that have emotional components to them. Triathlon isn't just swim, bike and run with a bunch of gear, training plans, race dates and entry fees. It's something we've committed to, it gives us purpose, makes us happy, diminishes our stress, and provides a social network....

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Protectors & Servers and Toughmen...

toughman-logo.gifMINI RACE PREVES - There are five races next weekend and we'd love to preview all of them. But alas, we cannot. We only know who is racing at two of those events--Saturday's Walker Tri and Sunday's Toughman Minnesota, formerly the Chisago Half and Sprint. The other three races are Uncle Randy's Shell Lake Tri in western Wisconsin, the Moose Lake Tri south of Duluth, and the long-running Hoot Lake Tri near Fungus Falls, which is actually "Fergus Falls," but Angie Hop calls it Fungus Falls. We certainly hope that all these races enjoy great weather, good turnouts and satisfied participants....

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