Blatchford’s 18 year racing career began in the ITU circuit in 2000 and transitioned to long course racing in 2012, winning her first Ironman at Cairns in 2013. Her career boasts victories in various 70.3 races, Ironman Cairns, and the Ironman World Championships in Kona. To top off an epic career, she was inducted into the Ironman Hall of Fame in 2022.
Blatchford attributes her success in triathlon to her nutrition, gut training, and trust in the professionals around her. Her approach challenges the current trend in triathlon of carbohydrate restriction and emphasises the importance of individualised training and nutrition strategies.
Blatchford recalls working with her sports dietitian, Greg Cox, to dial up her carbohydrate intake to 2 grams per kilogram of body weight per hour on the bike, a level that Taryn notes is considered "way up there" for most athletes. Blatchford says...
As an Advanced Sports Dietitian, I can help you with your training and a meal/race plan and I've worked with many triathletes, both 1:1 and in the Triathlon Nutrition Academy. What I, and they, can tell you, is the long term benefits kick in when you engage further - take ownership, prioritise your overall health and learn and understand the foundations - the HOW and WHY of nutrition.
My 3 nutrition habits you should be doing every day to help improve your performance as a triathlete:
FRESH FRUIT AND VEGGIES, NUTS, SEEDS, LEGUMES
For the majority of you, it is a mistake, because you're not going to be able to tolerate that level of fueling.
FIRSTLY – I have a food first philosophy. It is extremely easy to get enough protein from food without the need to supplement.
As a supplement, that’s exactly what they should be used as: an addition to a balanced diet when you can’t get enough protein through real food for whatever reason.
Academy member, Renee, is a great example of how eating more strategically, instead of constantly trying to eat less and cutting carbohydrates, can lead to body fat loss, without really trying.
In our recent podcast episode, Renee shared her nutrition journey prior to seeking support from an endurance sports dietitian specialist. She’s been on a big ride (pun intended) and has seen many nutritionists, dietitians, naturopaths etc.
The body is smart. It will give you some warning signs if you’re not fuelling properly. Some warning signs will be a light touch like a feather, others will be harder like a brick being thrown at you or, louder still, like being hit by a truck!!
Did you know that your body fuels training first, before spending energy to support our daily bodily functions – like breathing, digesting, growing, and living!!??
I asked Andy King, exercise physiologist at the Australian Catholic University, to join me on a recent podcast episode. Andy co-authored the review paper on all of the research to date on hydrogels and their effect on endurance exercise performance. So there was no one better suited to answer these questions for us!
Over the years, I’ve definitely seen a movement away from commercial sports nutrition products to more real foods on the bike. But what types of foods are going to help your performance?
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