newsletter

BPC Newsletter

Issue 006
April 2009

by: Ali Winslow

Happy Winter to All! With all the snow we have had in the past few weeks, it's definitely been a challenge to get ourselves out for that workout. Beat your winter doldrums with indoor cycling classes at Landry's, master's swim workouts, coached BPC swim workouts coming up in March, or join us for ongoing group strength training. There are fantastic training and racing opportunities, from the indoor time trials, to various 5K and 10K races, and we are especially looking forward to the Boston Triathlon Team indoor time trial at Landry's on March 1st.

You will also notice that aliwinslowsports has now changed to bostonperformancecoaching.com

This year AWS has grown from 1 coach, to 2 coaches, a nutritionist, massage therapist, chiropractic and physical therapy. I believe that we are a "performance team" and thus felt that it was time that the coaching company change it's name to reflect all of our services. When you work with BPC, you aren't just getting an endurance coach. BPC offers a broad multifaceted approach to training and racing. We offer all of our services and work together as a team to be the best coaching program with a "wellness" approach to coaching. Metabolic Performance Testing Now offered at BPC!
Looking for the best indicator of your fitness? Wondering why you aren't improving your race times? Wish you could lose those few nagging pounds?
Well, look no further! At BPC we are now offering a full metabolic test. This includes a resting metabolic rate test (RMR=how many calories your body burns at "rest), a VO2 Max (maximal oxygen consumption), and RQ/Max Power (respiratory quotient)- how many calories you burn at different heart rate training zones, and of those calories, how many come from carbohydrates, fats and proteins. With the results of this test, every athlete will be able to tailor their training with the exact knowledge of heart rate training zones and nutrition.
See BPC website for more information and pricing. BPC is offering a full line of winter and spring running gear, available for custom orders! We also have running hats (headsweats) available in white, black, navy and gray. Email Ali Winslow for any purchases! Join Coach Ali Winslow of Boston Performance Coaching and Coach Victor A. Brown, Associate Strength and Conditioning Coach at Boston University, for a hands-on 2 hour workshop designed to help the multisport athlete integrate an effective strength conditioning program into their training.

Strength training prepares the body for the rigors of training and racing. It combats factors that contribute to overuse injuries, encourages bone health and counteracts muscle imbalances. This workshop will show you how strength training will

* Improve performance
* Enhance your resistance to injury
* Enhance your metabolic functions including lactate tolerance and economy

Each workshop participant will receive a bio foam roller, mini exercise band, and DVD with the training exercises covered during the workshop.

Click here to learn more and register. Boston Performance Coaches, Ali Winslow and Vic Brown present a 6 week series on triathlon swimming to prepare you for the open water racing season. Each session will include a warm up, a main set workout, and then a dedicated focus on specific triathlon skills. We encourage all levels, from beginning swimmer or triathlete, to the advanced swimmer and athlete. We have exclusive use of the pool during our sessions and will divide up the group according to ability. Every week the clinic will have a focus, as listed below. Each athlete will have time to work with the coaches as needed; private and semi private sessions are also available.

The purpose of this series of classes will be to prepare triathletes for the intensity of racing in open water. The coaches will lead a warmup, a fitness set, and then focus on different open water drills and skills for the duration of the workout. Here's the schedule:
March 27th Time Trial for baseline fitness, Sighting and Spotting
April 3rd Drafting and Mass Starts in Shallow Water
April 10th Transition workout #1, rounding buoys
April 17th Time Trial #2, distance effort, Mass Starts in Deep Water
April 24th Swimming and Drafting in a Pack
May 1st Transition workout #2, Putting it all together for racing

The cost for the clinic: $110 for 6 1hr workouts.
Click here to learn more and register. by: Michael Mansueto Leidig, RD, LDN, CPT

Birds are chirping and the temperatures are rising... ahh, spring is in the air. The warmer weather is a good reminder to pay attention to adequate hydration and to prevent its arch-nemesis dehydration. For many athletes, the negative impact of alcohol consumption is often overlooked. Alcohol contributes to dehydration and extra calories. If you've ever had a beer, martini, or cosmopolitan - and then had to find a bathroom quickly - you've experienced the dehydrating effect of alcohol. Alcohol is a diuretic and eventually depletes your hydration levels. As an athlete, you know that is problematic.

Many don't realize that alcohol also adds plenty of extra calories to a well-defined eating plan. You might think, "No problem. I'll just do extra cardio. What's a few more miles, a few more laps?" However, people tend to underestimate the extra wallop of additional calories. Why? Because alcoholic beverages are most often consumed in multiples. A couple of beers. A second glass of wine. A third fruity umbrella drink. So, the caloric intake from alcohol multiplies more rapidly than imagined. This can wreak havoc on your waist line.

Does this mean you can't sit back and have a drink or two with friends, family or colleagues? No - it just means that it helps to pay attention to when, what, and how much you are drinking. The "when" is easy. Downing alcohol the night before a race will lead to dehydration, and not surprisingly, a less-than-stellar performance. The "what" and "how much" require a little more discussion. The table below uses marshmallows to illustrate the number of calories consumed with various alcoholic beverages. Eye opening, isn't it? The drinks range from the equivalent of 3 marshmallows for a shot of liquor or a small glass of wine-not bad-to 28 marshmallows (yikes!) for an 8-ounce margarita.

Alcoholic Drinks	Serving Size (Ounces)	Calories	Equivalence
Liquor (rum, vodka, whiskey)	1	70	3 marshmallows
Wine	3	75	3 marshmallows
Light Beer	12	100	5 marshmallows
Bloody Mary	5	125	6 marshmallows
Dessert Wine/Sherry	3	125	6 marshmallows
Beer	12	150	7 marshmallows
Gin and Tonic	8	175	8 marshmallows
Rum and Coke	8	182	8 marshmallows
Martini (vodka/gin only)	3	195	9 marshmallows
Malt Beverages/Wine Coolers	12	220	10 marshmallows
Daiquiri	4	226	10 marshmallows
Long Island Iced Tea	8	228	10 marshmallows
Margarita	8	542	28 marshmallows

It's tempting to think that the take away message might be to sit at the bar and down a few shots. It's not. The key message is to be aware of the calories you consume when you drink. For the same amount of calories, you can have 1 regular beer or 2 glasses of wine. Rather than order a rum and coke (182 calories), try a rum and diet coke which saves 70 calories.

When choosing to drink alcohol, choose wisely. You could certainly run an extra 5 miles to burn off a single 8-ounce margarita. But that's probably not part of your training program and it's definitely not providing you with an ergogenic edge.

by: Vic Brown, MS, CSCS, NSCA-CPT, ATC

INTRODUCTION
The maximal rate at which oxygen can be taken up, distributed to working muscles, and used by the body during exercise can be defined as VO2max. Endurance athletes such as triathletes, rowers, and cyclists have some of the highest measured VO2 values because their sports require the presence of oxygen. One of the highest values ever recorded was in cross country skiing (93 ml/kg/min), a sport where most of the major muscles groups are being used. VO2max is often expressed in relation to body weight (milliliters of oxygen consumed per kilogram of body weight per minute) which allows us to compare people of different size.

TESTING FOR VO2MAX
VO2max can be measured on the treadmill or bike, but it is recommended that testing be specific to the sport you are training for. Stages are typically 1 to 3 minutes in length and are accompanied by either an increase in speed, wattage, and/or treadmill incline. Graded exercise testing for physical fitness is non invasive. Individuals are asked to where a heart rate monitor for determining maximal heart rate and are asked to wear a mask that captures exhaled air to be measured.

For a VO2max test to be valid, parameters must be met. First, the maximal heart rate measured during the test must fall within +/- 10 beats of their predicted heart rate. For example, during testing my heart rate reached 191 beats/min. Based on the prediction equation 220 - age (220 - 31 yrs), the first requirement was met because my predicted heart rate was 189 beats/min which falls within the +/- 10 beats parameter. The second requirement is a respiratory exchange ratio (R value) of at least 1.1. The R value is the ratio between carbon dioxide produced during exercise and the amount of oxygen consumed. At light intensities, more oxygen is consumed and fat is the primary fuel source. As exercise intensities increase, this ratio will begin to change and carbohydrates will eventually become the primary source of energy during high intensity exercise. Fats are the fuel source at an R value of 0.71 and carbohydrates at 1.0 while both are used equally at 0.85. The point at which carbohydrates versus fats becomes your primary fuel source along with a corresponding heart rate can be determined during testing.

VO_2max NORMS (ml/kg/min)

	Low	Fair	Avg	Good	High	Athletic	Olympic
Women 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-65	<28 <27 <25 <21	29-34 28-33 26-31 22-28	35-43 34-41 32-40 29-36	44-48 42-47 41-45 37-41	49-53 48-52 46-50 42-45	54-59 53-58 51-56 46-49	60+ 59+ 57+ 50+
Men 20-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69	<38 <34 <30 <25 <21	39-43 35-39 31-35 26-31 22-26	44-51 40-47 36-43 32-39 27-35	52-56 48-51 44-47 40-43 36-39	57-62 52-57 48-53 44-48 40-44	63-69 58-64 54-60 49-53 45-49	70+ 65+ 61+ 56+ 50+

Low

Fair

Avg

Good

High

Athletic

Olympic

Women

20-29

30-39

40-49

50-65

<28

<27

<25

<21

29-34

28-33

26-31

22-28

35-43

34-41

32-40

29-36

44-48

42-47

41-45

37-41

49-53

48-52

46-50

42-45

54-59

53-58

51-56

46-49

60+

59+

57+

50+

Men

20-29

30-39

40-49

50-59

60-69

<38

<34

<30

<25

<21

39-43

35-39

31-35

26-31

22-26

44-51

40-47

36-43

32-39

27-35

52-56

48-51

44-47

40-43

36-39

57-62

52-57

48-53

44-48

40-44

63-69

58-64

54-60

49-53

45-49

70+

65+

61+

56+

50+

Ras Na Heireann 5K

 
22/189  M4049   21:14  6:50 Michael Yenke         
72/576  M3039   21:25  6:54 Silas Bauer            
20/805  F3039   22:23  7:13 Ali Winslow            
4/807   F3039   20:05  6:28 Lauren Ross Cullings

BTT Time Trial

 
Name              wave  finish time  heat pl  avg mph   avg watts
ROBYN METCALFE     MW    22:38.83       6      16.96      166.25
MIKE YENKE         MM    20:19.15       3      18.9       308.07
VIC BROWN          OM    21:26.8        1      17.91      233.02
TRISH KELLY        MW    26:31.58       6      14.48      170.4
Bret Fortenberry   CM    21:17.94       3      18.03      231.11
RONALD ULICH       MM    21:40.2        4      17.73      268.45
ALI WINSLOW        OW    21:07.73       2      18.18      220.53

LIZ KENNEDY        OW    23:33.87       5      16.3       184.64
NANCY ARENA        MW    23:33.9        5      16.3       172.32
JESS DOUGLAS       OW    23:53.51       4      16.07      176.58

Hyannis Half Marathon and 10K

 
4/43   M3039   44:37  7:11   44:37 Bret Fortenberry 
3/83   F3039   45:34  7:20   45:34 Ali Winslow     
1/7    F6069   57:11  9:13   59:41 Robyn Metcalfe

Half Marathon:

 
 49/75   CLYO1 2:03:14  9:24 2:03:14  John Fox           
180/330  F3039 2:05:35  9:35 2:05:35  Kathryn Leviness                                           
181/330  F3039 2:05:36  9:35 2:05:36  Lindsay Sones

Cambridge City 5 miler:

 
39:48  John Fox

Cohasset 10k:

 
24/248  M3039   43:12  6:57   43:15  Bret Fortenberry 
12/280  F3039   45:16  7:17   45:19  Alison Winslow 
66/248  M3039   48:07  7:45   48:50  David Cleary  
153/217 F1829 1:01:37  9:55 1:02:20  Elizabeth Cleary

BAA 5k:

 
27:02:00  1399/3523	552/2022  6/44    Robyn Metcalfe
22:30     405/3523	74/2022   10/264  Jessica Doublas

Boston Marathon:

 
 pace      time   all  gender div 
0:07:49   3:25:00 5832  774   644   Lauren Cullings 
0:07:53   3:26:26 6193  5330  2880  Mark Vautour
0:08:43   3:48:12 12613 3771  2635  Erica Allen  
0:09:00   3:55:54 14586 4844  924   Christine Guenther
0:10:16   4:29:06 19697 7721  4230  Lindsay Sones

Wrentham Duathlon: