Lightweight Eats

First off, happy belated birthday to my big sister! Her birthday was yesterday, but thankfully not on Thanksgiving yet again. And happy Thanksgiving to everybody else.

This week, I am thankful for...

Rowers: Just in time for your Christmas wishlist, this is a list of my favorite places to go find great rowing gear. There are very few rowing specific brands, so I've had to cobble together pieces from different sources. Save yourself some time and check these place out! I've tried to give the lowest cost option without losing quality.

In high school, I never got cold, so I survived with a few pairs of spandex shorts and cotton t-shirts. I had a few technical long sleeves for the coldest winter days, and suffered a few winter mornings.

In college, Princeton provided Nike gear for student athletes. We got a lot of great stuff: long tights, long sleeve tops, short sleeves tops, unisuits, sports bras and more. That gear has been the basis of my wardrobe ever since. But it's getting to the point where that is no longer enough, especially as the older items start to wear out.

The Nike gear we were given was of high quality, especially the cold weather gear. I wear each pair of the long tights at least once a week for 6 months of the year, and the only visible wear is from rips and snaps I've created. I've owned some of them since 2008. So when it was time to restock gear, I definitely went to Nike.

There's a Nike Outlet in the east bay that has some great deals, especially on non-basics. Black tights and plain sports bras rarely make it there, but I picked up an awesome collection of long sleeve technical shirts that were apparently so-last-season. Since I'm hoping these will last me for 5 more years, I'm not too worried. I love the Nike Outlet because you pay super low prices for great, long-lasting gear.

Their labeling system is also really helpful. Most gear is labeled as either "hyperwarm" or "hypercool". It turns out, some long sleeve shirts are meant to cool you down, not warm you up. It's good to know which is which before you wear a thick wicking shirt out into the winter rain.

Since the outlet isn't great for basics, I have to look elsewhere for those.

Sports bras are one of the least important basics for rowing, so I usually go relatively cheap on these. I have a few dedicated running bras, but the super low impact of rowing means I don't need much support. I strongly prefer a racer back and thinner straps help prevent bad tan lines. (Pro tip: so does sunscreen.) I've had success purchasing these at Forever 21, although the quality varies. Nothing beats their prices. Target's Champion brand also has some decent (and cheap) sports bras. I've also purchased some sports bras, running shorts and racerback tanks from Old Navy with success.

So far, only one company has produced an acceptable spandex short for rowing: JL Racing. They seem to wear out after about 2.5-3 years of weekly (or twice weekly) usage, which is a lot better than other brands (especially since they take a lot of abuse from the seat). They're the only company that has nailed the fit: long enough but not too long, enough room in the seat, and double thickness where the seat hits the fabric.  The waist doesn't pinch, the compression is just enough to prevent chafe, and they're generally comfortable. (Note: if you're a woman, get the women's cut trou!!! They're very different.)

I've been uninspired by JL's other products. Their long tights don't come in a women's cut and don't have enough room for serious rower thighs.  I bought some of their super warm tights about three years ago and found that they aren't very warm. And the low back on their tech shirts means I have a bare belly when I'm standing around on land—not very flattering.

Tights have been very difficult to find. I tried products from Lululemon, Nike, Patagonia, SmartWool, R.E.I., GAP and more. They were all unflattering, not stretchy enough, poorly fitted or poorly constructed.

Finally, I went into Athleta and found what I was looking for. Their products are on the lower end of the price bracket for similar quality items. The feel is similar to Lululemon, but I find the material they use to be a lot more pleasant to wear. (I'm not a fan of Luon.)

Although they only carry women's clothing, they've got a lot of options for tights. I got one of their newer styles, the PowerLuxe Revelation tight, which feels like wearing technical cotton. Their labeling isn't very informative in the store, but the staff were really helpful and knowledgeable. The website is also a bit confusing because there are so many options (each individual color has a separate entry, so there is a lot to navigate). If you live nearby, go into the store and ask for help finding the best options. Some criteria to consider: breathability, warm, length, comfort and stretchiness.

The last piece of gear: headwear. A lot of people wear sunglasses. I'm a hat person. Hats are good for sun and good for rain, and hats never fog up. Hats also keep your hair and sweat out of your eyes. I have a small head, so hats can be hard to fit; my favorite so far is Headsweats. I also love that the ponytail holders on their hats don't have velcro, just a clip!

That's a summary of where I get my athletic gear. I have a few pieces from elsewhere: socks, tanks, etc. For the most part, though, I find what I like best, and I buy a lot when it's on sale.

Here's what I've got in my wardrobe:
Spandex shorts
Running shorts
Socks (incl. a few wool pairs)
Sneakers
Sports bras
Tanktops
Technical T-shirts
Technical longsleeves (warm and cool)
Tights (warm only)
Hats
A windproof vest

Note: None of these companies are sponsoring me. I just really like their stuff. Of course, if anybody wants to send me things to try and review, send me an email at lightweighteats (at) gmail (dot) com! When I find something I like, I make sure everybody knows about it.

Last Thanksgiving, we'd been vegan for about a month before Thanksgiving rolled around. We were still too new to feel comfortable at the Thanksgiving table. Despite the plethora of articles about navigating the holidays as a vegan, there are very few about welcoming vegans, or really anybody with an allergy or food intolerance. These are some of the things that would have made the vegan Thanksgiving experience a little bit more manageable.

1. Print recipe cards. We do our Thanksgiving as a potluck so it's particularly difficult to check ingredients since who knows who brought what. This one is easy to pass off as a kind gesture—if you like the food, take a recipe. Plus, it lets people decide for themselves if each food fits their dietary needs. You won't have to remember whether barley has gluten and if the chocolate chips have dairy in them. (Bonus points if you include the brand you used—many experience vegans know which brands are vegan.)

2. Make some super safe dishes. Roasted sweet potatoes and beets with olive oil (gluten free, vegan, paleo, nut/seed free). Baby spinach, walnuts, dried cranberries, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic (gluten free, vegan, raw, paleo, low carb). Fresh fruit salad for dessert (gluten free, vegan, raw, paleo, nut/seed free—seriously, who doesn't eat fresh fruit?) These dishes are also easy to prepare, making your life easier!

3. Send out a rough menu plan ahead of time. If I know my dinner options are mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce, I will come prepared with snacks. I may even volunteer to bring a small vegan-friendly dish, like I did for my family's Christmas celebrations last year.

4. Ask your guests to inform you of any allergies or dietary restrictions! That way you can avoid using the peanut butter spoon to stir the fruit salad if necessary, or switch to olive oil instead of butter where possible. A lot of people with dietary restrictions don't want to impose on their gracious hosts and choose to eat less rather than allow their hosts to provide options.

Any other tips?

This week brought the first rain of the season (not counting the weird September downpour). I'm thankful for...

Most endurance athletes have been taught to carb-load prior to racing. I tend to do the opposite before racing. Carb-loading is effective for races lasting more than two hours, similar to our long practice sessions. Our longest races don't last more than 25 minutes, so we don't need the increased glycogen storage required for endurance events.

Moreover:

"Glycogen storage is associated with a concomitant storage of water." - marathontraining.com 

 In other words, carb-loading causes weight gain due to water retention. This is important for endurance events, where consuming calories and liquids are difficult. For a lightweight rower, it spells disaster.

Instead, my pre-race dinners focus on foods higher in protein and fat and lower in carbohydrates (including fiber). This quinoa salad was perfect: filling but light and easy to digest.

The directions are simple.
Cook your quinoa (about 2 cups dry, if you want leftovers) and let it cool.
Steam some greens (I used baby chard and spinach, about 4 cups worth) and cool them.

Chop and mix in a big bowl: a few handfuls of cranberries, toasted hazelnuts, a tart apple, two celery stalks, and a cucumber. Add the quinoa and greens, and top with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper and paprika.

Serve room temperature.

This would also be great with some chopped parsley and/or some julienned carrots.

Last year, I executed this race very poorly. The fall speed order is a two part race: 6000 meters on the rowing machine on Saturday followed by a 4000 meter race on the water on Sunday. My inexperience with weigh-ins along with overconfidence led to a disappointing Saturday erg test. I paid for that on Sunday—my legs were suffering way too early.

This year, I did a lot more preparation and planning. My weight management was not perfect, but it showed improvement—two weeks out I was about 3.5 pounds off of weight (rather than the 6 pounds of last year). That allowed me to train smarter and recover better in the weeks leading up to race day.

Over the past few weeks, we have done some great 6km prep workouts:
3000 meters at 6k goal pace minus 3 seconds (per 500m split)
4000 meters at 6k goal pace (or faster)
5000 meters at 6k goal pace + 2s (/500m) for 1km, + 1.5s for 1km, + 1s for 1km, + 0.5s for 1km, + 0s for 1km
6 x 250 meters practicing the start sequence, with 6 minutes rest between

The first workout gave me confidence that I could pull fast numbers, the second that I could finish the full length, the third that I could increase speed over the distance, and the fourth that I could find my rhythm.

Saturday morning was spent passing time until the weigh-in. I woke up way earlier than necessary (habit) and watched about 4 episodes of Flashpoint before getting bored. Dan and I went for a walk, I munched on some nuts (high calorie, low weight), and generally twiddled my thumbs. By the time I got to the boathouse, I was ready to go!!!

Saturday's erg went almost according to plan. Although there was a last minute change in schedule (and an added Sunday weigh-in, much to my chagrin), I managed my nerves and stress successfully. My erg malfunctioned right at the start, but I quickly fixed the problem and got started. I took advantage of the opportunity to sit between two silver medalists from the World Championships this summer and did my best to hang onto their pace. I ended up less than a second from a personal best, which is a great way to start the season! My score was 5th out of the lightweight women.

Sunday morning, I was up early and off to the boathouse for another weigh-in. My priority for the morning was getting a long enough warm-up, so after the weigh-in, I ate breakfast and got ready to go. I shoved off the dock about 40 minutes before the start and got in a really productive warm-up.

I had bow #1 and a fast competitor starting right behind me. (The race is a time trial, so boats start at 30 second intervals and race the clock.) I knew it would be tough to beat her time, so my goal was to stay in front. She steered a great course, which made it even more difficult, but my cheering section at 1250m to go helped me pull off a great time in the last 1000m. I placed 4th on the water—a great result.

Ultimately, this race was a well-executed, successful experience. My results were fast and encouraging, and I'm looking forward to gaining more speed over the next few months. The next racing opportunity will be at the first National Selection Regatta in April and I'm hoping to improve from this year's 10th place finish. This also marks my last race as a member of the California Rowing Club. Although I'll miss proudly wearing the California flag, I'm really excited to transition to GMS for the next season.

If you follow me on Goodreads (which you should! send me recommendations!) you'll see that I've been reading a lot. Consider The Shallows a book about why you should read a lot, too. More than that, it's a book about technology and your brain. It asks you to question the technologies we've welcomed into our lives and gives you the tools and knowledge to do just that.

And on top of all that, it's an incredibly well-written book. I'm not sure I can recommend it more highly.

The book ties into a recent theme in my training, as well: sports psychology. Over the summer, we met with a psychologist as a group which I found very helpful. Since then, I've begun to take my brain a bit more seriously.

In The Shallows, Nicholas Carr argues that the internet has decreased our ability to focus for long periods of time. And while it has given us other abilities, like parsing large volumes of information for specific keywords, mental endurance is a key component for rowing. A productive row can require intense mental focus for upwards of two hours. And while not every row requires that kind of focus, more focus means faster improvement, especially on technical issues.

This Runner's World article talks about building mental endurance for PR's in marathons. We row a marathon most weekends, and half marathons almost every day. Shouldn't the same apply?

I don't want to underestimate the value of rapid data processing. During a race, I have to be able to interpret a variety of inputs: heart rate, stroke rate, wind conditions, 500m splits, other boats locations, time elapsed, distance remaining, audio and visual cues from my teammates, audio and visual cues from referees and more. Certainly tools like Twitter and link-heavy online articles help me process those with minimal brain power (important during a race).

But if 95% of the work happens before you arrive at the starting line, I suspect that closer to 95% of my mental training should be focused on improving my mental endurance. And, as Carr argues, the best place to do that is between the covers of a book.