DREAMT UP BY EGGHEAD AERODYNAMICS EXPERTS. BUILT BY OBSESSED ENGINEERS. COVETED BY THE FASTEST PROS ON EARTH.

The most advanced bicycle ever built to race against the clock. The all-new composite Trinity Advanced SL features every aero advantage. It’s stiff, agile and infinitely adjustable for the perfect fit. Add the groundbreaking AeroDrive stem/handlebar combination and aero tubing, its clear - the clock has met its match.

Tell me this isn’t ‘the dog’s’ huh? Wow, everything about this bike says ‘aero’. From the custom Aero Drive stem/handlebar combination at the front, to the tyre hugging aero tubing at the rear, this little dancer ticks all the boxes and certainly get’s my vote. There’s only one draw back with this monster though and that’s the price tag. If you’ve got money to throw at your bikes then the £9,545 price tag (zipps inc) shouldn’t be an issue, but for most of us mortals though that kind of money could easily be spent on a years supply of nappies instead! Contender for my ‘bike of the year 2009’? Oh yes..!!!

The full spec looks a little like this;
* Sizes S (53cm), M(56cm), L(58.5cm)
* Colours Team Blue/Composite
* Frame Advanced SL-Grade Aero Composite, Custom for Shimano Di2 electronic
* Fork Advanced SL-Grade Composite, Full Composite Steerer
* Shock N/A
* Handlebar Giant Trinity Advanced SL- Grade Composite Integrated Cockpit System
* Stem Giant Trinity Advanced SL-Grade, 3 positions
* Seatpost Giant Vector SL Composite Trinity, adjustable offset
* Saddle Fi’zi:k Arione Tri 2 w/ Braided Composite rails
* Pedals Not Included
* Shifters Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 electronic, TT 20 speed
* Front Derailleur Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 electronic
* Rear Derailleur Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 electronic
* Brakes Giant Trinity specific
* Brake Levers Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 electronic, TT
* Cassette Shimano Dura-Ace 11-21
* Chain Shimano Dura-Ace 7900
* Crankset Shimano Dura-Ace 7900, 39/53
* Bottom Bracket Shimano Dura-Ace, Internal Press Fit
* Rims [F] Zipp 808,[R] Zipp Sub 9
* Hubs Zipp
* Spokes Zipp
* Tyres Vittoria Crono Evo CS, 700×20mm tubular
* Extras Saddle Two bottle cage holder, Stem Fitting system

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For many of us, drinking alcohol is a rare but enjoyable social activity and with the Christmas party season just about upon us what better reason do you need to enjoy a little tipple. However, excessive drinking over the festive period can have a negative effect in terms of your body composition and weight and here’s why.

As most of you will know alcohol is made from the yeast fermentation of different fruits or grains including grapes, hops, apples and barley. Spirits are distilled and contain no sugar, while beers and wines have various amounts of sugar still remaining. Alcoholic beverages contain almost no nutritional value other than sugar, but they do contain calories. The list below will give you an idea of the approximate calorific value of each drink.

1 pint of draught bitter – 172 kcal (2 units)
330 ml can of premium lager – 196 kcal (2-3 units)
I pint dry cider – 207 kcal (2 units)
1 pint sweet cider – 241 kcal (2 units)
1 brandy, gin run or whiskey – 56 kcal (1 unit)
1 125 ml glass of wine – 85-100 kcal (1 unit)
1 125ml glass of port – 196 kcal (1-2 units)

From the numbers above you can see how easy it could be to rack up a massive amount of excess calories by having a the odd few pints or glasses of wine and before you know it you could have an extra couple of pounds on board!

There’s no reason why you can’t enjoy alcohol in moderation. The Department Of Health recommends up to 4 units a day (or 28 per week) for men and 3 units a day (or 21 units a week) for women as a safe upper limit! The daily limits are intended to discourage binge-drinking which is even more hazardous to health.

What happens to alcohol once in the body?
When we drink alcohol, about 20% is absorbed into the bloodstream through the stomach and the remainder through the small intestine. Most of the alcohol is then broken down in the liver (it cannot be stored as it is toxic). However, the liver can only carry out this job at a rate of approximately 1 unit of alcohol per hour. If you drink more alcohol than this, it is dealt with by a different enzyme system in the liver (MEO – microsomal ethanol oxidising system) to make it less toxic to the body. The more alcohol you drink on a regular basis, the more MEO enzymes are produced to deal with the increased levels of alcohol, which is why you can develop an increased tolerance to alcohol.

As we all know too much alcohol causes hangovers; headache, thirst, vomiting etc. These symptoms are partly due to dehydration and the swelling of the blood vessels in the head. Congeners, substances found mainly in darker alcoholic drinks such as red wine and rum, are also responsible for many of the hangover symptoms.

Research has shown that that alcohol drunk in moderation can reduce the risk of heart disease. The exact reason and mechanism for this is not certain. However scientists believe that this may be true because of the increased HDL cholesterol levels (the protective type of cholesterol in the blood). HDL transports cholesterol back to the liver for excretion, thereby reducing the risk of it sticking to artery walls.

Red wine, in particular, may be especially good for the heart. Studies have shown that drinking up to two glasses a day can lower heart disease by 30-70%. It contains ‘flavanoids’ from the grape skin, which have an antioxidant effect and help protect the LDL cholesterol from ‘free radical’ damage.

Remember prevention is better than cure, so make sure you follow sensible drinking guidelines over the coming festive period. If you feel like you’ve had too much to drink once you’ve returned home from your Christmas party (or parties!), remember to drink plenty of water or even a sports drink before you go to bed, at least 500ml/2-3 units. That way you’ll help increase blood sugar levels and dilute some of that alcohol floating about in your body. Avoid coffee or tea as these will make dehydration worse. Do not attempt to train (or race for that matter!!) with a hangover as you’ll be doing yourself no favours at all.

After all that please remember to enjoy yourself and have a wale of a ball!

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Congratulations to ‘Mlikeman’ who has been randomly selected as the winner of November’s special bi-monthly draw.

Just by registering with Trispace News, ‘Mlikeman’ has won a pair of ASICS Gel-Noosa TRI Unisex Running Shoes courtesy of asisctrainers.net.

Register with Trispace to be automatically entered into our bi-monthly draw.

Register now to have a chance of winning January’s prize, a pair of Endura Thermolite Arm Warmers like those below. Once registered and you remain registered, you’ll be entered into the draw automatically. Register by midnight 31st January 2010 for a chance of winning.

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Although technically not part of freestyle, the push-off from the wall while swimming in a pool is important for all swim strokes. It could be especially beneficial to those of you that race in pool based triathlons/aquathons who can’t tumble turn. Every time you push off the wall , you have an opportunity to improve your streamlined position. A good push off allows you to start each length with a little speed and good body position.

Take a glide off the wall then, then take 6 to 10 kicks (keeping your arms together in a streamlined position) and start stroking. The key is to time it properly. Do not start swimming immediately upon your feet leaving the wall. You should take a glide off the wall and then have a good strong kick before you start to pull. If you start kicking and pulling too soon or too late, you will slow yourself down from the speed that a good streamlined push-off provides.

Is a streamlined push-off in a sense cheating though? Not at all, as there are no walls in open water to push off and if you’re trying to match those who do ‘tumble’ at the end of the pool, you’re going to need all the extra ‘push’ you can get.

It is, in fact, one of the best things you can do to get faster. To become faster you’ll need to feel and know what ‘faster’ is. Due to the propulsion of the legs pushing off the wall and the reduced drag of a streamlined form, it is virtually impossible to swim any faster than the speed of a good push off. Next time you’re in the pool give it a go and notice how much quicker your body feels as it cuts through the dense water.

Don’t think of push-off’s as being a waste of time because of ‘open water’ reasoning. Yes, there are no walls in open water swimming, however if you can’t ‘tumble turn’ and compete in pool based races, a push off will assist in developing a good streamlined body position and should make you swim faster overall.

Happy training!!

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The latest subscription of ‘220 Triathlon’ landed on Saturday morning with great excitement as inside it had a full review of this years IM World Championships from Hawaii. The review of the race battles and various athlete profiles was great, along with the stunning Kona imagery.

However, what really caught my attention in the magazine was the editors choice ‘letter of the month’. To cut a long story short this guy wrote an interesting piece on how the achievements of the GB triathlon medal winners this year have been somewhat overlooked by the British media.

This is something that I’m also very disappointed with and something that needs to change. I’m sure most of the media out there still class triathlon as a ‘minority sport’. Triathlon is one of the fastest growing sports within the UK at present and with more and more regular members of the public taking up the sport I would say it’s growth maybe goes beyond the predictions of the British Triathlon Federation itself. This taken into consideration though, how many of the British media would rather write about triathlon instead of the ‘majority sports’, such as football, rugby and cricket? Get my point?

A recent response on the BBC’s site made comment on how the success of an individual in ‘minority sports’ should not be given the same status in awards ceremonies than people in ‘majority sports’. This comment came from a subscriber to the site and not one of the writers and went onto say that this was because it is much harder to excel in a sport which many people compete in, than it is for something like Ironman. Tell me you’re not shouting out loud at your PC screen at this point!

Yes, lots of people play and compete in the ‘majority sports’, like football, but most will play to a mediocre standard because these type of sports are easier to participate in, unlike the efforts involved in triathlon. Don’t get me wrong, I love football (as well as other sports) and played for the Army at a high standard so I’m not showing disrespect for any other sport here.

Perhaps this subscriber does not understand the commitment that triathlete’s make in order to excel in the sport. To compete at the top in triathlon takes a hell of a lot more than turning up for a mornings training on the football pitch and raking in ten’s of thousands of pounds per week for it. People maybe don’t realise that for most pro triathlete’s it’s more of a lifestyle choice, rather than just a job.

Another fault of the British media is that our sport of triathlon does not get as much live TV exposure as it should. I ended up watching this Octobers Ironman World Championships in Hawaii via a streamed feed from an American channel on the net. Now why couldn’t the UK broadcast this event live rather than airing a pre-recorded version four weeks later? Only recently have more of the ITU world cup events been broadcast live, however in my opinion this is still not enough.

I believe that all sports should be represented whether they are classed as ‘minority sports’ or not, and where true greats such as Chrissie Wellington emerge, they should be rewarded accordingly for their achievements. I wonder if the achievements of Chrissie will again be over-looked when the shortlists are finalised for this years BBC’s sports personality of the year?!?! What does this girl have to do to be recognised and nominated?

Well done to all GB triathletes for your achievements throughout the year, your efforts ‘do not’ go un-noticed by the fans, followers and competitors of triathlon. It’s just a shame the media don’t hold so much regard!

No further questions your honour!!

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Germany’s Michael Raelert and GB’s very own Julie Dibens claimed victory at the Foster Grant Ironman World Championship 70.3 in Clearwater yesterday. Michael Raelert earned the title and broke a course record with an overall time of 3:34:04. Julie Dibens, a top finisher at the event in recent years, held off the field and set a 70.3 course record, crossing the line at 3:59:33.

The fourth-annual event saw 1,438 athletes, ranging in age from 18 to 79 years old, officially start the 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike and 13.1-mile run. After cooler temperatures leading into the weekend, race day was sunny with temperatures in the low 70s F.

Men’s Top 5 Results
1. Michael Raelert, GER 3:34:04
2. Daniel Fontana, ITA 3:36:44
3. Matthew Reed, USA 3:37:40
4. Sylvain Sudrie, FRA 3:38:02
5. Joe Gambles, GBR 3:38:19

Womens Top 5 Results
1. Julie Dibens, GBR 3:59:33
2. Mary Beth Ellis, USA 4:03:49
3. Magali Tisseyre, CAN 4:05:27
4. Caroline Steffen, SUI 4:05:33
5. Laura Bennett, USA 4:07:39

You can get the full low-down on all Clearwater matters right here.

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Now you might think of ‘hard core’ endurance athletes as being solid to the core. But I bet there are very few that actually are, ‘solid to the core’. Some of you may include abdominal/core type exercises into your dry land training, however how effective these are at developing your core is another debate. As multi-sport athletes have you ever thought of incorporating Pilates into your training to enhance your core stability?…. Thought not!!

Once the word Pilates is mentioned, people tend to envisage of group of women lying about on spongy mats not looking like they’re doing much. Well think again, as a growing number of athletes across the widest range of sports now use Pilates for everything from injury prevention to developing core strength, flexibility, suppleness, co-ordination and longer, stronger muscles. More and more sports coaches now employ structural fitness exercises based on Pilates principles.

What is Pilates?
Pilates is a body conditioning technique designed to create inner strength and flexibility without building muscles. It concentrates on strengthening the core postural muscles, namely the transversus abdominus and internal obliques (corset muscles) and multifudus (muscles of the lower back). By learning to keep these muscles stabilised while executing slow, controlled, flowing movements, tight over strained muscles will learn to relax and lengthen and weak muscles will be strengthened. In short, Pilates concentrates on strengthening the core postural muscles to achieve stability in the trunk.

Pilates has been around for many years and was originally developed by a German man called Joseph Pilates. He opened his first Pilates studio in America in 1926 and since then the form of exercise has been taught throughout the world (albeit in slightly different forms) by many, but the one thing that remains consistant are the same principles of developing inner strength and flexibility without bulk. It may take a while to get the hang of Pilates and, at first, may seem like you are doing very little, however the long term gains of Pilates in general, not just in sport, are immense.

What are the benefits of Pilates?
The ability to stabilise the core, while at the same time being able to move the limbs effortlessly, not only reduces the risk of injury (especially to the spine and supporting muscles) but improves posture.

The direct benefits of Pilates for multi-sport athletes can potentially be vast. In swimming a leaner, longer and stronger core will enable you to hold your streamline body position in the water without dropping the legs for a greater length of time. A stronger core on the bike will ensure that you get maximum power transfer to the pedals and that you are able to hold your body position without tiring. On the run, a strong core will able you to maintain your run posture with ease instead of reducing form and placing greater stresses on the body

Most of all, Pilates lengthens and stretches the muscles of the body whilst strengthening them. Lengthening and stretching our muscles is something I’ve gone on about before and is sadly lacking from most of our training plans. However it still remains one the most important elements of training if you are serious about achieving your results, as it greatly reduces the risk of injury form tight or injured muscles.

Injuries do of course happen. After a sidelining injury, gentle and careful Pilates exercises remobilise the body, easing the damaged muscles, tendons and joints back into activity. The rebalancing effects of Pilates can also help to prevent the distortions caused when you try to compensate for the part of the body that has been out of use.

Correctly executed Pilates exercises not only aid in injury rehabilitation but are themselves so controlled and low impact that they are extremely safe. What’s more, the awareness of your body that they develop enables you to avoid the same injuries or problems recurring in the future.

Remember though that Pilates is non-cardiovascular and non-fat burning exercise so we still need to engage in all the other elements of multi-sport training that enable us to achieve. If you don’t believe me that Pilates can make a difference, try it, and as Joseph Pilates once said “In ten sessions you will feel the difference, in 20 you will see the difference, and in 30 you will have a whole new body.”

Happy Training!!

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Courtesy of Carey at boundless-energy.com, this total body exercise is an excellent way of promoting functional exercise with very little equipment. The exercise targets total body, taking in most of the major muscle groups in the body.

Start off with 15 reps, each rep should take about 1 second from start to finish . 15 reps equates to 1 complete ‘set’. Look to complete 3 sets and only increase the number of exercise reps once the exercise has become very easy. Please ensure that you maintain good form during the squat phase, keeping the knees parallel to the ground and feet shoulder width apart. Also try not to hyper-extend the lower back when your arms are fully extended above your head. If you feel the resistance is to great forcing you to hyper-extend, take a step forward to reduce the resistance on the training band. If you are unable to get to a gym then please make sure that your surroundings are sufficiently adequate so you can perform the exercise safely.

Make sure that you have completed a sufficient warm-up prior to starting the exercise and that you stretch the worked muscle groups upon exercise completion.

Please understand that exercise and physical activity, including the use of equipment is potentially hazardous. Participation in physical activity may result in injury and that you choose voluntarily to take part in these activities, including using any free weights, resistance or cardio equipment. Please be fully aware of the dangers involved. Be taking part in such exercises you therefore declare yourself to be physically sound and suffering from no condition, impairment, disease, infirmity, or illness that would prevent you from participating in physical activities, or exercise, and that you must therefore assume and accept any and all risk of injury and damage.

Happy Training!!

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With things coming to a close for 2009, it’s now time to think about the off-season and focusing on the most simple of triathlon disciplines, the run!

As long as you put one foot in front of the other at a faster pace than walking, then you’re on the right track. However, if you focus a little harder in a quest to improve your performance, you’ll find there’s more to it than meets the eye.

The off-season gives us a vast amount of time to improve run splits for next year. The following tips will give those of you that want to run faster in 2010 a focused approach to training over the darker, colder months which will hopefully stand you in good stead come race season.

Run off-road
Running off-road has many benefits. It reduces the repetitive forces of running on hard tarmac, the uneven footing will toughen you ankle ligaments and stabilizing muscles; and the uphill sections will build overall strength. If your longer endurance runs are completed off-road you’ll probably reduce the injury risk associated with increased mileage.

Know your limits
If you know that running at different paces stresses your bodies systems, you’ll be able to develop a more structured approach and a progressive training plan. One of the coaches at your local club should be able to assist with this, or if you’re very lucky the local university sports science lab may offer free lactate threshold testing.

Race Regularly
Just because triathlon races stop during the darker, colder months, doesn’t mean you also have to. Taking part in competitive fell and x-country races will keep your cardiovascular system tuned up and your racing instincts sharp. The varying distances of off-road races will take the pressure off trying to achieve PB’s like running on road but at the same time will still be of benefit, working you near your maximum capacity.

Improve your style
How good do elite runners look when they’re whipping along? That’s because they’re well drilled when it comes to technique. Good running mechanics can be developed by running lots of short repetitions (50-100m) at a fast pace, just below you full sprinting pace. Do 3 sets of 3 x 100m reps, following a warm up, before your main run session to increase your mechanical efficiency at speed.

Buy the rights shoes
Sounds simple, right? No matter how flash the latest Newton running shoes look, if they don’t suit your foot type and style, then you’re going to be in for a frustrating season mixed with injury and disruption. Seek a running shoe shop that provides gait analysis or practical advice when it comes to the biomechanics of your running style. I’ve already rambled on about ‘How to choose the right running shoe’, which will give you a bit more background when it comes to foot types and available shoe styles.

Down some pounds
Loosing an extra few pounds during the off season will have you running at a quicker pace for the same effort come next year. An extra kilo of body fat will add an approximate 5-8 seconds per mile when you’re at race pace.

Run with a club
Running with a group or club during the darker months will make your run sessions much more enjoyable. Most running clubs will have a few different run groups that run at set paces which will enable you to maximise your potential.

Remember recovery
In general, running can do more damage to your body than cycling or swimming. As you increase the intensity and duration you’ll need to be more disciplined with your recovery time between sessions. Having one easy recovery week in four will help keep you run injury free. Be sure to be aware of the first signs of injury, as there’s noting worse that running injured. Check out an article I wrote here on how to grade running injuries.

Be progressive
In order to get the most out of your off season run training you need to gradually build up the intensity or duration if you want to see improvements. If you to build endurance, then subtly increase you running time each week as well as the length of your weekly long run. Remember the golden rule to never increase the time or distance by more than 10% each week. The key to any progression is to be patient. Don’t expect results over night as progression takes time so see benefits. Planning and monitoring over months will enable you to place more focus on long term progression.

Remain injury free
Training progressively over a period of several months is the consistency that all serious runners seek and this is the only way in order to remain injury free. There are no real shortcuts to success; look at the efforts the elite athletes lay down in order to get to the top. Don’t miss the opportunity to podium due to over-training injuries or bad off-season planning. Stick to the basics and you’ll not go too far wrong.

Most of all, get out there and enjoy the benefits of off-road running.

Happy Training!!

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Since it’s launch earlier this year, Saucony’s Fastwitch 3 has been a big hit with both triathletes and road runners alike. The success of the shoe has been due to the exceptional development of the product at Saucony.

The mesh upper has been enhanced further to improve comfort, foot moisture management and airflow.

The Saucony’s Fastwitch 3 shoe is now much lighter than it’s predecessor, but still offers the required race-day medial support of the previous Fastwitch 2.

The shoe usually retails around the £60 mark, but has been significantly reduced by 28% to £42.99. This is the cheapest price on the market at the moment.

There are various sizes available in the white/green model shown above. Unfortunately the orange shoe has been discontinued. Check for shoes availability here.

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