LVTC Happenings!
A monthly report of events and resources for our passionate, growing local multisport community.
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Reboot Triathlon 2021
We continued with our ‘Reboot Triathlon’ them with our second Las Vegas Triathlon Club Event. Despite the warmer temps, it was a perfect day for racing. With the water level low, we swam two loops of the buoys for a 800 m swim, then our regular 20 K bike, and 5 K run. We also had some athletes compete in the Duathlon (1.5 mi run, 20 K bike, 5 K run), the Aquathon, had someone do just the swim, and some kids doing the kids event! It was so great to see athletes crushing the course!
We are still in a ‘grass roots’ phase of racing. Something that we are looking forward to adding back in is our post-race podium and raffles. What is great about these events is the comradery that everyone shows. And a big shout out to all the folks who volunteered – kayaking, directing athletes on the bike course, managing transition, setting up, packing up, … there is so much that goes into our events and they can only happen with the great community support.
Our next event is July 11th, 2021. The featured event will be an Aquathon! This is a great event to test out your swim-bike weapon … really push hard on the bike with no concern for running after. We will post more details on the event on our facebook page as well as our website.
Keep training!
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Club Membership
Club Memberships Now Available:
- Single Membership Only $65.00
- Family Membership Only $85.00
- Student Membership is $40.00
Please visit our membership page and sign up to take advantage of all the Club Training Events down at Lake Mead and Lake Las Vegas.
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Socials/Training Events/Education
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7-11-21: Aquabike Event at Boulder Beach
Time will be announced closer to event but it will be either 6:00 am or 6:30 am depending on the weather. Come down for a fun day of Swim and Bike. Raffles and Podium prizes will follow the event. Registration is now open! Must be an active member of the Las Vegas Triathlon Club to participate in our free events.
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We are so grateful to our wonderful volunteers (Bob is featured above) that make these events happen. If you would like to volunteer at our next event, please email membership@lvtriclub.com
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Coaches Corner:
Captain Obvious Coaching for The HEAT!
Like athletic vampires of sorts, it takes no time for us locals to learn safe times to linger outdoors, let alone when to train in the elemental Mad Max movie setting. And for good reason!
Few other dangers in training/racing offer up the kind of life threats like our Vegas heat so liberally offers. It delivers a spectrum wide enough to provoke workouts simply feeling harder, to internal organs shutting down. And everything in between.
Here's the basics of why this is the tough reality of our world, and how to mitigate much of the suffering or even permanent damage inflicted by heat (though additionally, some of the ways it makes us so dang bad ass once tolerant).
When any animal moves, we convert stored calories (fat and carbohydrates) into energy that is then translated into that movement. This is the primary reason that we heat up while exercising. Humans when exercising, however, aren't great with this exchange and we lose such a large percentage of that energy to heat production (this is a very individual ratio person to person, though inefficient across the board). Heat on top of heat. Sweating on top of sweating being the main physiological manager of our core temperature constantly cranking upward.
More sweating than we can hydrate means dehydration. And even the smallest amount of dehydration (2%) results in performance loss.
The solution?
-Drink beside you're thirsty and feel for these surefire indicators that you're on the losing side of the heat: Dizziness, confusion, lightheadedness
Dry lips, mouth, skin
Physical and mental fatigue
Decreased pace and performance
Darkened urine (one of the first indicators)
Increased body temperature, heart rate and perceived effort
The positive?
Training in the heat and all its uncomfortable byproducts is like training in altitude. Once you're down or away...You're a pulmonary ROCKSTAR!
~Nancy Jones
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Safety Corner
Hydration - Part I - What is dehydration?
As triathletes, we often spend a great deal of time planning our training sessions and studying our triathlon metrics. However, an essential success factor to crossing the finish line safely and at our best requires proper hydration. Part 1 of this hydration series is to help you understand dehydration.
So, what is dehydration?
Simply put, dehydration is when your body loses more fluid than your intake.
Clinical dehydration is defined as losing 2-3% of your body weight after exercise.
Symptoms of clinical dehydration include:
- Thirsty throughout the day.
- Feeling dizzy, lightheaded, reduced cognitive function and performance, and feeling thirsty
Severe dehydration is defined as losing 6-10% of your body weight after exercise.
Symptoms of severe dehydration include:
- Increase in cardiac output and sweat rate, low blood pressure, dark amber urine, dry mouth, confusion, and in severe cases - death.
How do I know if I am becoming dehydrated?
- When you pee, the color should be light or pale shades of yellow - almost the color of lemonade (apart from any medications or supplements that may alter the color). Dehydration will show as bright yellow to darker yellow. Extreme dehydration is orange to brown (if brown, please consult a doctor). And overhydration is almost clear.
- Weigh yourself after peeing - both before and after exercise. Notate any change.
- Listen to your body, especially if you find you are thirsty often (even on recovery days) - but do not rely on this as your only indication of a problem.
DID YOU KNOW? - Many athletes who hydrate only when they become thirsty are usually already dehydrated?
Next month’s Safety Corner will provide USAT’s recommended hydration strategy to keep you going strong while you train and race.
Hope this week’s Safety Corner is helpful and STAY SAFE tri friends!
Amanda Wolpink
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Prez Corner:
Hot stuff
We are full-on into summer here in the Greater Las Vegas Valley – which means hot hot temps. As I write this, the temperature is 113º … anything over 110º is brutal and I’ve seen people post 120º this week! How do you approach training in the heat? Yes … exercise in the heat is tough and we really need to be careful. However, it is important to know that there are some fantastic training responses to exercising in the heat. In this article, I’m going to focus on the risk of exercising in the heat because it is important to be safe. But, you’ll only get the heat training benefits if you exercise safely in the heat.
From a very simple physiological perspective, the main issue main issue with exercise in the heat is the ability of your body to maintain core temperature. It is important to emphasize this point: Maintaining core temperature is critical to safe exercise in the heat.
A normal core temperature is right around 98.6º F – but can fluctuate as much as 1º F greater and less than that with no problem. However, outside that range, you can get into some serious trouble. If your body temperature gets above 104º F, you are in a life-threatening situation.
To maintain core temperature, your body balances heat gain and heat loss. From a heat gain perspective, an important source of heat is – obviously - the environment. So, find shade … use sun screen … cover up … wear a hat … wear arm coolers … exercise before the sun comes up … Anything to reduce the sun hitting you directly. Also know the wind can be your friend when exercising in the heat. Just like you blow on a hot cup of coffee to cool it down, the wind passing over your body can help maintain temperature. That is partly why riding the bike is a bit easier than running in hot environments – and pouring water over yourself and getting your clothing wet can help with heat loss especially with the wind.
Another critical source of heat gain is exercise itself. When our muscles contract, they generate heat. For example, when you are cold, you’ll shiver. The reason for the shivering is that muscles are generating heat in order to keep core temperature from decreasing. Something to keep in mind when exercising in the heat is that the amount of heat generated by the muscles is directly related to exercise intensity. The harder the exercise, the more heat generated – and, therefore, the more heat the body has to manage. So … slow down.
The other side of the balance scale to maintain core temperature is heat loss. A key mechanism of heat loss is sweating – and this is why it is critical to stay hydrated during exercise. Sweating is a very effective way to lose heat. However, if you do not have enough fluids to allow sweating to take place, you run a major risk of a heat injury due to rising core temperature. The danger of being dehydrated is that the sweat mechanism is interfered with. So drink. Take enough fluids with you on the bike and/or run so you’ll have access to fluids. Know where you can fill up your water bottles and/or camelback bladder. Carry cash and/or a credit card to be able to purchase drinks (and food). Plan your ride and run routes knowing where you can fill up. During the summer, I’ll routinely ride with my 3 L camelback, 2 water bottles, and a between-the-bars bottle. I freeze everything the night before and will buy ice at fill-up stations.
As I started out, there are some great physiological benefits to exercise in the heat. A pro triathlete once told me: If you can train in Vegas, you can race anywhere. Exercising in the heat is part of the reason why … but you need to be careful.
Exercise smart: Manage core temperature.
~John Mercer
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The Las Vegas Triathlon Club Gear Store
We have a limited stock of the Ghost Kits that benefit our Legacy Scholarship Fund. Please visit our store to order online.
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Where in the World Has Our TRI Club Raced ?
Check out the map below to see where our athletes have raced!
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LVTC Member Spotlight
Get to know our club members as our President sits down with the following members to talk about tris and life.
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The Evidence-Based Triathlete
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Check our website for Discount Codes
Login to your account and look for top right account menu "My Membership" as circled below. On your dashboard page in the middle of the page you should see a link "Discount Codes". Click on that for latest discounts for members. These will appear as they come available.
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Fresh Body provides mindfully formulated hygiene products with clean ingredients derived from plant based materials & extracts.
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Your financial life is complicated. Whether you are a pre-retiree, a business owner, or a Nevada government worker, you are not immune to the complexities of personal finances. Luckily, Peak Financial Solutions is specialized in helping people like you, better plan for retirement.
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Xterra is always hooking up our club! Even though we receive monthly deals/discount code, check out the goods all around!
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More amazing LVTC Sponsors |
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