February 28, 2010

BMW-Bianchi Off to a Stellar Start!

MotorTabs is a proud sponsor of the BMW-Bianchi cycling team! Here is what the team manager has to say about the start of their season.

"We got off to a great start in the early season races in the Southeast. We had two riders line up for the Wolfpack race - one day after the first event was cancelled due to snow, the team won the second race in Chapel Hill! Sarah Caravella, our newest weapon, forced a breakaway and then demolished her two companions in the uphill finish to claim the team's first win of the year. Cora Olson won the field sprint for 4th. The following weekend we sent four riders to the Greenville Training Series in South Carolina. Cora was our go-to girl this time, and after attacking from the gun, another new recruit Kate Ross countered with a solo move. When Kate was brought back Cora broke away and was never seen by the pack again thanks to the work of Kate, Deb Whitmore and myself to keep the chase under control. Cora won over her sole breakaway companion with relative ease. Unfortunately the rest of the team didn't have much luck in a dangerous bunch sprint. The next day Cora finished 4th in the BMW Performance Center criterium. Our marketing efforts are going well, and our new VIP Supporters Club has attracted 10 members so far. Our fan base is also growing, and between Twitter and Facebook we have over 1500 "fans"! Our next races will be the rest of the Greenville Training Series as our riders prepare for the start of the National Racing Calendar. Thanks to our fundraising efforts, we can field a full team at the Redlands Classic in California next month for the first time in our 7-year history. Cora Olson, Sarah Caravella, Kate Ross, Kathleen Billington and Rachel Warner will form the basis of the team with a few guest riders to complete the roster. Again, thank you for all of your support of our team!"

-Laura Weislo BMW-Bianchi team manager

February 11, 2010

MOTOR TABS Fuels Rookie Cyclist on Grueling Three-Day Tour!

February 11, 2010
By Kelley Gast

I am pretty new to the cycling circuit. In training with my coach she mentioned a ride in Puerto Rico called La Vuelta which is over 375 miles in
3 days. So back in August she said "let's do it" and reluctantly I agreed.
No sooner had I signed up then she backed out of the ride due to other agreements in her coaching career. What's a girl going to do, RIDE!
So I stepped up to the challenge and started seriously training. She turned me on to Motor Tabs during my training and I certainly loved them but didn't understand the importance until the serious training in the gym left my dehydrated and exhausted. I then began drinking them all the time to replenish electrolyte imbalances to perform better. Now I was hooked. I never had that sticky sweet taste like Gatorade (or other sports drinks) and the taste is light and refreshing. Only a long distance athlete knows how badly your mouth can feel after you have the wrong sugar drink. That's why I love Motor Tabs! I tracked down a bunch of Motor Tabs for this upcoming ride and if I had not prepared I know I would have not made it. I arrive in Puerto Rico for this ride on a Tuesday evening. I walk the city in the heat and humidity on Wednesday. I even drank Motor Tabs to keep me replenished after the heat was more than I was used to. Thursday was an optional 40-mile prelude to make sure the bike was good after the airplane ride. I drank seven bottles of fluid due to being in the heat, humidity and multiple stops in the sun and then called Sellers to get some electrolyte tips! I thought I must be dehydrating from travel, weather and other circumstances and was worried about the upcoming ride.
Day 1 - San Juan to Ponce was 148 miles with 4,180 in elevation gain in the heat and humidity. I kept it together and finished strong. Other people were dehydrated but I drank at least 2 Motor Tabs per hour and my 72 oz. Camelbak was a constant source every 10 minutes.
Day 2 - Woke up feeling great! Ponce to Mayaguez was 93 miles with 3,439 in elevation with temperatures in the 90's and once again I remained fully hydrated. I rested and put those feet in the air and made sure that on the last big day I would ride strong.
Day 3 - Mayaguez to San Juan was 139 miles with 4,236 in elevation gain in the high 90's and I remained strong again. Never had a cramp, never felt badly and certainly by the 3rd day I should have been on my behind but I stayed true to my scheduled hourly routine of Motor Tabs.
After reviewing my Garmin and realizing that I totaled over 432 miles with my added City tour and completing 13,091 in total elevation gain over 4 days without EVER cramping, feeling dehydrated and overall feeling great each day, no one can believe that this girl finished a ride like this! While I saw people scraping the bottom of the pretzel barrel for salt, looking behind me to see guys in better shape than me drafting me, people on the side of the road cramped and others massaging their legs while riding I felt like I was cheating since I was feeling so great!
Of course the highlight was seeing those big guys behind me lined up so I could bring them home! Awesome experience not to be overlooked by the way I felt from listening to my coach and working with the Motor Tabs products prior to this ride. I am hooked for good, keep them coming!

February 5, 2010

Food For Fuel!

Are You Flying in February?...Chew on This!
In this first shot for you, let's look at nutrient density and athletic eating...
By Doug Katona

Eat For Fuel
Whatever you put in your pie-hole should be supportive of your (physical/emotional) goals. Ask yourself this
question the next time you crave a bagel (aka Nasty Food in Disguise) - How nutrient dense is the material?
In other words - the calories should have a direct application to function. An example would be that if you
ate an avocado, you would give it a thumbs up because it is an essential fatty acid and provides energy.
If you are sucking down potatoes, then you would see me sitting on your shoulder saying there are better
sources of complex carbohydrate that are more nutrient dense!

Food Pyramid Flip
The Food Pyramid should be flipped upside down. Then it would make sense. Grains, starches, breads, pastas should
be at the top (eat very little amounts of these) and lean meats, nuts, healthy oils and veggies/fruits should be
consumed with more regularity. The idea is to consume foods that are thermogenic in nature - 100 calories of
a piece of whole wheat toast is not the same as 100 calories of salmon. The 100 calories of salmon get "burned
though" by the body - there is more energy required to "process" the salmon. So, the net affect of the 100 calories
of the salmon gets almost nullified. The toast is well, basically a poor return on the calories. Eat toast. Be toast.

Train a lot, Eat a lot?
This is a good one. Some exercisers and athletes just can't seem to get very lean. Or maybe they just can't seem
to get that muscle definition they desire. Must be the genes, right? Nope. Must be age, right? Double nope.
Some people train a little but eat a lot. If you do some moderate exercise, it doesn't mean you have the green
light to destroy a bag of chips. Train with enough intensity and power, then you can get away with a cheat meal
once in awhile. But better to err on the side of eating for energy and performance.

What Do You Expect?
Someone told someone who told someone who told me..."He expects a lot from the people he trains (coaches)." Darn
straight on that one. Good coaches and trainers expect a lot from their "athletes." It's what we do. If you are
tentative or unsure if you want to get fit and enjoy your true potential, then only you are preventing you. It's
in you if you want it and if you're willing to cross the line. Don't you expect a lot from yourself? Or are you okay
with just being in "maintenance." I expect this: to see you realize the powerful journey of discovering being
powerful, strong, lean, agile, injury-free, pain-free, internally healthy and emotionally charged up. Is that too
much to expect?!

Is Your Warm-Up a Workout?
I got an email from one of our Thursday night workout animals. Doug, I was laughing last night during the warm-up. My workouts were never as hard as our warm-ups!. Thank you for sneaking me into this shape, it's refreshing! I wondered if
this person was on their 3rd glass of wine but whatever, it's true. Here's a quick-n-dirty warm-up that will turn you
into sweaty Betty but also get your threshold for training increased...
10 Minute Warm-up (Bike or run); This ain't the time to read People Magazine, get to work, get some intensity going.
Shoulder and leg mobility movements....then knock out:
10 Squats, 10 Push-Ups, 10 Lunges, 10 Burpees, 10 Pull-Ups, 10 Sit-ups. 10 Bench Dips. Go train while the others in
the gym think you just did a workout that would make most of them puke in their Reader's Digest.

Power Food Pick: Wild Cod. This coldwater fish is high on protein and essential fat without a truckload of calories. Bake it or grill it and garnish with a little olive oil, marinated artichoke hearts, kalamata olives or a tapenade. Pair it with some
carmelized brussels sprouts and onions, crack a bottle of a crisp sauvignon blanc and you're in business.

I do what I do for you because what you have you already have in you.

Yours in Health,
Doug Katona