Wayne Vartadbedian
Graphic Arts
Age 36, 5"10", 158 lbs., Long Beach, NY
This past October I was honored to be selected for the Hawaii Ironman Triathlon, the most grueling single day endurance event. The Ironman consists of a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile ride, and a full 26.2 mile marathon. Needless to say I had to log in many miles in my training, but also monitor my nutritional needs.
To start off, a good multiple vitamin and lots of antioxidants was essential. Consuming enough carbs before and during my long training rides was critical. A powdered drink mix with high-complex carb content was my beverage of choice before a ride with a Powerbar.
During the rides it would be a few Powerbar products with an occasional Twinlab Ripped Fuel (energizer) or fat-burning thermogenics to really get me revving.
Post workout nutritional needs were met with a serving of a high-carb drink with an additional scoop of any quality whey protein, a Powerbar and more antioxidants. I also had to carefully watch how I was recovering, by watching my sleeping habits and wearing a Polar heart-rate monitor. During my big day in Kailua-Kona for the Ironman, I knew that if I watched my heartrate and calories consumed I would make it to the finish.
Every hour on the bike I consumed over 300 calories. That was met by consuming one Powerbar, maybe a banana, Powergel and numerous bottles of Gatorade. Additional salt intake is a must in Kona, as it is not unusual to see salt deposits on everyone's black cycling shorts. I finished the race in 11:41 and earned the name IRONMAN! Thank you for your great prices and variety of products!
