Lightweight Status

Now it is coming into the final weekend before we depart to the PanAm games. Our training has dropped the volume to relatively manageable levels, the intensity has bumped up again to consistent race-pace and race-pace++ stroke rates. And now the one last thing, specific to lightweight status, is the body mass. International standards for the avg boat weight is 70kg (154lbs), Which means that there can be a person over 70kg in the boat but someone has to counter balance that weight with below 70kg.

This is my first full experience obtaining international standards of weight. My body is in the "happy zone" around 74kg, where I can eat as much as I want, whenever I want, and then train as hard as I want and maintain that weight. This dropping of weight is tied into a long-term subtle decrease in daily caloric intake, with keeping training loads at high level. I really wanted to hit a healthy weight loss plan, but I now get to experience what it is like to try and cut the weight down. This all applies to increase the Power-to-Weight Ratio, a good article to help explain. The less weight with a high power output will move the boat with the highest velocity. Check out the physics here.

My fiancee is a healthy-food specialist and we have combined together and with proper research based, nutritional information approved, plan to cut weight. On the whole, it has worked excellently, but I do get bouts of hunger-frustration. On multiple occasions, I have caught myself pacing the kitchen; opening fridge looking for an easy snack, then closing the fridge and moving to the cracker and peanut butter cupboard, then on to the pantry shelf where the trail mix is... then moving to the cereal shelf above the sink and then in the end just grabbing a pint of water and filling up my belly with pure H2O. Not as sustainable, but working.

We are going to bring our home bathroom scales with us to Mexico, to be able to weight-in in the comfort of our hotel room. The official weight-in is 2hrs before the start of the race.

My Favorite; PB and banana on an slice of Dutch pumpernickel.