A Healthy Balance Podcast

After a brief (err, 5 month) hiatus, Kate and Alicia are back with a new episode where they catch up on what's been keeping them busy (pivoting a business, having a baby, etc.) and talk about how 2020 is a great reminder that training for life, good health and the long term should always be part of a balanced athlete's agenda. 

In honor of Boston's Marathon Monday, Kate and Alicia take a break from their new global pandemic, self-isolating lifestyles to relive their top ten marathon moments. 

The world is reeling from COVID-19, and endurance athletes have their own unique challenges. Alicia and Kate talk about how to deal with disappointment as races are canceled or rescheduled, how to balance staying healthy while taking precautions to avoid coronavirus, and how the changes are affecting them.

Kate and Alicia get into the unique challenges female endurance athletes face as they try to stay active during pregnancy. They discuss the mental challenge of a changing body, which activities are generally safe (and which are not), and how to plan for postpartum life. 

As training season begins in the northeast, Alicia and Kate say it's an ideal time to think about why you're an athlete. In this episode, they explain the psychology behind the why, the role it plays in training, and how to develop your own personal mission statement.

Alicia and Kate are BACK with new athletic goals for 2020. Hear what they've been up to since fall 2019, when they completed Ironman Wisconsin, how they will be approaching endurance sports in 2020 and what the 2020 season of A Healthy Balance Podcast has in store! SPOILER ALERT: We are looking to our listeners for podcast topics and questions that you want to hear about from the coach/athlete perspective. Send questions to Alicia@ahealthybalanceinc.com 

In this surprise, bonus episode we cap off season 1 of A Healthy Balance podcast with a dive into the post-race blues. Like any big life event, it's easy to feel down after a big race. Kate and Alicia share their experiences with how they've been managing the post-race blahs and blues after Ironman Wisconsin. 

Brace yourself for a long one while Kate and Alicia give the play by play of how their race days went down at Ironman Wisconsin. They will take you through each leg of the race as well as some key lessons they took away from the experience. 

Kate and Alicia are live in Madison gearing up for 140.6 miles of swim, bike and run. Catch up on their plans and hear tips for preparing for a big race in the final few days and hours. 

Are you planning to head out to watch your favorite endurance athlete compete in an ironman tri? Hear from our special guests, spectating experts, Adam and Kathleen on how to best prepare and execute a smooth ironman spectating day. They'll dive into what to pack, how to plan and other great tips. Kate and Alicia also recap the ups and downs of their taper weeks leading up to Ironman Wisconsin. 

With less than one month until Ironman Wisconsin, Kate and Alicia talk about how to avoid common mistakes and missteps in training during the last few weeks before your race, as well as how to stay motivated and focused when your body is tired, challenged and you JUST want it to be race day already. 

We weren't lying! We finally had our favorite Dietitian Andrea back on to help us simplify race day nutrition, give us some guidance on the days leading up to the race, and of course explain the importance of post race ice cream! 

It's summer and we are training for an Ironman, which means lots of training and lots of training in the heat. Tune in this week to hear tips from Kate and Alicia on how to manage higher volume and higher intensity weeks when the New England summer brings the heat and humidity. 

In Episode 15, we chat about that time in between the main events: TRANSITION! The clock is ticking and time is a waisting in T1 and T2 so what can triathletes do to make for the smoothest transition possible. Tune in to find out! Kate and Alicia also dish on training now that they are in the thick of it. 

Does day to day stress impact your training as much, or maybe even more, than training stress? What can we do to help mitigate our stress? Join Kate and Alicia as they chat about their life stress, how they handle it during peak weeks of training and the benefits of "typical" stress management techniques.  

In advance of Kate's Olympic-distance triathlon, Alicia and Kate talk about racing short-course races with tips and advice on how hard to push, how to pace, fuel and how to have fun with it all. Also, get an update on Alicia's first race of the season at Ironman Connecticut 70.3. 

Most athletes pick one big "A" race to focus on each season, but does it make sense to add in other races throughout your training cycle? This week Kate and Alicia talk about prep races and how they are approaching their seasons. With Ironman Wisconsin being the "A" race for the season, tune in to hear how they selected their "B" and "C" races for the year and their strategy behind those events.  **PLUS** A big announcement!

While many triathletes come to the sport with a running background,  it's a different game when biking and swimming are involved. During this week's episode Kate and Alicia chat about tips for a strong run during your triathlon and how train smart on your feet. 

Swimming is often one of the biggest barriers to entry for athletes toying with the idea of taking on their first triathlon. During this week's episode Kate and Alicia "dive in" to triathlon specific swimming, sharing tips to help bridge the gap from pool swimming to open water, reduce anxiety, and the most efficient ways to maximize your swim training. 

Kate and Alicia are back for a second episode all about bikes and cycling. Tune in for tips and practical advice about outdoor riding from gearing and group riding to power meters and safety. Bikes bikes bikes! 

Most of us learned how to ride a bike when we were young, but for some reason the world of triathlon cycling is so much more complicated. Maybe it's the lack of training wheels on triathlon bikes? Tune in this week as Kate and Alicia introduce some basics about cycling and getting ready to live life on two wheels.

Triathlon training can be full of numbers, data and acronyms. HR, VO2, power, zones, FTP, Anaerobic threshold and the list goes on! What the heck do they all mean and which ones do you actually need to pay attention to? Join Kate and Alicia in this episode to find out!

*Hint* You can't. We all have the same 24 hours in a day, but how we use them varies widely. One of the biggest challenges we hear from new triathletes is finding the time to do it all. In today's episode Kate and Alicia share strategies they've figured out over the years to make the most of the time and energy they do have.   Send your endurance sports training related questions to tba@ahealthybalanceinc.com Follow us on instagram @TheBalancedAthletePodcast

There's much to think about as triathletes. On top of training, we have to sift through all of the nutrition info that's out there and make sure we are appropriately fueling all that we do. This week Registered Dietitian Andrea Miranda comes on to help us cut through the noise and simplify. Tune in for tips on how to think about your meals/snacks and hear our take on fad diets and race weight.  Want to work with Andrea to figure out your specific nutrition needs? Contact her at Andrea@AHealthyBalanceInc.com

While we all hope it doesn't happen, most athletes deal with an injury or setback of some kind while they are training. Whether major or minor, it often feels like a roadblock on your path to race day. This week, we dive into the topic in real time, since one of us is dealing with the dreaded injury. Tune in for tips to manage unexpected setbacks like an injury or illness. 

This week, we dig into strategies for building your armor and your army when getting ready to train for an Ironman triathlon or other endurance race. Kate and Alicia share tips about the people, places and things to have at the ready for when the training gets tough. Also, tune in to hear Alicia's update on her marathon in Charleston, SC.  Send your triathlon training related questions to tba@ahealthybalanceinc.com and we may read it during the next episode. Follow us on Instagram: @TheBalancedAthletePodcast 

In this episode, Kate and Alicia catch up and talk about various things an athlete should be ready for when preparing to take on the challenge of an Ironman triathlon, including necessary gear, getting your family on board, choosing your race, thinking about your budget and preparing to answer questions from friends, family, and co-workers about your race.    Also, find out about the "warm-up" and the "cool-down" segments of The Balanced Athlete podcast.   

Meet your hosts of The Balanced Athlete Podcast: Alicia Golden and Kate Johnson, two 30-something-year-old women in the Boston area training for an Ironman triathlon in 2019. In this episode, they talk about how they got into endurance racing and what they'll cover over the next several months leading up to race day.