Dragon Boat West

Just wondering what people do before the race to make sure they have enough strength and endurance?  In my previous sports, when I had a competition, I would have a bunch of "clean carbs" shortly before a big game such as a big lunch of pasta.

What about you guys?

For Alcan format race:  I would usually eat a large plate of spagetti with meat sauce the night before.  In the morning I'd eat a bowl of cereal (just cause thats what I always ate in the morning), as well as a couple of slices of toast with peanut butter. 

throughout the day, i would drink LOTS of redbull.   
j/k.  i bring a couple of granola bars, and some sandwiches, as well as a whole lot of water.

Bigger races with more races per day than Alcan:
same as before, but i'd bring more easily digestable foods.  I'd also be sure to stretch a little bit more between races, and cover up if it was really hot/sunny out.  and drink more water.

I think eating pop tarts are the key to racing well.

 Yeah if I remember correct the breakfast of champions was pop-tarts and fruitloops ...........Yum!!   ....thats it I'm off to Save-On so I can start carb loading now !

Dragon Boat racing is very short 2minutes to longer 4 minute races, depending if you are a competitive, recreation or novice paddler, or if you are racing 250m sprint, standard 500m, 1000m, or 2000m Guts & Glory races..  So it's neither a pure sprint or a marathon event.

During the first 6-8 seconds you use the ATP-CP energy (immediate/stored energy) systems in your muscles. 
So I will usually eat more protein the night before such as a steak or fish dinner. 

Next you use the short-term glycolytic energy system which usually lasts for 90 seconds to 2 minutes.
Eat lots of good carbohydrates, this will give you the energy for the glycolytic and aeorobic energy systems.  This means lot of good fruits, vegetables, pastas, rice, etc.

But this energy system also gives you the lactic acid burn - so train for increased lactic acid tolerance.  This means lots of short drills for 30 seconds, such as interval training.  20 seconds paddle, 30-60 second rest, repeat.

Finally you start using the long term aeorobic system - 60-90 seconds into your activity -  which is why marathon bike racers do carb-loading by eating huge pasta dinners before the Tour de France, because they want more carbohydrate energy to burn in their bodies.  So again, eat lots of carbohydrates such as fruits, vegetables, pastas, rice.  Ideal for any paddler going into Guts & Glory.

RACE DAY: avoid eating greasy fatty foods.  This will sit in your system for  4-6 hours.  Avoid being the paddler who orders a hamburger, then has to scarf it down because the order came late, and their team has just been called to marshall.   :?

Pasta, rice and vegetable dishes are ideal lunches for afternoon practices, they are easily digested and you will have lots of energy to burn.

Avoid eating large amounts of refined sugars such as candy bars or soft drinks just before going out on the boat.  It will affect your blood sugar levels and actually weaken your strength, and take longer to break down.  However, once you are actively working out, sports drinks or juices are ideal for replenishing your system.  Drink lots of water during the day to avoid dehydration especially on hot days.  Remember that coffee, teas and alcohol can actually dehydrate the body.  :x

Bring a snack to eat and drink right after practice.  This will help prevent carbohydrate depletion and offset fatigue.  Juices, fruits and energy bars are ideal.  Bananas are always favorites of athletes.  :)

My favorite foods between races are Bananas, fruit smoothies or carrot & fruit juices - easy to digest, and fast energy. You can also try protein shakes.

After the last race of the day... carbohydrate replenishment choice is a nice dark beer!  :D

I usually find that I need all my food groups, all the time, or I just get tired and hungry - in particular the proteins and complex carbs.  On race days, I find I have to eat smaller amounts, several times a day.  That way, my energy stays pretty steady, and there's not  a risk of cramping up from either a too full or too empty stomach.  It's good to stick with simple foods - homemade sandwiches, veggies, fruit, yogurt, nuts - nothing too fatty or spicy.  Of course, I always drink lots of water and maybe a sports drink or two, especially if it's hot, but not too close to race time - don't want to be needing to pee at the start line!!  It's also important to stay out of the sun between races on hot days - the heat can really zap your energy!  I've seen people have to miss Sunday's races because they got heat stroke frolicking or tanning in the sun on Saturday.

Speaking from experience: no curry    :oops:

From past experience..

I think it'd be a good idea to take what everyone said above (minus the fruit loops and pop tarts comment :x) and buy it all for your team. Provide it for them or have your coach/captain/manager do so and have the team all chip in a few bucks to pay for it.

Someone always forgets and doesn't want to admit it and ends up living off of the free cheese/kiwi stands and overpriced thai food. (greasy noodles!) 8 dragon dollars, what the hell! How can a poor little student afford that!

So anyway, take care of your team... if it's a cold day, bring a change of clothes between races. for a hot day, have a wet tshirt contest...

well that's all I could say for now. Good luck!

:lol:  I stopped that shortly after we got back and started eating much better.   But, it seemed to work for me decently back then.  I would follow up the races with a Mars bar and/or a bag of chips.   8))

Good Read gunghaggis!  You speak from experience and definitely food for thought - pardon the pun. 

I also like mandachan's recommendation but that does put a lot of work on a few people rather than having everyone chip in and reinforce the whole concept of team off the water as well as on ...

Did someone mention "wet t-shirt contest"? Need a judge ...  :twisted:

We hardly need a judge, just a tshirt and an abundance of water...
false creek doesn't count as water  :x

We should set up a tent in Racer's Village specifically for such events. Next door, chip'n'dales modelling the latest carbon fibres.

Okay... before Manda hijacks this string into other activities...  and Digger Pig follows her.... hee hee

"Before the Race" has other implications supported by scientific evidence.  I took some sports psychology classes up at SFU with Dr. David Cox, and he gave me lots of inside insight.

CAFFEINE before an event.
While coffee can be de-hydrating, the caffeine can help alertness.  He told a story about one wrestler who always had to have a cup of coffee before a wrestling event.  Some of our paddlers down some of the energy drinks such as Red Rain or Red Bull before going on the boats last year.  It does seem to increase mental alertness because of some of the ingredients, but I don't like the carbonation.  Flat Coke is also a choice of some athletes because of 1) the sugar and 2) caffeine - but ideally it should be ingested during a workout.  A 2:30 dragon boat race doesn't allow you time to drink while paddling.

SEX before an event.
There are some elite sports teams where sex is prohibited because it would "drain" an athlete's energy.  But at the Winter Olympics a few years ago - A Ski racer's husband was specifically flown in before the event to "aid" his wife. 

MENTAL PREPARATION before an event.
"Mental toughness" is said to be 90% of the difference if all athletes are equally stronge, skilled and trained.
Visualizations can be done before an event.  There are lots of different exercises involving cue words, team building etc.

If you are really interested in the research - check out books like:
Flow in Sports - Jackson/Csikszentmihalyi
Coaches Guide to Sport Psychology - Martens
Foundations of Sport & Exercise Psychology - Weinberg/Gould
Advances in Sport Psychology - Horn
Embracing Your Potential - Orlick

but if you are not an elite athlete, and you paddle for fun and recreation....
dragon boat parties going the whole weekend are lots of fun!!!

Hahaha thanks Todd, you caught me before I started going on a whole spiel about my secret fantasies.

SEX:
I totally agree with you on the sex. Not energy draining at all (unless of course it's a passionate, whipped cream, all-nighter type thing). In which case you should've saved it for after the race. Shall I dare mention why I know this?

CAFFEINE:
The caffeine in Red Bulls and Rain etc indeed causes increased mental alertness. But every paddler (or athlete) has a different ideal state of anxiety. So, the caffeine in the drinks might be benificial to some, while possibly making other paddlers "too alert", causing an attention span too open or too closed for the races. Some athletes even forget their calls because they're so hyped up. The sugar in the drinks are horrible for the body as it gives momentary burst of energy which you'd probably use just by breathing, then your body puts itself into abnormal almost-shut down mode, in which you start to feel really tired and possibly lightheaded/dizzy (sugar high) among a bunch of other side effects you don't need. The carbonation in any drinks is not needed. In any case. Humans were meant to exhale CO2, not drink it back in!! Stick with the H20, your safest bet. We lived on it for the past 200,000 years so it must be a good thing. Also, I suggest keeping away from the sports drinks until at least after the first race. Drinking sports drinks before any physical exertion is as beneficial as drinking sugary minutemaid juice, as your body doesn't need to replace the electrolytes, salt, and water yet. After the first race is when you need it, or after your team takes the warm up jog, drink a bit. Also, drink it slowly. Downing more than half the bottle in a gulp will make the drink run right through you without any real effect on the body. Just means more trips to the horrid PortaJohns.

MENTAL PREPARATION:
There are paddlers on Banana Fusion's boat who work well under pressure, and some who work well under serene situations. I have to watch what I say when I coach the team. For example, if I point out that thousands of people are watching them (so bring it on!) some may do better and some may do worse. It really depends on the team...
And I also absolutely agree with the mental preparation. It depends on what type of group you have as well (of course) working with high school teams and adult teams (and 9-12 year old paddlers) have of course a completely different mindset between each other. Mental prep with the adult teams seemed to work alright. As for the high school teams... for Alcan 2006, the Raging Warriors used the last 30 minutes before their final race on the 2nd day to make a human pyramid. A guy hiring stunt people gave us his business card, and a person from Metro asked me about the "team warm up"... anyway I think if I tried mental prep with that particular boat, people would lose concentration and get bored.

We ended up making the record for the past 13 years after that human pyramid. Lots of tumbles and laughter. Loved the team.


All in all I agree with you Todd, you're a good coach and seem very knowledgable in... anything we ever talk about :D anyway I hope my input had some value unlike any other post I wrote on DBW.  :x and I wonder why people don't take me seriousy. *smacks forehead*

I think you just gave it away.... 

Maybe it affects men and women differently.  Maybe it "drains" men (although they would never admit it), but "aids" women!!

Now we'rer talking!
Fly in Shania Twain for me before Alcan! the Fish need all the help they can get,  this way if we do badly I won't care as much!
"I feel like a Woman!"
 :lol:

Bob Beamon had sex the night before his unbelievable long jump at the Mexico City Olympics, arguably the greatest track & field achievement of all time (the jump that is, not the sex).
The record stood for 23 years.

Some good topics are coming up besides just food.

Anxiety control... and "race prep" are very important.  They could do everything to aid you despite poor eating and rest preparation or be your downfall despite the best eating, dietary, and training programs.

If paddlers are too anxious at the race start, they might be too busy looking at the other teams or other stimuli.  If paddlers are not anxious enough, they might not be paying attention in being ready for the start.  Sugar levels and energy drinks can play both positive or negative roles in creating "alertness" or "attention deficit."

Mandachan is correct about finding the right exercises for the team.  Some individuals like to go into a meditation or "quiet time" and practice race visualizations.  Others like to "hype" themselves up.  Some teams like to do cheers.  While it may create a team unity aspect, it can also "give energy away."  Another important thing is to have the ENTIRE team buy into the shared activity.  "Non-believers" became "energy leaks" and can lead to comments and actions that can disrupt a team's preparation.

The best thing is to create a regular routine for your team.  The more you consistently present it AT PRACTICES and before each race, the better there are NO surprises before a race.  One comp team I coached had a race prep routine that included visualization plus some other "traditions."  These continued after I no longer coached them, and the following coach gave me good praise for building the routines.  On the other hand, I have paddled on teams that never did warm-ups for practices, but when they did them on race days - it actually threw off the team, because some paddlers didn't  like the routine or exercises.

And this comes back to the topics of Sex and Shania Twain....

Sex can help people relax the night before an event and get a good sleep.  It can help prevent people staying up late worrying about the next day's race - which was the case for the Olympic skier.  But I think sex immediately before a race would not allow the body to recover yet... as it can be very draining physiologically.  So maybe the key with this topic is simply building up the arousal levels before a race, then channeling it into the race. hee hee...

Shania Twain's song "Up" is a great up beat song.  It may be important for a team to find a regular song to do their warm-up to.  "You've Got the Power" was used for one of my first teams.  "Where the Streets Have No Name" was used for many years for the Canucks @ GM Place during the pre-game skate.  By having a regular song, it builds in a routine... and this can help in controlling anxiety in paddlers.  When they hear that song... or play it in their head as they are paddling out to the start line "It's show time!"

Unless the sex is so unsatisfying that you're left with nothing to think about all night except for the next day's race AND bad sex.

What if you really can't stand Shania Twain!  Sorry, Gunghaggis!