Lauren Alexander

Lauren Alexander Trent, San Jose

Age 37, 03-23-63.

Personal Husband-Gregg Trent, Pets-Buddy and Bear (Cats)

Employment Professional Triathlete, Personal Multisport Trainer

Years in Triathlon 10 (6 professional)

Lauren was out the 98 and 99 seasons for child birth of her daughter, Carly.

She did get back in shape to race in 2000:

1st place Granite bay Duathlon

2nd place Wildflower Long Course

3rd place South bay Triathlon

3rd place Big Rock Triathlon

5th place Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon

6th place San Jose International Triathlon

6th place Ironman Canada

After a bad case of hypothermia in Canada this year, Lauren decided to race at Ironman Florida. She is really fit enough for a win, so stay tuned for Nov. 4^th.

1997 Results (Professional Category):

1st Danskin San Jose Triathlon
1st Mike and Rob's Half Ironman
1st Maizuru International Duathlon Japan
1st Best of the Bay Competition (SF Bay elite multisport competition)
2nd IRONMAN New Zealand
2nd Pacific Grove International Triathlon
3rd Wildflower Half Ironman - Swim 27:55 Bike 2:39 Run 1:34= 4:44:28
3rd Bakersfield International Triathlon
4th Lawrence Memorial Triathlon
6th IRONMAN Canada - Swim 56:36 Bike 5:21 Run 3:22 = 9:40
6th Xterra Mountain-Bike Triathlon Championship, Maui

1995 and 1996 results (Professional Category):

1st place Half-Vineman Triathlon (95)
1st place Pacific Grove International Triathlon (95)
1st San Jose International Triathlon (95)
1st Norcal Duathlon (95)
1st Millerton Lake Triathlon (95)
1st Davis Duathlon (95)
2nd Wildflower Half-Ironman Triathlon (96)
2nd IRONMAN Germany (96)
2nd Danskin San Jose (96)
2nd Pacific Grove International Triathlon (96)

Accomplishments:

10 top 5 overall finishes in Ironman Triathlons.
2nd 1996 Ironman Germany.
2nd 1997 Ironman New Zealand.
4th place 1995 ITU long course World Championship, Nice, France.
1991 Highest Trifed Ranked Amateur Female Triathlete.
'89,'90,'91 Triathlon Today "All-American".
1992 8th Overall Bud light Triathlon Series

Previous Athletic Background:

High School Track and Field
College Scholarship for Track and Field
400M and 4 X 800M relay
1980 National Record Holder (High School 4 X 800M)
Many other athletic interests, including Mt. biking
cross-country skiing, hiking, surfing, and maybe golf someday?!

<BRSample Weekly Training Schedule

Swim-12K to 14 K yards/week
Bike- 150-200 miles/week
Run- 25-50 miles/week

Distances vary according to races on schedule. I use a periodization method, incorporating several levels of HR training based on threshold statistics. Good nutrition and balance are the key to getting stronger and avoiding overtraining.

Favorite places to train

         Swim-Gunderson High Masters, and West Valley College
         Bike-Santa Cruz Mountain range, and Morgan hill passes.
         Run-Track at West Valley College, and Quicksilver Almaden Reserve.

Favorite person to train with

My husband Gregg Trent; he really pushes me, and occasionally I push him!

Favorite Races

St. Croix International Triathlon
Wildflower Half-Ironman
Any IRONMAN

Local: San Jose International, Southbay Triathlon, Pacific Grove Triathlon.

Can you comment on your Wildflower racing strategy?

Wildflower is a harsh course no matter how you approach it. The bike just zaps your energy and causes lactate build-up no matter how you approach it. My suggestions are to ride the descents hard, and go moderate on the ascents. Use a smaller gear than you think you will need, and you will find that spinning the big climbs will save your legs for the run. I use a 23 on the climb at mile 40 even though I can climb it strong with a 21 or even 19, but the muscle fatigue from climbing in those bigger gears will haunt you on the run. I unfortunately have walked on the run for several minutes the last couple years because of quadricep cramping. I have since found that good cycling orthotics have licked that problem.

I eat several gels, and drink a lot of electrolyte replacement drink at that race.

A full or sleeveless wetsuit will do depending on water temp.

Many Ironvirgins choose IMC as their first Ironman race, any suggestions for them?

I was 2nd in Canada in 93 and 6th last year. Unfortunately I was a bit burnt coming of of Germany five weeks or so earlier and three Halfs and New Zealand IMH earlier in the year. I came off the bike in 2nd, but faded badly to 6th. That experience told me that I would not be prepared for a good one in Hawaii, so I did Xterra instead (great fun!).

Canada had a mix bag of rain and wind last year, and I prefer it a bit warmer. It is good to be prepared for fluctuations in the weather there. My strategy was to be off the bike first, but Melissa Spooner was a real surprise on the bike. I didn't run the 3:10 that I expected which would have put me in contention for 1st. Because of the hilly bike, you want to go there with your legs fresh, and be able to hold your pace for the run.

I would suggest first timers at Canada should make sure they are prepared for a rolling hills run. It can be hard to settle into a comfortable pace with the undulations. Find a good bunch of short moderate hills to run, and get use to bricking them off the bike at an easy pace. But don't beat yourself up on this type of brick, just run 4-8 miles off the bike until you feel good.

Nutrition and Diet

High Protein- moderate carbo diet. Fat intake varies (on willpower of course!) I try to eat well, but I am far from neurotic about my diet. I feel that many athletes are consumed by numbers, and should set themselves up with some general guidelines. People get caught up trying to follow a strict 40/30/30 (numbers) diet that is a very difficult to follow, and they are better off trying to follow some general guidelines to keep the protein consumption up without eating excess carbo's. I personally think that consuming some level of fat is a necessity, however; 30% is a bit high. Trying to follow strict percentages is a time sink. You need to have some balance in life, and that means treating yourself to an occasional pizza or chocolate chip cookies.

Stay hydrated!

Do you have a weight training program?

I do train with weights primarily in the off and pre-season. I try to do some maintenance during the race season.

Goals

Success and fulfillment through professional multi-sport racing.

For 1998 I intend to regain speed lost to a lot of Ironman training and racing last year. Focus on personal training programs for my clients and continuing to encourage a healthy active lifestyle to others.

This year, I am also racing for BAT, which stands for Bay Area Triathletes. Our team includes
Pete Kain, Kevin Joyce, Scott Schumacher, and Holly Nybo. We race as a team at local events, and share sponsorship. We do seminars and spread the word about triathlon.

Who inspires me

My husband Gregg of course!
My friends.
Other athletes who are positive people and helpful to others.
That 15+ hour group that I watch and cheer for every year in Kona (what a long day and phenomenal feat!)

Sponsors:

         Zoot Hawaii
         Felt Bicycles/Shimano
         Revo
         Elka Burrito
         Champion Nutrition
         Metagenics
         Speedplay
         Timex
         Runners Factory
         O'Neil Wetsuits

What types of programs do you offer as a personal coach?

My training programs can be designed for the beginner or advanced triathlete. First, an athletic profile is constructed using their time restraints and goals to develop weekly training schedules. Maximizing the available training time they have, we identify weaknesses and strengths, then focus on progress.

Please contact Lauren if you are interested in personal coaching.

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