Race day Nutrition

This is a brief article on tips for race day and what preparation is required to get your nutrition plan dialed in.

Exercise Fueling and Hydration (updated Feb 2020)

Good nutrition is simple: eat a large variety of minimally processed foods. This means you should consume fruits, vegetables, lean small portions of meats (current world guidelines suggest 4-6 x month and to look to get your protein from plant sources first), nuts, and whole grains. Any dairy should be kept to a minimum - the latest Canadian and UK guidelines have taken dairy off the plate in terms of recommendations (please check out this article about latest guidelines https://everfit.co.nz/membership/articles/eatwell-guide-uk). These foods are full of vitamins, minerals and phyotchemicals. Highly processed foods have limited nutritional value as components have been stripped away.  Good race day nutrition starts with good daily habits to prepare the gut flora for absorption of food during times when the gut is stressed. (Check out my article on Plant Powered athletes https://everfit.co.nz/articles/wholistic-runner-part-3)

In addition to high quality fuels, hydration is important. On a daily basis, drink enough water so that your urine is a very light yellow color. Dark yellow urine is one sign of dehydration. Please avoid or cut out completely soft drinks. Don’t ruin your potential by taking on board sugar laden fizzy crap. Green tea should be a daily habit for the serious athlete due to the anti-inflammatory and fat utilisation properties.

For long workouts (those over 90min) scheduled in any of the training plans, carry a the sports drink you want to use on race day (unless it’s a low HR/fat utilisation workout) – or just water supplemented with a solid or semi-solid food. Examples of solid and semi-solid foods are bananas, home made sandwiches, pretzels, gels and sport bars (Carbohydrate, not majority protein, and minimal fat) Some athletes prefer solid foods, while others prefer energy drinks. The drink and solid foods can contain some protein, but try to keep the fat content minimal unless you are moving towards a fat fueled make up. You are best to use the bars on the bike, NOT on the run due to gut disturbance. Lately I have been using water (600mls) with 1 teaspoon of coconut sugar, and a pinch (1/16 teaspoon) of salt. Dr Stacy Sim in her latest book suggests this aids with absorption 

You should train fueling with calories during longer more intense workouts because the body can only store enough glycogen to get you through about 90-120 minutes of exercise, plus or minus. The longer the race or workout especially when intensity is high; the more critical proper fueling becomes. Practice your fueling and hydration techniques on a regular schedule, within a workout. For example, plan to fuel and hydrate each 15 to 20 minutes during a long or intense workout. Early and steady fueling prevents the dreaded “bonk.” Practicing your fueling and hydration during workouts as this pays dividends on race day.

For an event that is one to three hours long, most athletes are fine consuming 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrate (120 to 240 calories) per hour. For races longer more might be appropriate. This is something you have to experiment with and determine what consumption rate is right for you and the workout or race conditions. Know that larger athletes need more calories than smaller athletes and a fast pace burns more calories than a slow pace. I’ve heard the rule 1g of CHO per kg of body weight per hour of racing BUT the gut can only process up to 60g per hour so please you need to try out your nutrition regime in training prior to race day. In most of my longer races (Ironman and Ultra trail) I tend to use more solid food earlier on when the gut is less disturbed, then as I fatigue and the gut "shuts down" (blood flow distributed more to working and tiring muscles) then I use easier to digest kcal such as fluid, gels, and watermelon/orange (these are available in some trail races but harder to carry yourself of course). I don't start on gels early as this can create gut issues. Plan ahead and calculate what fluids and fuel you need during the race. Find out what fuels are offered by the race director. If the energy drink at the aid stations upsets your stomach, you may have to carry your own sports drink.

Athletes competing in Ironman distance, ultra cycle, and run events should have a written nutrition plan prior to race day. This nutrition plan should be rehearsed during long key training sessions. Also, long-distance athletes need to consume fuels with electrolytes (sodium, magnesium and potassium.) Fueling for an Ironman distance race is critical and you need to be thinking about this months in advance and trialing different strategies. 

It is important to know that you will need to adjust fueling and hydration rates to fit each situation. A few of the items that affect fueling and hydration rates include pace, the length of the race and the race conditions (hot, cold, humid, etc.)

What should you eat for breakfast on race day?

Great question. It is the most important meal of the day, and twice as important for an endurance athlete. A good rule of thumb for breakfast is to consume one to four grams of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight with some protein (this helps slow gastric emptying to ensure a slow and progressive release of the carbohydrate from the stomach to the small intestine), one to four hours prior to the race.  The closer you eat prior to the race start, the fewer calories you should consume. This is particularly true for short, high intensity races. Avoid a lot of fibre prior to competition, it can act like a sponge, pulling fluid into the gut and causing gastric distress. As always this is highly individualised. Please try out your race breakfast before you key sessions (usually 2-3 and 4-6 weeks out from race day), and long brick sessions. Having a coffee an hour before race start is best practice to get the benefits of caffeine (see my article on caffeine consumption for more detail https://everfit.co.nz/articles/how-much-caffeine-should-you-have-daily  )

Post-long workouts or races, you need to focus on recovery. You can speed recovery by consuming liquid or solid fuel within 20 to 30 minutes after exercise. The fuel should contain some carbohydrate, protein and minimal fat. Approximately 1.5 to 1.6 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight and 0.4 to 0.5 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight is a good start. Don’t worry too much if the ratio of carbohydrate to protein isn’t exact.  A 4:1 ratio of CHO to protein is great. This post workout nutrition rule is more important when trying to string several sessions in a day. So for an Ironman or multisport training this is important. If you are only training one session a day your usual good daily eating habits will be suffice for adequate recovery.

In Race Nutrition Tip…..

Consume your sports drink as soon as possible once exiting the water and consume in small frequent amounts throughout the race (150-250 millilitres every 10-20min depending on other factors) Try not to consume a sports drink at the same time as a gel or bar as this can result in a hypertonic solution in the gut leading to gastric shut down and possibly vomiting. I tend to have solid food with a little water, and then only sports drink at other times, for example at 20min past hour sports drink (try the drink provided on the course), 40min past solid and sips of water, then on next hour sports drink and so on. You must try out different patterns at “B” races and key sessions to see what fits your gut. I have also found that as I have evolved into a plant based whole food eater I can tolerate less "sweet sugary" gels and sports drinks. I am now having more real whole food at the start and middle of longer events (my last one was the 6hr 45min Tarawera trail run) and then rely on gels later in the race when I was excessively fatigued.

Examples of nutrition on the go.......

1) Natural confectionery lollies -(4 lollies) = 85kcal, 0.5g Protein, 20.2g CHO (12g sugars), 4mg sodium.

2) Replace electrolyte drink - (750mls or one drink bottle with 3 x scoops) = 206kcal, 50.4g CHO, 0g Protein, 388mg Sodium, 158mg Potassium.

3) Boosta Slab - (1 bar) = 114kcal, 0.3g Protein, 28g CHO (15g sugars), 17mg Sodium, 28mg Potassium.

4) Banana - (225g or 1 average)= 200kcal, 2g Protein, 51g CHO (28g sugars), 2mg Sodium, + Vit A,C, and Iron.

5) Peak Fuel Performance Bar - (65g Peanut Brownie) = 293kcal, 34g complex CHO (no simple sugars), 11g protein. Trace amounts Sodium, Potassium, calcium, magnesium.

6) Peak Fuel Gel - (2 x 32g serves per tube, 1 serve...) = 94kcal, 23g CHO, (6g simple sugars), 0.1g Protein, 59mg Sodium, 45mg Potassium, 18mg Caffeine.

7) Dates (best to soak first to help go down easier ) – 25g is one serve (4-5 dates) 85kcal, 16.8g CHO, 0.5g protein, 164mg of potassium, 2.3g fibre.

Brad Dixon is a sports physio, coach, and wellness evangelist based at EVERFIT Physio & Coaching. His passion is promoting enhancing daily habits that nudge people towards potential and save the planet. His book ‘Holistic Human’ is available here - https://everfit.co.nz/Store/Category/Book . The power is in our daily habits! Connect with Brad at www.everfit.co.nz, Facebook, Strava, Instagram (@everfitcoach), and YOU TUBE https://youtube.com/c/EverFITcoach 

Eating fruit at the Tarawera Ultra 60km, Photo credit - Photos4sale