Marathon Pace

tkillion810

I noticed something in my last few races and was able to confirm it yesterday during my training run. Yesterdays run was 14 miles, 2 mile warm up, 10 miles at marathon pace, and 2 mile cool down. I was cruising right along and at mile 5 and 9.5 I refueled; this is where I would fuel in my race. As soon as I fuel when running my marathon pace, my stomach just clenches around the sugar I've just taken in. It's not GI distress persay, but more stomach twisting. It takes about 15-20 minutes for this to go away and make running that pace very difficult. By the time it goes away, I only have another 2 or so miles before I should be fueling again. I only have this issue when I'm running faster (fast for me). If I'm doing an easy run, which would be about a minute to minute and a half slower per mile, I don't have the same problem.

Anyone else experience this? Does this sound like an issue with the type of fueling, or with my fitness level? I would love some help. I felt great yesterday except for this issue, and it's kept me from hitting my goals in the past few races.

tegalicious

Could be the type of fuel you are using. Have you tried chews, other kinds of gels, or real food (banana, raisins, chocolate chips)?

davemunger

I agree, probably has to do with the type of fuel. I would suggest trying an energy drink instead of gels. I used Tailwind at a race this spring and really liked it. http://www.tailwindnutrition.com/

SonicDeathMonkey80

If you take a concentrated sugar source like Gu without water, it takes longer to enter the bloodstream, hence the distress. I'd second trying a sports drink and seeing how that goes, or upping your water with the gel.

tkillion810

I've tried the chews, and they aren't too bad, but then I would be refueling more often so I'm not chomping down an entire pack at once. I always follow my gels w/ water, but not a ton. Makes me feel sloshy. Bananas work well but not great for races. It gets to be too much to carry. I cannot do energy drinks like Gatorade or powerade. I haven't tried tailwind.

davemunger

I've tried the chews, and they aren't too bad, but then I would be refueling more often so I'm not chomping down an entire pack at once. I always follow my gels w/ water, but not a ton. Makes me feel sloshy. Bananas work well but not great for races. It gets to be too much to carry. I cannot do energy drinks like Gatorade or powerade. I haven't tried tailwind.

I have never liked gatorade and powerade, but tailwind works great for me. Or you could try "sipping" your energy gels so you are not ingesting it all at once. Some folks have good luck putting their gels directly in their water.

tkillion810

I checked out the Tailwind website. It looks like a great product. My concern is that I don't/can't drink that much water to get adequate amount of carbs for the time I spend on the course. I appreciate the suggestion.

I think my next tempo or fast interval run I will practice taking 1/2 a gel at a time every 20-25 mins rather than 40-45 mins, or using the chews at the same intervals.

kristinegift

That is how I feel when I drink Garotade while I run. I never drink a sports drink while I run; I drink G2-low cal after long runs to replenish my sodium because I sweat like a mofo.

To refuel mid-run, I eat Honey Stinger chews (with caffeine, woo energy!) and drink plain water. I eat 2 chews at a time, every 2-3 miles starting at mile 3 or 4. They digest very easily, a whole pack will last me a long run (so far 14-16 miles), and they don't make me feel sick after I eat them. I used to eat GUs, but I got tired of having sticky fingers after opening them

jessspurr

Ok, whatever you do...think long and hard about taking Gatorade directly after a GU. For some reason I did that last long run. It wasn't...fun...
I'm getting to the point that I really despise gels/chews/etc. No matter what I do I cannot make myself believe I like the taste! I'm thinking about switching to real food, like a peanut butter sandwich. You could squish that up and pack it in a pretty small place I bet!

CarsonRuns

Try different brands of Gels. I have a cast iron stomach and it doesn't like Gu brand. I use Hammer Gel, Montana Huckleberry. Also, try them with and without caffeine.

lockeddoor

I take fruit strips (the kind made with real fruit and minimal sugars) because they're flat and small enough where I can just shove them into my bra (yes, I use my sports bra as basically a large pocket. I'm flat-chested where I don't really need it for support or anything, it's just my snack pouch LOL).

Most of the time I use Sports Beans by Jelly Belly (I like the kind with caffeine, because I'm not a morning person). Just take a couple every few miles. I tend to just bite down into them, and then suck on them, as I find that chewing tends to throw me out of my running groove for some reason. Gu is okay, but if I use it, I can't take it all down at once. I find that splitting it in half is what works best for me on my longer runs.

If I am using any of those fuels, though, I stick to water. I find that taking any of those WITH an electrolyte drink of any sort just makes me cramp up and then I have a pretty miserable run as it's a cramp that literally stays with me for every single mile until I'm done.

laurasuzanne2006

I've found i can do chews for halves but my stomach will not tolerate them for fulls....

litsy3

I don't normally bother refuelling at all on training runs as I don't find I run out of energy, but in a marathon I use SiS isogels, which are a bit gloopier than the GU ones and don't need to be taken with water so are easier to digest (the disadvantage is they're heavier to carry because of the extra liquid).

Also I find if I take caffeine before or during races I feel sick, so that's worth experimenting with.

GillianMcK

I'm getting to the point that I really despise gels/chews/etc. No matter what I do I cannot make myself believe I like the taste! I'm thinking about switching to real food, like a peanut butter sandwich. You could squish that up and pack it in a pretty small place I bet!

Have you tried High 5 gels, they are really nice, I go for the normal ones, but they have a one with a higher carb content and one with added caffenine, but they all actually taste nice and taste like what is on the packet (orange, lime, raspberry etc)!!

I found I had issues with the gel and water, but the high 5 gels are actually really palatable and I only had mild issues when going through the water stations and taking gels as well.

Play about with them and find what works, does it happen all the time or could it have been a once off??

tkillion810

Thanks for all the replies. I don't believe it's the gel causing the specific problem. I don't have any problem digesting it at the slower pace. It's only when really working hard. I do follow them with water, although probably not enough. As for training runs, it's not that I need the fuel, it's for practice. I don't want to get to race day and my body be unprepared. To me, practicing fueling is just as important as running the training miles. The bad part is that what might work for a while, may not always work as we continue to train/race. Then it's back to the drawing board.

I've decided to try a few things out to see if I can get this worked out:
1 - consume half the gel at a time, approx. every 20-25 minutes (versus a whole gel every 40-45 minutes)
2 - test the faster pace w/ the chews taking 3-4 every 20-25 minutes
3 - pick up some TailWind to try. I've done more research and I've been told for a 4 hour race, I would need 8 scoops, 4 per 16ish oz bottle of water. This would mean I would need to carry one and pick up the 2nd one from my hubby along the course.

How do these test strategies sound?

litsy3

That all sounds sensible, though obviously don't try them all at once! I also practice taking gels on a couple of training runs, though for me it's more a case of 'can I get the stupid packet open at marathon pace?' :mad:

Another thing to bear in mind is you probably don't need anywhere near as much fuel as the manufacturers recommend - they just want you to buy more product. As a fairly small runner, I can happily get through a marathon with 4 isogels, and strongly suspect I don't even need those (but can't not take them just in case...)

GillianMcK

That all sounds sensible, though obviously don't try them all at once! I also practice taking gels on a couple of training runs, though for me it's more a case of 'can I get the stupid packet open at marathon pace?' :mad:

Always slightly jealous when I see people that can open and take the gel and keep running, I have to come back to a walk!!

tkillion810

That all sounds sensible, though obviously don't try them all at once! I also practice taking gels on a couple of training runs, though for me it's more a case of 'can I get the stupid packet open at marathon pace?' :mad:

Always slightly jealous when I see people that can open and take the gel and keep running, I have to come back to a walk!!

I can get them open, but one time it tore down the side and I didn't realize it. Then I squished out the gel and it splattered all over the side of my face. Not good :P

davemunger

Thanks for all the replies. I don't believe it's the gel causing the specific problem. I don't have any problem digesting it at the slower pace. It's only when really working hard. I do follow them with water, although probably not enough. As for training runs, it's not that I need the fuel, it's for practice. I don't want to get to race day and my body be unprepared. To me, practicing fueling is just as important as running the training miles. The bad part is that what might work for a while, may not always work as we continue to train/race. Then it's back to the drawing board.

I've decided to try a few things out to see if I can get this worked out:
1 - consume half the gel at a time, approx. every 20-25 minutes (versus a whole gel every 40-45 minutes)
2 - test the faster pace w/ the chews taking 3-4 every 20-25 minutes
3 - pick up some TailWind to try. I've done more research and I've been told for a 4 hour race, I would need 8 scoops, 4 per 16ish oz bottle of water. This would mean I would need to carry one and pick up the 2nd one from my hubby along the course.

How do these test strategies sound?

These sound like excellent strategies. You are being very thoughtful about this!

DavidMartinez2

If you are distressed for 15-20 minutes and then have 2 more miles before you take a second gel that means you are running somewhere in the vicinity of 7 minute miles. At that speed I would recommend taking a gel every 6 miles; if you are only doing half at a time that takes you to every 3 miles at which point it feels like you are almost constantly fueling and drinking. I think your problem is that the particular gel you are taking does not agree with you when you are running at race pace. I suggest you try a couple of different gels until you find one that does not cause cramping after you take it.