Race nutrition

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  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    I know I'm hijacking, but it's directly related, so I hope it's ok.

    I've got my first olympic tri coming up Sept 3. I've been been training most of the summer and upped the intensity the last 2 weeks. My plan is to go easy next week (stay loose and in routine, but not strain the legs or wear myself out).

    For the day or 2 before the race, how should I be eating? Most raced I've done I can get through on my conditioning and a bottle of water, but I suspect the olympic is going to be a different story. I assume lots of carbs - simple (white starches?) or complex (whole wheat)? Or something else?
  • batlou
    batlou Posts: 97 Member
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    If it's a Sprint you really should not need anything other than water. The typical person stores enough glycogen in the liver and muscles of the thighs to sustain a HARD effort workout for 90-120 minutes. At the most for a Sprint I would maybe take a gel out of T2. For Olympic distance I typically do 1 gel out of the water and 1 off the bike which may even be over kill.

    Having said that, I have a friend that has the metabolism of a hummingbird and can't function without taking in something every 45 minutes or so. He is a solid athlete so no reason to suspect it's a fitness thing just one of those YMMV deals. Nutrition should be just as big a part of your training as the actual fitness part.

    Good luck on your race, they are a ton of fun and very addicting.
  • aviduser
    aviduser Posts: 208 Member
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    Nothing new on race day!

    If you are doing an event that is less than 2 hours, you should be good with water and maybe a sports drink (I use Hammer's HEED).

    If you are doing an event that is longer than 2 hours, you will need more fuel. I have had great results with Hammer's Perpetuem. Also, Enduralytes are great--just carry water and take the capsules as directed.

    But you need to train with these things before you race with them. You never know how something will make your stomach feel and you don't want to have stomach cramps or worse during the race.

    Good luck!
  • jheller
    jheller Posts: 194
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    If your race is Sunday its probably too late to test drive anything new during your workouts because you shouldn't be doing much at the moment!. I've done 2 sprint tri's and have been going on long weekend rides all summer and I really like Shot Rok's. Taste good and to be truthful, I don't know if they really help but I feel better knowing I had something. I also use Nuun electrolyte fizzy tablets. I took me a few times to get used to them - first bottle I wasn't thrilled - but I found on my last tri that after it sat in my water bottle for 2 hours and "warmed up" a bit it wasn't bad.

    I have a bottle of Nuun on my bike and one bottle of plain ole water and take one Rok as I start riding and one towards the end of the ride. Like I said - it just mentally helps me out.

    Good luck and have fun.

    Jessica

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