Sports Nutrition For Endurance Athletes

Triathlon Nutrition – Fueling Your Way To A Perfect Race

Going into an important race, or even a long training session, it’s essential to map out a nutrition strategy. This is not the time to be winging it.

The first step is to determine how much liquid you’ll need to keep properly hydrated. Obviously this will be affected by your body type, your level of exertion and weather conditions. But a good rule of thumb is 24-30 ounces per hour.

The second step is to determine how many calories you’ll need to take in. You absolutely must keep fuel in your tank, or you risk bonking. The amount of calories you’ll need obviously will also vary from person to person, from body type to body type — and you will need to experiment to see what works best for you. But a good baseline is 300-400 calories per hour of intense exercise.

A petite racer might opt for something a little lower — say, 250 cal/hour — but be careful about exceeding 400 cal/hour. That’s generally accepted to be the maximum that your GI system can ingest.

Let’s take my next half-Ironman as an example. I’ll likely finish in about six hours. Since I’m on the larger side, I should approach the upper hourly thresholds of 30 ounces of fluid and 400 calories. So over the course of a six-hour race, I’m looking at having to take in 180 ounces of fluid and 2,400 calories.

The next part of the plan is to figure out HOW THE HECK you’re going to take in 2,400 calories and a gallon and a half of liquid during a triathlon — especially when for a good portion of it, you’ll be in the water! It’s actually quite doable.

Best to break it down by hour, and by the three disciplines. Of course you can’t take in anything during the swim, but you can factor in what you have immediately before your race (but not including your breakfast). I recommend taking a gel or two and about 12 ounces of water about 10 minutes before the gun goes off.

During the bike and run (and transitions, if you choose), you can actually get a lot of your calories from your sports drink. Gatorade will get you 120 calories per 20 ounces — something like Infinit could get you a lot more and really simplify what else you need carry to supplement. Assume about 6-8 ounces in a standard cup of fluid at an aid station on the run. Bars run about 200 calories, gels about 100. If you like ShotBloks or Sport Beans, factor those in as well.

Figure out your preferred menu and make sure it all adds up!