Ready to Race!  Fuel to the End!

Disclaimer:  The following information is intended as a very rough guide for fuel intake immediately before and during an ultra-endurance event.  An ultra-endurance athlete’s needs are extreme on race day, and to a large extent tailored to his or her individual requirements.  Most required is gradual preparation, in terms of nutrition being built on a firm foundation of good eating habits, physical training and mental conditioning, started months before.  This is not intended for use by children and will not work if taken apart from necessary training and from excellent daily eating habits.

The Week Prior to the Race: Carbohydrate Loading

To store glycogen levels to their maximum capacity before a race you need to think several days ahead, not just the night before!  Pasta is a great choice for that last supper meal.
(Thanks to Marshall’s Pasta for providing pasta and salad to Theresa, her family and the organizing committee on Thursday evening!)

• Consume at least 5 g carbohydrate /kg daily beginning 4-7 days before the race. 
• Avoid alcohol completely while carb loading, since alcohol must be totally cleared from the system to allow carbohydrate to be stored as glycogen 
• Keep exercise relatively low 4 days or more prior to the race (Theresa ran 5 km at most)
• Consume 10 g carb per kg 1-3 days prior to the race.  Indulge in large dishes of frozen yogurt, gelato or sorbet- other carbs that tempt you that are easy to eat in significant quantities.

Race Day:  Before the race

The main difference between training needs during the training and the race is the need for more carbohydrate during the race.  Longer endurance events and ultra-endurance events will require a higher energy intake per hour IF the athlete can tolerate taking more.  Also, special attention needs to be given toward electrolyte replacement.

• Drink 425-500 ml fluid 2 hours before racing if feasible
• Drink 200-300 sport drink 10-20 min before the race
• Theresa drank about 300 ml of orange juice and 300 ml water before she set out.  She knew she would be drinking sports drinks all day, not juice, and she lkes her morning OJ!
• Consume 1-4 g carb per kg body weight, 1-4 hours before the race. For a 65 kg person, this would mean taking 65-260 g carbohydrate.
• Include at least 8-20 grams protein 
• Keep the meal low in fat  (10-15 g)
• It should be moderately low in fibre. 
• Include something salty if you wish!

See the appendix for a list of possible breakfast foods you might choose.

Often prior to an event, it may not be possible to eat as much as usual, due to pre-race jitters. This was the case for Theresa- She did manage to eat a cinnamon raisin bagel, with a little margarine, a banana and her orange juice – about 120 gram carbohydrate, (1.8 g/kg) ; 8 grams protein, and 8-10  grams of fat.

Race Day: Fueling On the Road

Fluids and carbohydrate will make up most of what you need during the race.

Fluids:  Try to drink 200-300 ml fluid every 15-20 min (or as feasible); include sodium.  Remember, individual fluid needs are highly variable.

Theresa took approximately 4 litres of fluid during her run, averaging about 325 ml per hour. (Less than expected, but record keeping was not completely accurate!  Also, Theresa had not been used to drinking much at all, prior to our “official” training, so this was good for her!)  Intake in the first 2-3 hours matched recommendations, but dropped as time went on, which is common. Beverages included Gatorade, water, regular Coke, ice pops.1/2 can RedBull,  a few sips of cold soup, and an iced cappuccino at the 80 km mark.

Sodium:
Theresa took about 2700 mg sodium from food.  Additionally, she took 12 Succeed S! caps for an additional 4000 mg Na (+ 250 mg potassium) to total 6700 mg sodium.

Compare:
Succeed  S! Caps  1 capsule  =  341 mg Na + 21 mg potassium       
Saltstik (SScap)      1 capsule =  215 mg mg Na + 63 mg K
+ 22 mg Ca + 11 mg Magnesuim + 100 IU Vit D       

1 tsp salt yields 2300 mg Na.
1 x250 ml tomato juice        680 mg Na  430 mg potassium

Energy:  Women need to consume at least 200 kcal/hour, while men need at least 250 kcal;u p to 400 kcal per hour ; most in the form of carbohydrate (50-100 grams per hour). Be sure to keep fat and fibre intake low. Include Sports hydration drinks, sports gels (sources of malto-dextrin), sports bars,  athlete’s cookies (see recipe that follows) , fruit like watermelon and bananas, dried fruit, fruit chews or leathers, candy like gummy bears or Turkish delight, salted cereal snacks, pretzels, a few salty nuts.  Avoid things like brownies (too high fat) and Sunny D – extremely high osmolar load!

For Theresa, we aimed for  a minimum of 200 kcal/hour or 50 g carbohydrate /hour – She averaged about 236 kcal per hour until the end of the race .  Fortunately, she was able to keep taking fluid and carbohydrate right until the end of the event.  Not only did this ensure that she finished, but it also meant that she could recover relatively quickly.   A rough analysis of her intake up to the end of the race:  2840 kcal; 575 g carb (79% energy from carbohydrate); 47 g fat  (15% energy); 46 g protein  (6% total energy).

Race Day:  After the Race

Aim to eat 0.8 Carb per kg body weight, within the first 30-60 min.  Include 0.2 g protein /kg within the first 30-60 min.  This usually takes the form of a post-workout shake.  Add a mixed meal 2 hours later.  Fat intake should be minimal for 2-4 hours.

Theresa was very diligent in taking her shakes during training, but couldn’t face another drink at the finish.  Instead she enjoyed a couple of slices of pizza, with the rest of the crew! This would have added about 420 kcal , 60 g carbohydrate 12 fat and 20 g of protein .  That evening, she was thirsty and drank about a litre of water, which would restore about 1 kg weight as water.

Total for the day: Approximately 3425 kcal, 635 g carb, 70 g protein, 67 g fat.
Unfortunately, we missed getting a starting weight at the beginning of the day. Her weight varied only 1 kg (2.2 #) from hour 5: 40- end.
Energy expended for 12 hours running at approx 8.5 kx/hour= 9,000 kcal

Appendix- Sample Breakfast Foods

Food

Carb

Fibre

Protein

Fat

Your Totals

ONERUN Athlete's Cookies

This is the recipe for Theresa's favourite cookies to nibble en route. The recipe came to Theresa from her sister, Maria Rocca.

Add ingredients in this order:

• 1/4 cup of butter
• 3/4 cup of brown sugar
• 1 tsp of vanilla
• 1/2 cup of natural peanut butter
• 1 whole egg and 1 egg white
• 1 cup of whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup of oat bran
• 1 cup of oatmeal
• 1/4 cup of flaxseed (optional)
• 1/2 cup of raisins or chocolate chips (soak raisins in warm water for a few minutes first)

Cook for 12-15 min at 350 Farenheit (makes about 2 dozen)

Enjoy!

Nutitional Information for each cookie:
Energy: 145 Kcal
Total Carbohydrate: 20 g; 9 g sugars; Dietary Fiber:2 g
Protein: 4 g; Fat: 6 g; cholesterol: 14 mg Sodium: 24 mg