Stomach cramps at Kona, Raleigh, and Chattanooga have taught me some invaluable lessons. They also forced me to seek out new ideas. One such source was Dr Tamsin Lewis, who is a pro triathlete, Medical Physician, and former Brett Sutton athlete. She discusses race day nutrition here, here, and here. The following are some of the ideas that I plan to trial in the future.
Decongestants should be avoided race week. I used them in Raleigh to help me overcome a cold, but they ended up causing dehydration. Being hydrated before a race is of upmost importance as I can race with a runny nose, but not cramps.
NSAIDs (Aspirin) should be avoided race day. Lots of athletes take them to reduce pain, but they increased gastrointestinal (GI) acidity and thus impair digestion.
Proton Pump Inhibitors (Omeprazole, Prilosec) may help reduce GI acidity and GI problems during a race. This is a supplement that Dr Lewis recommends on race morning, but not on a routine basis. On race day athletes typically consume a lot of simple sugars, which are very acidic and can cause GI problems. Lewis recommends 20 mg with breakfast.
Activated Charcoal may reduce bloating and nausea from too much sugar consumption. This is another supplement recommended by Dr Lewis. No matter how conservative one is with their calorie consumption, issues may arise due to heat, pace, or other circumstances. Dr Lewis says she always takes 4 capsules (280 mg each) on the bike for a 70.3 and up to 6 for an Ironman.
Sea Salt on the tongue may reduce cramps. Salt, along with sugar, is an addictive food substance that makes us happy and has been linked to enhanced performance even before reaching the blood stream. BASE Performance markets small vials of sea salt to place on your thumb then mouth. I tried it during my run with Tiffany and the taste of salt helped cut the sweetness of the Coke while providing me with a mental boost. I plan to consume 1,000 mg sodium per hour on the bike and run.
Ensure Plus I typically consume Kefir and Heavy Cream for breakfast, but they must be refrigerated and could potentially spoil. Moving forward, I plan to consume 2 bottles of Ensure Plus. They are shelf stable and an easy to digest balanced mixture of carbohydrates, protein, and fat, providing 350 kcal per bottle.
U-Can I plan to continue consuming one serving, 15- 30 minutes before the race. I like the product because it does not spike my insulin levels pre-race, causing fatigued from a drop in blood sugar.
Calories I plan to reduce my calories from 90 grams to 60 grams of carbohydrates per hour. Going from the upper estimated range to the lower estimated range allows me room to adjust during a race. Once you over-consume calories it's hard to correct. 60 grams per hour is a more conservative approach and being conservative has worked extremely well in other areas of training.
Water consumption may be the single biggest factor causing my issues. At Kona, volunteers lost my special needs bag and I became overly focused on calories neglecting water. At Raleigh, I tried to drink to thirst and ended up only consuming a minimal amount. At Chattanooga I planned to refill my water bottle 3 times at designated aid stations, unfortunately I neglected aid station #8 and thus missed out on 24 oz of water. It was just one too many things to think about during a race.
Keep It Simple Chris Borden, who was the overall amateur champion at IM Chattanooga has a simple approach to nutrition. He grabs water at each aid station. He doesn't have to remember when to grab water or fiddle with refilling his personal bottle, he just drinks at each aid station. Moving forward, I plan to have one bottle of plain water on the bike plus consume 8 oz at each aid station, which would provided me with the exact same 96 oz of plain water.
Coke I love my Chocolate Cherry Clif Bar Turbo Shots with 100 mg of caffeine, but I'm considering switching to Coke. It would be one less thing I had to carry or think about. Plus, Coke is already a liquid and therefore easier to digest than gels. It provides caffeine, it's readily available on the course, and seems to settle an upset stomach. My plan would be to consume Coke and water at each aid station along with an electrolyte supplement. I also plan to walk at each aid station from the Coke table to the last chance trash sign to save my legs for later in the race and help with calorie absorption.
Just wish I knew this before IM Chattanooga, but hopefully this will help others and me at future races. I take solace in knowing it took pro triathlete Meredith Kessler 40 Ironmans to fine tune her nutrition strategy. As always, practice in training before race day.
No reason to wag water on race day right?
ReplyDeleteNice read too!