Here is what I did for nutrition at the White Lake Half Race:
5am: ate oatmeal with nuts and raisins, and a coffee with milk.
10-15 min before start: Gu Roctane. I love Gu Roctane!
Bike:
- 600 calorie bottle of Perpetuem, sipped every 15 minutes.
- 1 Package Gu Chomps, chewed one or two as desired. I love Gu Chomps!
- three 20 ounce bottles of water, mixed with 1 NUUN tablet. During the race, I emptied two of those bottles and picked up plain water. I think I only drank one of the plain water bottles.
- a Gu Roctane at the very end of the bike.
Run:
- carried a 20 ounce container of water in a hydration pack, mixed with 1 NUUN tablet. Filled with plain water twice during the entire run. I did not carry NUUN with me to add, as it is cumbersome to do that, and it fizzes up while it is dissolving.
- carried gel flask, mixed with two Gu Roctanes, some water and 1 NUUN. I didn’t start sipping on that until about 30 minutes in. I really did not like this mixture at all. Way too salty. I kept sipping it anyway, because I needed the nutrition.
- grabbed water at aid stations as needed, sipped a little, then dumped on head. Stuffed ice down bra. I was very thirsty, and sometimes would stick a small piece of ice in my mouth to suck on…that was wonderful.
- took a Gu Espresso 2X caffeine at mile 10 to give me a good boost of energy at the end. Really did not want to eat this, but did anyway.
Favorite treat of the day…on the way home, I was starving hungry for something meaty and greasy. I stopped at McDonald’s and got a burger and fries. Oh, so good!
Random notes that I posted in a BT forum, in response to someone talking about the need for solids during longer races…
I can’t really tolerate any solid food in races, or my stomach gets messed up. Even during the Ironman, I tried solid food, and got an upset stomach. The funny thing is, my stomach never gets messed up in training, so you have to keep experimenting, both training and racing, until you find perfection. (I’m still looking!)
In my experience, when my stomach gets messed up, I keep taking the liquid nutrition. I can keep going and my stomach doesn’t get more messed up, I just feel uncomfortable. Racing is uncomfortable anyway, so I just suck it up, butter cup!
I do find that ever since using Gu Roctane in races, I am able to keep a really good mental effort going, despite pain, discomfort, heat, etc. Maybe it’s coincidence that I tried that stuff at the same time my experience led me to mental toughness. Who knows? If I think something works, and it does, I’ll take it!
Now that I am re-reading this after writing my White Lake Nutrition report, I realize that it’s not just solids that mess up my stomach. Liquids do, too. I did not take any solids at White Lake, yet my stomach felt exactly like it did at Beach2Battleship, after I ate an uncrustable PB&J sandwich. Hmmm….
Thinking out loud here. First time I had this problem was my first attempt at Duke half. My nutrition plan there was peanut M&M’s. lol. Second time I got this was again at Duke half. I used Infinit that year. Got it again at B2B after eating a PB&J uncrustable sandwich. And then this year at White Lake. I don’t recall getting this on shorter races. Maybe it something about a long swim, and taking in calories on an empty stomach? Maybe I should drink some water first….?
More thinking…I searched my blog for “cramps” and found that I did get this all three times I did Duke 1/2 (once after taking some Boost in T1). And also at some Olympic races. I guess I just always assumed it was a normal part of racing. Is it? I mean, I’m doing okay despite this, so I really can’t complain. My stomach can, tho, lol!
One last note. My stomach cramps feel like a tight knot in my stomach. In the middle, not on the side, so they are definitely NOT side stitches. It feels like my body is saying “Hey, you are making me work too hard. I don’t like it and I don’t want to eat right now!” And I keep shoving stuff down my throat as if to say “Too bad… just shut up and do what I say!”
Try poptarts for nutrition. Each one is 200 cals, and I have a sensitive stomach, and they seem to hold well. As well, take in an FRS drink before the start of the race (www.frs.com) .
Hi. I really enjoy your blog as I am a 40+, former couch potatoe, who loves Triathlons. I am in training for my first Oly this year, my third year of training. The past two years I’ve had problems with stomach cramps and loose stools after long trainings. It seems to happen mostly after long runs or runs where I push myself very hard. The little research on line I did suggested sodium deficiency thru sweating. I’ve tried upping my sodium thru salty snacks and gatorade prior to workouts with mixed results. Thanks for all the good info you put on your blog. It really helps. Stay strong. 🙂
I like your nutrition plan! From what you described you should be properly fueled for the entire distance. I also noticed your post race treat…I like a sack of White Castle Sliders for post race…
Good grief! How the heck do you carry all that? LOL. Got any good links on what to expect, bring do for first triathlon? I mean do you literally bring a backpack or do you have friends at stations etc?