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IM Race Rehearsal Report/Question

salbrechtsalbrecht
in Racing Forum 🏎

Did the first RR weekend, and feel much better about my prospects than before the weekend.  

Friday:  90min swim felt great.

Saturday: 6 hour ride felt good-ish (86 miles, 14.1mph avg).  Felt poorly afterwards, and was only comfortable running about 40-45 min.  Hot day (95+) and was in the sun ALL day.  Fell behind by one bottle out of 12 on the day, and ate solid food every hour.  Gut was not happy during bike, and began to protest during brick run.  Felt like I had the flu all evening, including feverish.  Woke up at midnight and felt normal again.

Sunday: 6 hour ride felt bleh for 2 hours, but then felt great (83 miles, 13.7 mph avg).  Kept up on hydration, and backed off of solid food a bit.  At the end of the second ride I felt better than part way through the first ride.  Could have run with little trouble if needed.  Felt a little feverish but much better than Saturday night.  Day was even hotter and still lots of sun.  Rode 3-4 miles less than Saturday, slightly lower average, but went out super slow to start the day.

Monday:  2hr 15 min run last night was piece of cake even though it involved a lot of hills and started at 9:30pm.  Warm out, but kept hydrated.  Legs didn't feel bad at all until last 30 minutes or so.  Slept like a baby and feel much more confident in going the distance in Tahoe.

QUESTION: So, was falling behind by only one bottle and eating a little more the first day the problem, and it was fixed by making adjustments?  Or is there some amount of a 'second wind' effect that kicked in on the second day and the body just finally accepts what you are trying to make it do and goes along with it?

Thanks for any feedback!

Comments

  • Coach RichCoach Rich
    What / how much / how many calories per hour / how much sodium per hour where you taking in?

    You say solid food, but didn't say what you're eating. You said bottle, but didn't what you're drinking, specifically. Thanks.
  • salbrechtsalbrecht

    Sorry, guess that is good info to share.

    Bottle:  Day 1 all 11 were Perform.  Day 2 was 2 Perform, 1 water, 1 Perform per 2 hour block.  During the run was all Perform.

    Solid food was Bonk Breaker Bites and a couple pks of Sport Beans.  Felt like it was just too much sugar.  Second Ride was 1/2 Bonk Breakers and 1/2 Sport Beans, but less total solid food.

    Gels were a mix of eGel, which I use a lot and stomach well, Powerbar Gels, which are usually good for me, and a few Gu Roctane that I don't usually stomach so well, but they are available on the course so thought I'd try again.  

    Also used Salt Stick Caps 1x per hour and some water at my rest stop (about every 2 hours) for both rides.

    Day 1 (not feeling good): 720 cal, 170g carbs, 1600 mg sodium per hour

    Day 2 (felt great):  600 cal, 150g carbs, 1480 mg sodium per hour

    Have been working in the Nutrition Calculator and it looks like I'm too heavy in all of the columns.

  • Coach RichCoach Rich

    Posted By Sam Albrecht on 20 Aug 2014 12:32 AM

    Sorry, guess that is good info to share.

    Bottle:  Day 1 all 11 were Perform.  Day 2 was 2 Perform, 1 water, 1 Perform per 2 hour block.  During the run was all Perform.

    Solid food was Bonk Breaker Bites and a couple pks of Sport Beans.  Felt like it was just too much sugar.  Second Ride was 1/2 Bonk Breakers and 1/2 Sport Beans, but less total solid food.

    Gels were a mix of eGel, which I use a lot and stomach well, Powerbar Gels, which are usually good for me, and a few Gu Roctane that I don't usually stomach so well, but they are available on the course so thought I'd try again.  

    Also used Salt Stick Caps 1x per hour and some water at my rest stop (about every 2 hours) for both rides.

    Day 1 (not feeling good): 720 cal, 170g carbs, 1600 mg sodium per hour If these per hour numbers include the solid/semi-solid food you ate then, yes, these numbers are WAY too high and you're setting yourself up stomach shut down. Think of it this way -- the more you begin to shift your calories away from liquid and towards solid / semi solids, you begin to set yourself up for digestions problems. I think you would have been fine with those 11 bottles of perform + a very, very small handful of gels, etc in the first half of the bike, if you felt good. 

    Day 2 (felt great):  600 cal, 150g carbs, 1480 mg sodium per hour This is getting closer and it looks like it worked better for you. However, that much sodium, on both days, is still getting towards the high side, in my opinion. 

    Have been working in the Nutrition Calculator and it looks like I'm too heavy in all of the columns.


  • jalesliejaleslie

    A popular strategy amongst some WSM's who are very fast is to do more solids early on the bike, switching to either gels and/or blocks later in the bike.  As time goes on, it becomes harder to "digest" solids for most folks.  

    Example....half a Clif bar or Powerbar every 30mins or every hour for first 2 hours, then a couple of blocks every 1/2 to 1hr for 2 hours, then gels only for last 1-2 hours.  

    I personally do only gels plus Perform and it has worked well in both HIM and IM distances.  I don't get hungry and have not had GI issues (yet).  I do not take in any water, unless it's late on the run and I just can't bear any more perform or coke.  Water definitely does not move out of my stomach fast enough (although sometimes I really crave it).  

    Recommend highly that you use the race nutrition calculator and start with a plan that is spot-on for calories and sodium per the calculator.  It's not a "one size fits all"/perfect deal, but it's the logical place to start, as it works for most (minimize GI upset, minimize bonking).  In your RR, if it doesn't work, that's where the real challenge is.....how to adjust (up or down?) to fix the problem.  

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