Fueling strategy changes for racing in Kona or other really Hot and Humid IMs
What are your fueling strategy changes for racing in Kona or other really Hot and Humid IMs? I have my succesful fluid, calories, and salt for an average warm summer race. How do others on the team alter their plans for the really hot races?
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Speaking from my experience here in TX, never been to Kona or done a super hot/humid full-IM, I'd say to fully separate your hydration from your nutrition. You don't need to ingest calories every time you're thirsty!
Other than that, I don't have much else to offer.
@Sheila Leard Would you agree to just add additional H20 and sodium to the plan that has worked before?
I intend to have a Between The Aerobars bottle exclusively for water, to be replenished at the aid stations. I will also have my usual calories spread among liquid, gel, and Clif bars, to be replenished @ Special Needs. So the only real change is to have a water tube in my face for more frequent drinking. I get all my salt and electrolytes from my routine nutrition, as I can;t swallow pills while riding any longer since my larynx got crushed.
@Robert Sabo Ii think the biggest factor is keeping blood volume up so there is plenty of blood to share for cooling and working muscles. White arm coolers is something to consider. You can wet them and I find it helps because of the humidity and wind. My personal opinion on salt is that you can get too much worrying about it. Anecdotally, athletes under 80 kg needing less salt. If hyponatremia is going to happen it will be on the run.
Here is an in depth review of the benefits of sauna. Do it!
Stacey Sims protocol advises not to rehydrate during the sauna but that may not be good advice for across all genders and age.
To maximize the benefit, Sim’s has developed a protocol to use before any major event likely to challenge you to your limits. Make sure to check with your doctor first, especially if you take medications (including NSAIDs like ibuprofen or naproxen, which reduce blood flow through the kidneys) or suffer hypertension, kidney problems, or other serious health problems.
10 Tips To Maximize Sauna Benefits
I was going to use skratch prehydration day before and morning of race.
@Robert Sabo
Allen Lim suggests using it an 30 min before the race. If you salt your food the day before I don't think you'll need hyper -hydration as well. Some people who use it the day before report having to pee alot. You're going to be in a salty swim and don't want to be over salted. The hyper-hydration is really to just load up plasma volume. I suggest either the day before or morning but not both.
From Allen Lim ....
"For athletes, who know that they are adequately hydrated, they have found that our Hyper Hydration Mix becomes more effective when they consume it closer to the start of exercise. This is because if they drink too far out from exercise, the sudden increase in blood pressure simply causes them to urinate most of the extra water away. By waiting until just before exercise, blood flow is redirected away from their kidneys while sweating begins to pull away the excess water and salt reserve. This typically creates the biggest increase in performance relative to their non hyper-hydrated competitors. That said, it only works in very hot environments and for very intense bouts of exercise or competition."
https://blog.skratchlabs.com/blog/hyper-hydration scroll to the end for recommendations.
@Robert Sabo For KONA-
I feel the real heat on the bike- once you hit the KQ on the return leg, reality hits, as you start riding on the surface of the sun, something about the exposure, temps, and drier air in those lava fields that just get to me, even though there is plenty of wind and water from AS for cooling. KONA is the only place I have ever drank 30oz of fluid per hour on the bike vs my usual 20oz give or take, its also the only place I have ever experienced little electrical impulses in my leg muscles which was very weird as I do not suffer from cramps. Can only think it was an electrolyte imbalance of sorts even though consuming way more than usual. If drinking more calories you may find you need to eat less calories , but I'm pretty sure I consumed the planned eating calories netting me more calories overall vs. a normal IM.
ON the bike - I set my drink alert to every 10' vs 15' for other IM's. Then in addition to that drink to thirst which is nothing new. I will also drink a little bit of water out of the AS bottles I use to cool down with, which I normally do NOT do..
ON the run- its pretty much business as usual just using the AS. YES the run is HOT but I find as long as your running 9-11 minute miles your getting relief and the ability to apply a good heat strategy. With exception of the KQ/Energy Lab, the run is usually overcast and humid which I find a lot easier to handle than that exposed surface of the sun.
@Sheila Leard Interesting comment from LIm about increased blood pressure making you pee. I believe I experienced that when drinking hyperhydration the day before and then again the morning of. Kind of a contradictional way of thinking, we usually consume more sodium the day before in an effort to hydrate or electrolyte load , when it may have the opposite effect. If I was racing I think I would apply his advice to skip in the day before and drink it the morning of.
@Robert Sabo - how long before the race will you be there? You're pretty lean, right? My answer to your question gets influenced by how well acclimated you will be, and how much practice you would have executing in the conditions.
(That said, I've tended to drift towards 'don't overthink it' over time: race day, I drink more than I'm used to, make sure I'm peeing hourly on the bike, and take more fluids at every run aid station than I think I need. The only thing I'm fanatical about is never being without a full bottle of fluids at any time on the bike, but even then, the bike aid stations are very frequent, and aside from the climb into Hawi, you aren't more than 10' from your next handup. )
I will change my alert to every 10 minutes. Thanks @tim cronk
I will be in Kona 10-4 for the 10-12 race. I guess I'll use the hyperhydration in the AM for sure and judge the day before whether I think I'd benefit from one then as well. I was thinking of adding those extra sips of water during the ride.
Thanks everyone.
@Robert Sabo - never done it, but every time I've checked the weather over the past two months between Tampa and Kona, it is hotter and more humid here. Accuweather has Tampa hotter on 12 Oct. Unless there is something about the lava fields that doesn't translate then I'm looking forward to the cooler weather in Hawaii.
@Paul Hough Kona and the "lava fields" out on the Queen K are two different environments. The winds and the radiant heat off the black surface make it feel worse (to me) away from town. Coach P would differ, stating that along Ali'i it is like a sauna, with no wind, but then he is running there from 1-2 PM; I'll not show up until after 3 PM, when the sun starts being shaded by the seaside condos.
That wind, though, is the big issue. Not only it it mentally stressful to ride into it, it also surreptitiously sucks the moisture out of you, making it very easy to get behind on fluids without being aware.
I'm saying this mostly for me, as my biggest limiter there has been not drinking as much, or as frequently as I should. By the time the run starts, it's too late to make up the difference.
@Al Truscott - thanks for that tip...didn't realize there was a big temperature variance along the coast! I will really need to push fluids on the bike then. I rode 107 last Saturday on a very windy, hot and humid day here. My heart rate started to decouple around 100 miles; and when I was just 3 miles from home, I pulled over to a bench and laid down for several minutes to get myself together. I don't need that to happen at Kona. Legacy does not start until 7:30am. If all goes to plan, I hope to hit T2 by 3:30pm, then walk 7.5 hours for an 11pm finish. That leaves me with a 90 minute cushion. I've found that while I could easily oversweat my ability to keep up with hydration on the run, that is not a problem while walking. So the bike is key!!
@Robert Sabo - one thing to take care of when fluid needs go way up is to watch the calories. You don't need more calories in the heat and you can easily find yourself having taken in too many if you are pushing extra GE. If you get too concentrated calories in your stomach from GE, gels, etc, it can dehydrate you (osmosis flows towards the concentration). So remember to try to keep calories at plan while increasing the liquid.
My rule of thumb is to supplement with water if I exceed two bottles per hour. If I need to pee I take another salt pill and if I start to swell form the salt, I skip one of the salts.
Rode the course yesterday. I drank constantly, took on at least 18l of fluids, and was still very dehydrated. Can’t emphasize enough what a different hydration game it is on this course.
18 litres = 608 ounces, or 23 standard size water bottles. or ~ 4 bottles/hour. Is that right? @Dave Tallo Where'd you get all the fluids - from the store or a sag car?
Carried 4x 1l bottles. Two stops at the Kawahae turn to Hawi, and one more at the Matasuma /KonaMtn coffee. A sag car or bottled up domestique wouldn’t have been a bad idea.
and don't forget the poi.