Simple 70.3 Nutrition Strategies (by Lance Watson)

While this is written (and published) by LifeSport coach Lance Watson, it is pretty dog gone spot on to what I reinforce with all my athletes.  And, quite frankly, sometimes an outside, neutral third party validates what "your" coach has been saying all along.  Some things that are always to be considered and/or personalized are fluid ounces intake, sodium and potassium intake, protein to carbohydrate ratios.

Thank you to LifeSport Coaching for publishing this, and allowing me to share it with those who might not otherwise see it.

The aim for a bike leg of any (Ironman) 70.3 is to propel you strongly to the start of the run. The aim of the run is have enough fuel left in your body to show off your fitness. If you have practiced sound nutrition over the 56 miles of riding, you will be able to begin the run in great condition and complete the 13.1 miles with minimal slowing down.

The sport nutrition products supplied on the course do not necessarily guide your choice of calories. You can train with those products in the months before the race to test them. Most athletes work with the product that suits their stomach and do not cause GI distress.

Note that calorie absorption and heart rate are inversely related. As you start to exercise blood is diverted from your stomach to your working muscles and skin to sweat and help cool you. As your heart rate rises, you are less able to digest the calories you ingest. Therefore your race day nutrition plan is intimately bound to your racing heart rate. Make sure you show up to the race knowing your race intensity zones and having practiced eating at those heart rates! The most common mistake is to consume too much at a high heart rate. If your heart rate is up, adjust your calorie intake downward. Also, do what you've been doing in training - don't try anything new on race day!

When preparing your race day plan you should take the following guidelines into account:

Pre Race

1. Breakfast on race day should be similar to training days. Stick primarily with carbohydrates, a little protein, and minimal fats. Toast and jam, a banana, oatmeal, PowerBar (insert energy bar of choice), and Carbohydrate electrolyte drinks are popular choices. Some will have egg or peanut butter for protein. Some athletes prefer a shake. If you have a coffee on training days, have a coffee on race day.
2. Finish breakfast 2-3hrs before race start to give yourself time to digest.
3. In the 2hrs before the race, sip water and/or a Carbohydrate electrolyte drink.
4. Some athletes will take a PowerGel (insert energy gel of choice) prior to race start.

Bike

1. Starting the bike - For the first 5-10 minutes of the bike, drink water and take in minimal calories, mainly in the form of a sports drink. Let your body adjust to cycling, and let your heart rate drop down. Then start eating when you have settled into a good cycling rhythm. Follow the plan you've trained with all season, do nothing new on race day.
2. From 10 minutes after the bike start to 10 minutes prior to the bike finish eat 200-350 carbohydrate calories per hour, regardless of source. Larger or muscular athletes tend to need more calories. For instance, PowerGel = 110 cal; PowerBar = 200 cal; Carbohydrate electrolyte drink = 100 cal. Bigger athletes need more calories. Some athletes can digest more than others. Test it in training.
3. Drink 1 to 1.5 litres (33-50oz) of fluid per hour (water and Carbohydrate electrolyte drink combined). This is approximately 2 small bottles to 2 large bottles per hour, depending on climate and your personal perspiration rate. A training tip is to weigh yourself pre- and post ride.  Every 1 pound lost is 1 small water bottle of fluid deficit, and will negatively impact your half marathon performance.
4. Set your watch alarm(s) to remind you to eat and drink regularly.
5. A simple plan would be to eat a gel every 30 min (~200 cal per hour) and a bottle of sports drink per hour (100 cal per hour). Sip water throughout with the gel. You will need to take up to 10oz of water per gel.
6. The products you use should also provide the following minerals/electrolytes, which will help you absorb your drink into your blood stream, and avoid cramping. Recommended sodium intake is 500-750mg/litre (33oz) - for example, one PowerGel has 200mg Sodium, 20mg Potassium, and 90mg Chloride. 1 litre (33oz) of Carbohydrate electrolyte drink has approximately 200-400mg of sodium.
7. If the products you choose or those provided on the course do not supply the recommended amount of electrolyte you should consider using additional supplementation. As with all other products, you should practice their use in training prior to the race.
8. 10 minutes prior to bike finish you should reduce your calorie intake and only take in sports drink or water. This allows your stomach to empty while still allowing your gut to absorb the food and fluid ingested earlier on the bike. You will be able to start the run in a relatively comfortable state. Once you start the run you can start consuming calories again according you your run nutrition plan.

Run

1. Wait 5-10 minutes into the run until your heart rate levels off before starting your nutrition/hydration regime.
2. Often athletes’ heart rates are higher on the run than the bike. If this if the case, calorie consumption should be 15-30% lower per hour than on the bike.
3. Many athletes find liquid calories easier to digest on the run, in the form of Carbohydrate electrolyte drink or cola. It is also common to eat PowerGels on the run.
4. Follow a similar hydration protocol to the bike. Make sure that you get as much from the cup to your mouth as possible. Fold the paper cups to help control spilling.
5. If you are running 7:30/mile, you will hit approximately 4 aid stations per hour, if they are spaced at 1 per mile. A goal is to drink 2 paper cups of liquid per aid station.
6. If you are still running well, calories and drink taken with 1 mile to go will not impact your race, so you may skip the last aid station, with the exception of pouring some water on your head, or rinsing your mouth.

Nutrition for 70.3 deserves as much thought and planning as the rest of your ‘physical’ training.  You should develop a plan and practice it repeatedly in training to ensure that you finish the bike leg with energy left and set yourself up for a great run. Your nutrition plan is unique to you. It assumes that you have determined your own calorie requirements, and you know your digestive capabilities.

LifeSport head coach Lance Watson has coached a number of Ironman, Olympic and age-group Champions over the past 28 years. He enjoys coaching athletes of all levels.

Living A Life While Training for "Ironman"

Monday through Friday

4:15 - 4:30 a.m.  Morning Alarm

5:15 - 6:45 a.m.  Morning Training Session

8:00 - 5:00 p.m.  "Work"

5:30 - 6:30 p.m.  Evening Training Session (swim) - three days a week

7:00 - 9:00 p.m.  Dinner and "Family Time", laundry, dishes, etc.

Saturday

5:30 - 6:30 a.m.  Morning Alarm

6:30 - Noon        Training Session - usually "long brick" day

Afternoon           Lunch, grocery shopping, "family time", dinner preparation, laundry, dishes, etc.

Evening              "Family Time" or Movie Night

8:30 - 9:00 p.m.  (Truly) Lights Out

Sunday

6:00 a.m.              Morning Alarm

7:00 - 10:00 a.m.  Long Run

11:00 - Noon        Church

Afternoon           Laundry, Dinner preparation, "Family time", coaching e-mails and plans, maybe a second "work out" with the hubby

8:30 - 9:00 p.m.   (Truly) Lights Out

Every seven days, "lather, rinse, repeat."

Now, bear in mind that I am married to an age-group triathlete, law-enforcement lieutenant who is currently assigned to the midnight shift, and that I have two competitive triathlete sons so the preferred schedule is frequently revised at a moment's notice if not more quickly.

For example, on the weekends when my younger son will compete in a three-day swim meet.  His session will require his arriving at the pool by 6:30 a.m. and concluding somewhere about Noon.  And, if he swims top 16 in any of his events he returns by 4:30 p.m. for warm-up for the Finals competition.  That means Saturday's long ride/brick will have to move to the next weekend and the long run on Sunday will have to be split or shortened to be completed during the warm-up period.

Last summer, right in the middle of training for my first 140.6, I traveled to Hawai'i with my son for two weeks.  Since he was competing (IM Honu 70.3), my tri bike stayed in Florida (golly gee it's expensive to take a bike anywhere if it isn't on your car).  That meant training was limited to short runs and swimming when my son was swimming.  Later in the fall when my husband "aged up" to 50, and wanted to complete an Olympic Tri for his birthday, that meant my scheduled 100 mile ride became a high intensity 3-tiered brick followed by a loooonnnnggg run the next day.  And, for anyone who wants to know about long trainer rides, I'm here to tell you they can be done.

The weekend preceding and the weekend of Ironman World Championship left me a "single parent" while my husband traveled with my older son to Hawai'i.  If you have a pre-teen son, you know that leaving one to his own devices while you ride 120+ miles is not advisable.  Six and seven hour trainer sessions can be done:  you pick a movie, the son picks a movie, and ... continue until the required time/mileage is achieved.  Of course, one of those rides was done at 1:00 p.m. following the pre-teen's participation in his first adult sprint tri that he had insisted upon entering.  And, naturally, traveling to an out-of-town swim meet or tri in which I am not entered presents another set of scheduling challenges not only for training but for the normal family dynamics as well.

Sadly, the husband gets the shortest end of the scheduling stick.  Largely due to his current shift assignment, but sometimes (frequently) it just happens.  As any person who has completed the training for any 140.6 event, the training is lengthy, and the athlete can often be accused of being selfish and self-absorbed, self-centered, etc.  It takes conscious, deliberate effort on my part to not be "turning into a pumpkin" by 8:00 p.m. every night he is off duty.  Honestly, that can be very difficult if that day held an early 4-6 hour work out.  And, social friend time?  I'm pretty sure my only friends are now people who are willing to ride or run long.

The important thing to remember is that balance is vital.  The mantra, "all things in moderation" plays an key role in balancing training versus family versus life.  I make sure that my athletes know and live by the standard of "Life and family first, everything else second, training next."  Training should compliment your lifestyle, not dictate it.  You are not defined by the distance you race.  It is a part of who you are, not the entire you.