You’ve educated laborious to your race, placing within the workweek in and week out so that you’re in high type. Now comes the large day. Don’t let all of that onerous work and preparation go to waste by getting your race day vitamin incorrect. Similar to you may’t put sawdust within the tank of an F1 automobile and count on it to win a Grand Prix, you may’t cram no matter you need into your physique on race day and count on to ship a profitable efficiency.
We spoke with Coach Mac Cassin, Chief Biking Physiologist at Wahoo Sports activities Science, to get some tips about profitable race day fueling methods. Observe these easy, efficient strategies to ensure your engine has what it must take you throughout the road.
Common Fueling Tips
- Deal with carbohydrates and lean protein. Intention to eat a considerable meal of carbs and lean protein a minimum of two hours earlier than your occasion.
- It’s higher to over gas than below gas, particularly for longer endurance occasions.
- Keep away from consuming a minimum of 60 minutes earlier than your occasion.
- Keep away from dairy.
- Keep away from fat and fiber, each of which take time to be transformed into usable gas.
- Keep away from salty, fried meals. They’ll decelerate your physique’s means to soak up carbs.
- The utmost quantity of carbohydrates your physique can take up is 90g per hour. 60g ought to be within the type of glucose, whereas 30g ought to be fructose. Search for “maltodextrin” within the components listing.
- The common 75kg / 165lb male has about 500g of carbohydrates saved and obtainable as gas. Producing 100w of energy for an hour will burn via 360 energy (equally, producing 200w of energy for an hour will burn 720 energy). When you have an influence meter, control your output, and change carbs accordingly.
- It takes round 90 minutes after you eat for the carbs to be obtainable to your muscle tissue to make use of. Bear in mind the outdated adage, in case you wait till you’re hungry to eat, it’s too late.
Go With What You Know
The day of a race or huge occasion isn’t the time to channel your internal culinary adventurer. You’ll almost certainly have some race day jitters that may make issues a bit of gurgly down there and also you don’t wish to make issues worse by introducing new or unfamiliar meals. If oatmeal with peanut butter and raisins is your go-to pre-ride meal, don’t experiment with Thai fried rice and a T-bone on the day of your race. Acquainted, predictable, and easy-to-digest are the secret.
Eat For The Occasion
The length and particular calls for of your occasion will play a giant half in figuring out your fueling technique. A forty five-minute cyclocross race or a crit would require a special technique than a 12-hour, 200-mile gravel race. Whatever the occasion, you wish to keep away from consuming too near the begin to stop any huge fluctuations in blood sugar which may trigger you to bonk. The perfect window is 2 hours earlier than the beginning, and you must keep away from consuming a minimum of an hour earlier than the flag drops.
For Crits and Shorter Occasions:
- A considerable meal of rice and eggs or egg whites two hours earlier than, adopted by a gel 10 minutes previous to the gun.
- For occasions below 90-minutes, keep away from taking in carbs round 60 minutes earlier than the beginning. Carbs will take round an hour and a half to hit your system and consuming too near the beginning will trigger a blood sugar spike and crash proper once you want the vitality probably the most.
- Shorter occasions sometimes gained’t require you to tackle any further gas through the occasion because it gained’t be obtainable to your muscle tissue till you’ve already handed the end line. Sipping on a sports activities drink or electrolyte fluid ought to be ample.
For Longer Endurance Occasions:
- An enormous bowl of oatmeal with nuts or nut butter and raisins two hours earlier than can be excellent (assuming you’ve experimented with it in coaching and aren’t making an attempt it for the primary time on race day).
- Eat small quantities of principally carbs often throughout your race or occasion, ideally each quarter-hour. Utilizing a gel flask might help make taking up gas simpler in addition to stop you from having to lug round a bunch of empty gel packets in your jersey pockets.
- Drink your carbs. Excessive-carb sports activities drinks make it straightforward and handy to soak up what you want. Frequent small sips are higher than chugging a full bottle.
- Pay shut consideration to hydration. Getting loads of fluids and changing electrolytes is as essential as fueling.