Unbound Gravel 200 Miler

Amelia knew that tackling her first ever 200 mile gravel race at Unbound would be a challenge, so she wisely consumed extra carb for stored energy as glycogen in the days leading up to the race. Between the PF Carb Only Drink Mix in one of her bottles and regular intervals of PF 30 Gels, Amelia’s average intake fell within the carb intake recommendations for a race of this length and intensity, and even rated her stomach comfort a solid ten (out of 10). Although she did experience a significant drop in energy toward the end, she puts this down to her hydration levels and the new stimulus of such a long, tough race.

While Amelia’s hydration numbers fell ‘in the green’, a closer look reveals room for improvement. She struggled to consume much fluid at all during the first third of the race when the temperature was cooler, and then attempted to play catch-up later. Since she hasn’t had a Sweat Test or previously exhibited signs of being a salty sweater, her hydration strategy aimed to replace the average sodium losses we’ve seen from conducting thousands of Sweat Tests with athletes (~1,000mg per litre/32oz). However, her struggle with cramp during the race may indicate her sodium losses were above average, so increasing the relative sodium concentration in her fluids going forward may help alleviate these painful muscle cramps. This could also support her performance near the end of a race, as she seemed to reach a point of fatigue that may have been caused by accumulated dehydration.

Amelia used PF 30 Caffeine Gels to boost her energy levels throughout the race and pointed out that it helped significantly. Overall, her intake was just above the scientific recommendations based on bodyweight, but still suitable for a nearly 11-hour race. Since she noticed such a benefit from the stimulant, she plans to swap out her pre-race PF 30 Chews for one of the caffeine gels she took during to give her a jump start at the beginning instead. So despite her intake technically rating ‘amber’, her positive subjective feedback means the strategy was appropriate on this occasion.