Andy Sloan
Lulworth Cove Trail Running Challenge
Andy's headline numbers
Andy's strategy
Fueling
Carbohydrate is the main fuel you burn when racing. Failing to fuel properly is a leading cause of underperformance in longer races.
During the race Andy had his usual bottles containing PF 30 Gels, with seven gels in each 500ml bottle. In line with his high carbohydrate intake during his two previous ultras, this is a significant amount of carbs and sits right at the top of the carb recommendations. Showing he can sustain this intake over the course of each ultra with limited GI issues is great and backs up his opinion that he “can eat a lot!”.
Hydration
Taking on board an appropriate amount of fluid and sodium is essential to maintaining blood volume and supporting the cardiovascular effort needed to perform on race day.
Whilst the absolute amount of sodium and fluid consumed per hour is important, it’s critical to consider these in relation to each other. This is known as 'relative sodium concentration' and it’s expressed in milligrams per litre (mg/L). How much sodium you’re taking in per litre of fluid is more important than the absolute amount taken in per hour.
Sweat sodium concentration (mg/L) is largely genetically determined and remains relatively stable. Knowing how salty your sweat is enables you to replace a good proportion of your sweat losses, which can range from 200-2,000mg/L.
Whilst Andy’s losses are on the moderate side, getting his hydration strategy right is still important if he wants to perform at his best.
Learn moreAndy drank a slightly lower fluid intake than in previous ultras, but this is to be expected given the cooler and wetter race conditions. Without specific data on his sweat rate it's difficult to determine whether this will have adequately replaced his sweat losses in these conditions, but he peed three times during the race which suggests he didn’t under hydrate. A major positive was that Andy didn't experience any cramping, which is notable given his history of cramping and the twinges he felt in his last two ultras. The lower race intensity and the different conditions could have contributed to this, but it’s encouraging that he managed to complete the event cramp-free, despite the challenge of running three ultras in just 21 days.
Caffeine
Beyond the Three Levers of Performance (carb, sodium and fluid), caffeine is one of only a few substances that is proven to improve performance for most endurance athletes as it can help stave off mental and physical fatigue.
Andy has previously used caffeine tablets during races but forgot to carry any on this occasion. While he didn’t feel the absence of caffeine had a significant impact on his performance, he noticed that he raced at a lower intensity compared to his previous two events. However, this was primarily due to the courses demanding elevation gain (over 2,000m), which naturally led to a slower pace. Considering the duration of the event and his familiarity with caffeine use, Andy could consider incorporating a moderate dose in future races to aid his performance and help sustain focus and energy levels over long distances.
How Andy hit his numbers
Here's everything that Andy ate and drank on the day...
Andy's weapons of choice
Final thoughts
PF&HAndy's full stats
Data Confidence?
There is good confidence in the accuracy of the data reported. An athlete feels that the numbers closely reflect what they consumed despite a couple of estimations which may carry some degree of error. The majority of what was consumed is recorded to a high level of specificity (most volumes are known through the use of bottles brands quantities flavours). The numbers are very plausible and align with previous data recordings (if an athlete has collected data previously).