IAU 24H World Championships

Robbie had a tough battle with gastrointestinal issues which began the day before the event and persisted throughout the race, which he and other members of the team unfortunately put down to some poor quality hotel food. As an experienced athlete, Robbie maintained a consistently high carbohydrate intake in an attempt to keep his energy levels up, despite the toilet visits. His crew did a great job of providing Robbie with Carb & Electrolyte Drink Mix, Gels, Chews and sweets to hit above the recommended carb level. He even reached an average of ~100g/h over the final six hours as he pushed hard to help the British team claim the bronze medal.

Due to the GI issues caused by the pre-race hotel food, Robbie made many trips to the portaloo over the course of the event, which he felt greatly dehydrated him. In an attempt to thwart this and keep on top of his fluid losses, Robbie drank an average of ~400ml per hour, but at times was having as little as ~283ml/h when his stomach was really struggling, whilst towards the end he was drinking just over 500ml/h. This was a similar fluid intake to his previous 24-hour run, but this time in warmer and more humid conditions. He may have benefited from more fluid, including plain water and hypotonic drinks, but considering Robbie’s bathroom troubles he did well to avoid any serious hydration-related issues. This could, in part, be a result of Robbie’s proactive sodium consumption at a concentration similar to that of his sweat to help his body retain water.

As we’d expect to see in an event of this duration, Robbie pushed above the stimulant’s general intake guidelines. However, these guidelines are primarily designed for shorter events, and we have seen a trend of ultra-endurance athletes surpassing the recommendations without issue. Robbie timed his caffeine doses well throughout, primarily using it in the second half of the race when he was at his “lowest points mentally” in order to give himself a physical and psychological boost.