• Following her victory at Challenge Riccione during the previous weekend, Emma made it back-to-back wins by taking first place at IM 70.3 Mallorca
• Emma executed a similar fueling strategy to Challenge Riccione by taking on board a high carbohydrate intake on the bike but following this up with minimal fuel on the run. Whilst this won't be an optimal approach for all athletes, this strategy didn’t seem to limit Emma’s run performance as she came out of the bike leg in second place, before catching and passing Nicola Spirig at the beginning of the second loop of the three-lap run course

Hydration

• Emma knew that the temperature of this race was going to be hot (highs of ~26℃/43℉) so preloaded effectively the morning of the race by drinking just under one litre (32oz) of fluid mixed with PH 1500 (Drink Mix). This strategy helps ensure an athlete is starting well-hydrated
• During the bike, Emma carried one 1L/32oz bottle mixed with PF 30 Drink Mix and two servings of PH 1500 (Drink Mix). Typically, Emma starts with two bottles on her bike, but opted for one as the early stages of the bike course involved a significant climb and she was being mindful of weight
• As a result of carrying just one bottle, she drank markedly less during the bike leg (~1.37L/46oz in total, ~522ml/16oz per hour) than we’re used to seeing her consume (we've seen Emma drink in excess of 2L/64oz and between 700-850ml/hr (23-28oz/hr) in past events)
• She did grab an additional three bottles of water from aid stations on the bike but estimated that she only drank ~375ml/12oz in total
• Usually, Emma consumes a greater fluid intake as she has a very high sweat rate (>2.5L/h (85oz/h) in hot and humid conditions) and needs to drink a greater absolute volume of fluid in order to limit significant dehydration
• On the run, Emma’s strategy was to pick up cups of plain water from the three aid stations on the three-loop course. After a lap-and-a half, Emma was getting increasingly hot, and walked a couple of aid stations to prioritise drinking two cups of water and a cup of the on-course energy drink
• In total, she estimated that she drank a total of ~750ml (24oz) of fluid on the run, the equivalent of ~584ml (19oz) per hour. This is a greater average fluid intake than on the bike and upon reflection, Emma recognised that she was playing catch up and should have focused on drinking more whilst riding
• Emma carried a concentrated mix of PH 1500 (Drink Mix) in her bottle on the bike and, taking into account her fluid intake across the whole race, the relative sodium concentration of what she consumed in Mallorca was still relatively high (~1,377mg/L). For future races, we would encourage Emma to continue using a high strength electrolyte tablet but be more mindful about having enough fluid alongside it to adequately meet her needs

Fueling

Conclusions

• Once again, Emma produced another brilliant race at IM 70.3 Mallorca to take the win. Emma’s fueling strategy consisted of frontloading her carb intake on the bike with a concentrated bottle of drink mix alongside some chews, executing a similar plan to the weekend before, and running ‘light’ on carbs for the run, relying solely on the carb drink at aid stations
• Emma strategically carried less fluid at the beginning of the bike to save carrying excess weight up the early climb. This is a tactical move that will have paid dividends but with the temperatures rising towards the tail end of the race, Emma felt she needed fluids which led her to slow down at some aid stations on the run to take more fluid on board
• Continuing into the season, we have encouraged Emma to be mindful of meeting her sodium and fluid needs, especially as temperatures begin to heat up