IRONMAN® European Championships

Fenella had her usual fuelling strategy prepared for this European Championship race, with ~120g of PF 300 Flow Gel in each of her three 1L bottles. Unfortunately, one of these bottles was missing when she reached behind her saddle to grab it mid-bike. She attempted to replace the carbs using some on-course energy drinks, but she wasn’t able to replace the full ~120g she lost. Fortunately, she carried a spare PF 30 Chew which she consumed to try and make up the deficit. Even so, Fenella was well below her usual intake for the bike leg of an IRONMAN®. She consumed just under 70g per hour, which was ~60% of the 110g/h she digested en route to her IRONMAN® Western Australia win 6 months prior.

Fenella chooses to decouple her fluid and electrolyte intake, by drinking plain water and swallowing four to five Electrolyte Capsules (providing 1,000-1,250mg of sodium) for each litre (32oz) of plain water she drinks. This approach helps control the electrolyte concentration she consumes, especially when scaling up/down her fluid intake. It also helps keep her mind occupied by grabbing and swallowing a capsule every ~15 minutes or so. Her strategy was working well, until she picked up some PH 1000 from the on-course aid stations, instead of the carb-drink she was aiming for. This meant she slightly over-salted her drinks, as she continued to supplement with Electrolyte Capsules. In future, when drinking PH 1000, she could afford to reduce the number of capsules she consumes to keep the concentration of her drinks more in line with her aforementioned sweat sodium concentration.

Fenella enacted a similar caffeine strategy at this race in Hamburg to her previous IRONMAN® races. Her intake of the stimulant was supplied solely by PF 30 Caffeine Gels (five in total), which meant she averaged above the general scientific guidelines at just over nine milligrams per kg (2.3lbs) of body weight. This is a strategy which Fenella has tried and tested over several years, and as someone with a high tolerance for caffeine, it’s worked well for her and has never caused any adverse effects. It’s worth noting that the science suggests that Fenella wouldn’t gain any additional benefit from exceeding the recommended intake.