Kyle Smith
T100 San Francisco
Kyle's headline numbers
Kyle'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.
Kyle’s carb intake during previous races have been some of the highest we’ve ever seen. During this race, his diversity was two-fold; after he dropped a bottle containing 90g of PF Carb Only Drink Mix, he also found it difficult to swallow the rest of his nutrition due to the extremely hard, prolonged effort. His normalised power was the highest he’s pushed in a middle distance triathlon, averaging ~370W (~4.7 watts per kilogram of body weight); this increased effort likely contributed to his lower than normal fuel intake. Despite “feeling amazing” on the bike, Kyle’s energy levels began to drop because of the hard effort and reduced carb intake, and he found himself leaning towards some on-course gels during the run. Unfortunately this made him sick almost instantly, but he knew if he could get some down it would help. Heading out of T2 with some of his well-rehearsed PF 30 Gels may have helped alleviate this response, but he was still able to produce an epic sprint finish, narrowly missing the top spot, which is probably a testament to his ability to dig deep and empty the tank.
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 Kyle’s losses are on the low side, getting his hydration strategy right is still important if he wants to perform at his best.
Learn moreAs someone with a low sweat sodium concentration, but a very high sweat rate, Kyle puts hydration high up on his priority list when racing over this distance, even in the mild conditions of San Francisco. He managed his hydration well during this race, but could afford to bump up the sodium concentration of his drinks slightly to not only help with electrolyte replacement, but also encourage a little more fluid retention and avoid peeing out the high volume he drinks. Using a soft flask with some sodium in the form of PH 1000 Tablets in it during the run could help him avoid relying on aid stations for fluids and electrolytes.
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.
Kyle leaned on his high tolerance to caffeine like he has in previous middle-distance races to harness the ergogenic benefits to support his output. Hitting the recommended dose will have helped him optimise his performance and stay focussed, even in the latter stages where he was duelling it out for the win, responding to every move his rivals made.
How Kyle hit his numbers
Here's everything that Kyle ate and drank on the day...
Kyle's weapons of choice
Final thoughts
Kyle
PF&HKyle's full stats
Data Confidence?
There is an adequate level of accuracy in the data collected and the numbers reported. The athlete manages to recall what they ate and drank including most specifics (brands flavours quantities plausible estimations of volumes). However there are estimations made within the data which affect the overall confidence level in the data reported.