IRONMAN 70.3® Swansea

On the bike, Lizzie used a combination of PF 30 Gels, PF 30 Caffeine Gels, PH 1500 (Drink Mix) and super concentrated PF Carb Only Drink Mix to fuel her efforts. This strategy kept her energy up in the first half of the race, but may have been more than her stomach could handle, as she felt some GI discomfort on the run and was worried about making it worse by continuing to eat. As a result, she dropped from ~86g/h on the bike to only ~14g/h on the run. A reduction in carb consumption in middle distance races from bike-to-run is expected, but across our Case Study Database the average drop off is ~35%, whereas Lizzie’s was ~84%. Considering her carb intake and energy levels dropped in unison across the race, Lizzie should look to undergo some gut training to practise reaching a consistent carb target (~90g/h across the whole race). Practically, she could implement this plan by sipping frequently on her carb-rich bottle on the bike, and then continuing to drip feed with a PF 90 Gel across the whole run.

Lizzie successfully replaced her sodium losses at a concentration similar to her sweat. Managing hydration involves both sodium and fluid, and slightly under consuming fluids on the run may have contributed to her struggles later in the race. Lizzie has used a Soft Flask to keep her fluid intake high in previous runs after the bike, but relied only on aid stations this time out, leading to a slightly reduced intake. While the mild conditions meant her losses were probably mostly accounted for, she reported feeling thirsty and the GI discomfort she experienced may have been impacted by mild dehydration. Going forward, she should be more proactive with her fluid intake, especially on the run, to mitigate any issues with carb absorption.

By consuming a black coffee in the morning, one PF 30 Caffeine Gel in the final 15 minutes pre-race, followed by another Caffeine Gel on the bike, Lizzie spread out her caffeine doses effectively and was able to reach the 3-6mg/kg caffeine recommendations to reap the benefits. Since she was still on the lower end of that range, she could look to include an additional caffeine dose towards the end of the bike to counteract the drop in perceived energy levels she experienced on the run.