IRONMAN 70.3® Weymouth

Tash’s go-to source of carbs on the bike was PF 30 Chews, along with the small amount of carb found in PH 1000 (Drink Mix). Although she planned to have a couple more chews from her bento box, she wasn’t strict enough with her fueling to get to them. Some reminders on her bike computer or watch could help with this. Moving onto the run, Tash averaged only ∼25g/h of carb which came from some cola, a PF 30 Caffeine Gel and some more PH 1000 (Drink Mix). She intended to have an additional PF 30 Gel, but wanted to avoid the risk of stomach issues as she suffered from this in her last race. Despite the lower than ideal carb intake, Tash reported decent energy levels, likely in part due to her well-planned carb-load the day before (~10g of carbs per kg body weight)! Having struggled with higher carb intakes in the past, Tash has performed some gut training in the last few weeks during her sessions, which paid off in Weymouth and helped her prove to herself that she can tolerate more fuel without suffering from GI discomfort. By continuing this gut training and practising regularly, she will be able to stomach higher carb intakes to better support her energy levels and performances.

Tash has battled severe dehydration during races in the past, and made a conscious effort to nail her hydration strategy this time. She chose to use PH 1000 (Drink Mix) in all her bottles on the bike and the soft flask she carried on the run, knowing that not only would it support her sweat losses, but the ~15g of carb found in each packet would also help increase her carb intake. As a member of the PF&H Sports Science Team, Tash has dialled in a strategy based on her Sweat Test results to accurately replace her losses, and executed this plan brilliantly on the day to match her sweat sodium concentration. Grabbing plain water and cola from the aid stations kept additional fluids coming in on the run when she needed it. Fortunately, the conditions in Weymouth were relatively mild so her fluid intake would have been sufficient to avoid race-impacting dehydration, but in warmer races where her sweat rate will increase, drinking more throughout will be important.

After having a coffee with her pre-race meal, Tash didn’t consume any further caffeine until the run when she took a PF 30 Caffeine Gel. Since she’s cautious to not cause GI distress like she’s had in the past, it’d be worth trying additional caffeine out slowly during training to see if she can implement the stimulant into her race plan without issue to reap more of the ergogenic benefits and fatigue-masking effects.