How many of you have heard: “ultrarunning is an eating competition while moving” or something along those lines?

The longer the run/race, the more important fueling becomes!

Fueling

General rule of thumb or starting point for fueling during ultras is to aim to consume appx 250 calories per hour, with the majority of those being from carbs

• Start there and then see how the body responds, we’re all different
• Generally, the longer the race the higher the caloric demands

Carbs

• Carb intake is important for ultrarunners to maximize their glycogen stores (glycogen stores are called upon to provide us with energy by converting glycogen to glucose. By consuming carbs we minimize the amount that we use our glycogen stores because we’re continually fueling), provide energy for training/recovery, and fuel the brain and CNS
• Recommended for races greater than 4 hours, up to 90 g of multi-transportable carbs (2:1 glucose:fructose ratio) per hour, to avoid GI distress
  • THIS MUST BE PRACTICED
  • Also, this is Up To, most runners cannot achieve this number. Typically we’re closer to 20-40 g

What to eat?? (Gels, real food, etc)

• No difference in carb intake between different sources of fueling, the difference is in how the GI system handles this and it’s all individualized
• Training the gut is key

Low Carb/Keto Diets

• While may work for some, are not recommended for the majority as full evidence for purported benefits is lacking at this time

Protein

• Not used as a fuel during endurance exercise, but consuming a small amount of protein during an endurance run/race can help with muscle damage and preserve protein balance (think things like nuts, peanutbutter, etc)

Caffeine

• Can help lower perceived exertion, help with alertness, and help with performance enhancement
• More is not better though! Can lead to anxiety/jitters
• Peak levels of caffeine in blood stream appx 1 hour post consumption

Electrolytes/Sodium

• Recommended to replenish electrolytes/sodium with fuel/real food. 500-700 mg of sodium per L of fluid recommended.

Digestion

Goal for ultrarunners is to have gastric emptying (process when chyme exits stomach and enters small intestine) be as fast as possible. Fluids help speed up gastric emptying. 

Training The Gut

• GI distress is one of the primary reasons for DNFs and slower times
• There are four leading causes of GI-tract distress in endurance sports:
  1. Volumetric discomfort- too much foodstuff in the GI tract, particularly in the stomach
  2. Injury and dysfunction stemming from splanchnic hypoperfusion (decreased blood supply to the tissues and organs of the gastrointestinal tract)
  3. Nutritional intake hindrance- eating too little, too much, or the wrong kinds of food
  4. Decrease in enteric nervous-system activity- food cannot move through the gastrointestinal tract due to decreased neural system function and drive

• Methods To Train The Gut:
  • Train with relatively large volumes of fluid to train the stomach
  • Train after eating a meal
  • Train with relatively high carb intake during runs
  • Simulate race nutrition plan during runs
  • Increase overall carb intake in diet
    • These will all lead to reduced bloating and fullness during exercise, increased gastric emptying, increased capacity to absorb carbs, and therefore increased delivery of carbs

• If GI Distress Occurs:
  • Slow down & cool off
  • Eat in smaller portions
  • DON’T STOP FUELING ALL TOGETHER

Fueling Strategy

What to consider

Taste • Successful strategy to combat food fatigue • Tolerance to food in terms of quantity and frequency as it pertains to lack of GI issues • Environmental factors (ex: heat, humidity) • Meet caloric and macronutrient demands • Aid station locations • Aid station food offerings 

Food types

At least one ‘real’ food option, such as pretzels or soup • At least one engineered food, such as gels or chews • Food that is sweet • Food that is salty • Food that is savory

Create food tiers

• Tier One - Tier one is the starting place. This tier should contain 3-5 foods you know work for you, satisfy various tastes (sweet, salty, savory), have different textures, and you enjoy eating. In other words, these are your favorites!!

• Tier Two - If you get sick of tier one foods, move onto tier 2. Again, these foods have been trialed in training to ensure you like them and that they work from a GI perspective, they just may not be your favorites

• Tier Three - Foods in tier three are foods you likely haven’t tried, but due to their similarity to tier two foods, there is a likelihood that you’ll like them with a minimal chance of them causing an upset stomach.

Hydration

• General rec is 400-800 mL/hr, but this varies greatly. Recommend completing sweat rate tests for more personalized recs. Also very weather dependent.
• Goal is to replace 90-95% of hydration lost through sweat, not 100%