Some context from a 13:01h first time ironman for people looking at this_ What a great video. Preparing for my 2nd Ironman and i "preached" to myself to train my race nutrition in my first ironman prep. So i seriously took 90g of carbs for an easy 2 hour run, or an easy 4 hour bike. Of course it didnt hurt or make problems in training because my heart rate is so low, as you said, that my gut has no issue taking it. But come raceday i felt miserably after the bike and throughout 3hrs of the marathon until it got better. I also had 6 Bottles of Gatorade on the bike which were the race nutrition and at the time there was no way to practice with gatorade in germany. Now a year later I did more research and found out that this is insane and my gut is probably not ready for 90g/h - especially at race pace. I'd personally suggest starting lower and not go for 90g immediately as a beginner. Especially in beginner training plans there just isnt enough time spent at race pace. For my next 70.3, which is a lead up to Challenge Roth and IM Frankfurt i'll aim for 75g on the bike, no possibly upsetting ISO drinks at aid stations, just water and my own nutrition mix. Which willbe Precision fueling, because it has no taste. One issue i found after training with 90g/h during training is that i'M seriously used to taking on these many carbs during easy training. So taking on considerably less is problematic. Thanks again for putting these videos out there. So much effort. Sending great appreciation.
Hey, thanks for such kind words, and thanks for sharing your experience! It's such a tough one isn't it, especially when you see so much advice about what you *could* get up to! Your next goals sound like great targets to aim for - please let me know how you get on! Thank you again 🙂
I've watched so many videos about nutrition trying to prep for my 70.3 and this one was so rooted in science and easy to understand, definitely the most helpful. Thank you so much!
Thanks for this detail. I’m doing my first Ironman 70.3 at the end of the year but I’ve had some terrible bonks in a couple of brick sessions. This should definitely help me.
You're welcome! 🙂 That's great to hear, good luck for the 70.3! Just to let you know, I've got a specific 70.3 nutrition video coming out in a couple of weeks so stay tuned for that 🙂
Just browsing videos more to reinforce my nutrition plan for Sunday than anything else. This is defo one of the clearer, more I formative videos out there. Cheers
Great info here! Having suffered through an Ironman having neglected my sodium intake I hope other people don't have to learn the same lesson the hard way and take this info on board (still yet to learn to practice my nutrition; something I will work on this season). Awesome work buddy cheers!
Yeah it's not particularly glamorous to practice it but come race day it can make such a difference! I'm sure you'll smash the next one! 💪 And thanks! 😊
Great feedback and alignment for fueling...Clear and precise...where the mind goes everything follows, and you have shared some baseline points to be leveraged for any Triathlete regardless of experience...Thank you for sharing...and keep up the great work.
Just came across your video, and glad I did! Such a useful, comprehensive, concise breakdown. I’m 8 weeks out from my first full distance Ironman and while I think I’ve got the fitness / stamina (stubbornness) sorted, it’s the dark art of fuelling that’s worrying me most. I’ll save your video and keep referring to it until it’s dialled in/ second nature. The tip about fuelling heaviest on the bike leg just makes sense👍👍👍
Hey Kristan! That's great to hear, I'm glad you found it useful! Good luck for the ironman, you've got plenty of time to finetune things 👍 I'm sure you'll have a blast!
I discovered this channel yesterday and subscribed. Today I was thrilled to see this video in my feed!!! Thank You. I am training for Ironman Lake Placid in July. I raced Ironman Mont Tremblant 4 years ago and neglected my nutrition prep and execution. I’m determined not to make the same mistake this time.
Hi Sheryl, thank you for the comment, that's awesome to hear! Sounds like you've got the right mindset and July is plenty of time to nail your nutrition this time round 💪 great stuff!
My persona Ironman nutrition strategy goes like this: Pre swim: For breakfast, I really only have fruit and coffee because I'm too nervous to eat anything else. While waiting for the swim to start, I already start drinking water with electrolytes. T1: I take two gels before I start the bike In my bike bag is also a small water bottle with electrolytes in it. I take a big gulp of this but I take my time in taking everything in. On the bike: I usually go through 2 700ml bottles and 2-3 500ml bottles. The two 700ml bottles are mine and the 500ml bottles are what I get on the aid station I take a sip of my drink (iso + electrolytes) EVERY 15 mins, regardless of what I'm feeling. If I am a bit thirsty I just take a bigger gulp but I maintain the 15 mins. I take a gel every 45 minutes, followed by a drink I take a salt cap every 1 hr, followed by a drink On the second half of the bike, I usually start taking gels every 30 minutes instead. This is also because sometimes, the isotonics they give you don't have that much carbs and you don't really know the composition of it. I take my last gel for the bike 30 mins before I start running T2: Salt cap and i finish the water bottle with electrolytes from my bike bag Run: I take advantage of every aid station (both iso and water) and I take a gel every 45 minutes. If you're bringing your own gel on the run, make sure that it is the type that doesn't require water because you might be between two aid stations by the time 45 mins is in. Salt tablets still once per hour. Don't forget to take imodium in the morning!
Post race nutrition for me is mainly maid up of a protein drink and more isotonic. At this point I have 0 appetite but I still try to eat something. No alcohol until after 1 or 2 days after (alcohol halts your body's ability to recover).
Looks like a good plan to me! What gels do you take on the bike? If you're not taking any other carbs then one gel every 45 mins is quite low. I presume you're using isotonic drinks with carbs? If you've got your nutrition right in the lead up to a race and then during a race you shouldn't need immodium!
@@NutritionTriathlon Yes, the drinks have carbs. I use the Sponser gels because it's in a tube that you can flip open. I can't open sachets with my mouth even if my life depended on it. Also, there were races were I found it difficult to take nutrition on the bike, like Lanzarote. The crosswinds were too strong so instead of risking falling over I just stopped and took my nutrition while stationary.
@@NutritionTriathlon The immodium is from a past trauma. I suddenly had diarrhea the night before a marathon with no immodium in sight so I just take it just in case something happens
The only time that you can take nutrition in during the swim is if it is a two loop course with an australian exit. I've seen pros take in a gel before heading on to the second lap.
That's a lot of extra brainpower and chance to ruin your concentration. Personally wouldn't suggest it as I don't see it being a bit enough benefit to outweigh the risks
Very nicely done, but I disagree with the Special Needs bag advice = these have been incredibly reliable across all IM events I've done and it's essential, I believe, to plan for this access. The advice to be prepared with a backup plan utilizing on course options is important, but I wouldn't discount the SN bag options, especially at IM events, which are always very well organized and supported. It takes less than 1 minute to re-load.
Hey, thanks for the comment Keith. You're not the only one to disagree with that advice! 🙂 You're right, and I do think that triathletes can use it. My main reason for saying about not relying on it and for considering other options is to make people think about their nutrition properly. It's much easier to make a noncommittal effort with nutrition if they have a safety blanket of the special needs bag. But if they take the time to plan things properly, explore and understand their nutrition then I think they will be far better off. If you do that and find that you need your special needs bag still, then of course use it!
Cool video and great explanation, have you ever tried Percusion fuel and hydration products, I've used their gels, drink mix, electrolytes and chews for awhile and find them very efficient. They also provide a personalised sweat test to allow you to optimize your hydration. recently had one and after finding out my sweat rate and how salty my sweat is I can not hydrate efficiently
Thanks Reece. I haven't tried PF no, but I have had athletes use their products and had success. I will give them a go and review them at some point! Sweat tests are a dubious one in my opinion because there is so much that can affect the results. Pun intended, they need to be taken with a pinch of salt!
23:46 Hi! How would you modify this for Long Distance Duathlon, specifically Powerman World Championships? 10k run 150k bike and 30 k run over super hilly course?
Hey! Just to check, you're talking about your nutrition strategy generally, right? Not one specific part of this video? I wouldn't really change things that much when it comes to the overall plan. Still the same nutrition requirements and advice for carb loading and breakfast. I would also still consider the pre-race snack if you've practiced it and can tolerate it, and then I would start my fuelling about 15-20 mins into my run, and then just continue from there with fuelling plan of choice. Personally I would go for 1 or 2 gels containing 20-30g of carbs during the 10k and then everything that follows is as per the video 🙂 If you meant anything more specific than that then let me know!
Hi James great video again 👏 I am focused on olympic distance triathlon i am wondering should i ride 60-80km endurance rides or 30 mins. HIIT 's ? What is the correct balance with them? İf you have time maybe you make a video about effective cycling training.
Hey Okan, thank you! So I think a mix is probably best. You should have some easy long endurance rides where you just accumulate easy time on the bike, and then some higher intensity work too where the closer you get to the race the more specific your workouts. So for example, for Olympic distance you might do 3 x 20 mins at race power/effort with a short rest between each block. I'll see about a cycle training video. I'll confess to not being an expert in training plans/progressions so not sure if I should stray into it too much!
When you say 250mg of sodium for 500ml of water. Does it work if I spread this quantity of Sodium through Water/Gels/Bars or it specifically needs to be only in water ? Thanks for the videos it helps a lot :)
Yep, it's fine to spread it across in drinks/tablets/gels etc. But the sodium quantity in gels and bars is usually so low it's not meaningful in terms of overall sodium content.
You're welcome! Animal protein is perfectly fine to consume after an Ironman, and this is coming from someone who doesn't eat meat. Eating protein from animal sources doesn't just 'cause inflammation'. That's way too vague and wide a statement.
I want to disagree with the "special needs" advice given. I am not sure why anything should go wrong at an IM race, and in some cases it is just not possible to carry enough nutrition on the bike for a 6 hour ride. So, special needs would be unavoidable. In case something does happen, it is then best to have a plan B, like consuming official race nutrition. However, plan A can and should include the special needs station.
Hi Ry, great to hear your perspective on it, thanks for the comment! One big reason for suggesting not to use your special needs bag in plan A is because it means triathletes think more about their nutrition. By saying not to use it, it really makes triathletes think properly about their nutrition and have a good plan in place. It means they explore different options, get to know their bike storage and practice things. In a lot of cases they'll realise they can do it all without a special needs bag and instead use that as a back up. If they follow this and still can't work out how to do it, then it makes sense that to use the special needs bag.
Smash your next triathlon with this carb loading plan!
👉www.nutritiontriathlon.com/carb-loading-plan-tri?(triathlon)&
Only 5 mins in but this is the most helpful video I’ve found on this topic. Thanks
Hope the rest of the video was just as good! 🙂 My pleasure
How does this man not have more subscribers?
I find that a banana and a handful of whole cereal does the trick.
Thanks Wilson! Fingers crossed for more in the future! 🙂
Agree! Premium content here
Training for my first 70.3. Seems like to best explanation on the topic. Terrific job! Hope to come back here to give you my feedback :)
Some context from a 13:01h first time ironman for people looking at this_
What a great video. Preparing for my 2nd Ironman and i "preached" to myself to train my race nutrition in my first ironman prep. So i seriously took 90g of carbs for an easy 2 hour run, or an easy 4 hour bike. Of course it didnt hurt or make problems in training because my heart rate is so low, as you said, that my gut has no issue taking it. But come raceday i felt miserably after the bike and throughout 3hrs of the marathon until it got better. I also had 6 Bottles of Gatorade on the bike which were the race nutrition and at the time there was no way to practice with gatorade in germany.
Now a year later I did more research and found out that this is insane and my gut is probably not ready for 90g/h - especially at race pace.
I'd personally suggest starting lower and not go for 90g immediately as a beginner. Especially in beginner training plans there just isnt enough time spent at race pace.
For my next 70.3, which is a lead up to Challenge Roth and IM Frankfurt i'll aim for 75g on the bike, no possibly upsetting ISO drinks at aid stations, just water and my own nutrition mix. Which willbe Precision fueling, because it has no taste.
One issue i found after training with 90g/h during training is that i'M seriously used to taking on these many carbs during easy training. So taking on considerably less is problematic.
Thanks again for putting these videos out there. So much effort. Sending great appreciation.
Hey, thanks for such kind words, and thanks for sharing your experience! It's such a tough one isn't it, especially when you see so much advice about what you *could* get up to!
Your next goals sound like great targets to aim for - please let me know how you get on!
Thank you again 🙂
I've watched so many videos about nutrition trying to prep for my 70.3 and this one was so rooted in science and easy to understand, definitely the most helpful. Thank you so much!
Hey Sarah, thanks for the comment - you're very welcome. Glad it was useful! Good luck in your 70.3 🙂
Thanks for this detail. I’m doing my first Ironman 70.3 at the end of the year but I’ve had some terrible bonks in a couple of brick sessions. This should definitely help me.
You're welcome! 🙂 That's great to hear, good luck for the 70.3! Just to let you know, I've got a specific 70.3 nutrition video coming out in a couple of weeks so stay tuned for that 🙂
James, Thank you for the Carbohydrate Loading and the Carbohydrate per Hour Plans!
You're welcome! 😃
Just browsing videos more to reinforce my nutrition plan for Sunday than anything else. This is defo one of the clearer, more I formative videos out there. Cheers
You're welcome, thank you! Good luck for the weekend 🙂💪
Really informative guide to Ironman nutrition and not sponsored based, just honest from the heart, thank you
Thank you, that's the aim 😊
Great info here! Having suffered through an Ironman having neglected my sodium intake I hope other people don't have to learn the same lesson the hard way and take this info on board (still yet to learn to practice my nutrition; something I will work on this season). Awesome work buddy cheers!
Yeah it's not particularly glamorous to practice it but come race day it can make such a difference! I'm sure you'll smash the next one! 💪 And thanks! 😊
Great feedback and alignment for fueling...Clear and precise...where the mind goes everything follows, and you have shared some baseline points to be leveraged for any Triathlete regardless of experience...Thank you for sharing...and keep up the great work.
Thank you Pierre, glad you think so!
@@NutritionTriathlon
My pleasure 😊
Just came across your video, and glad I did! Such a useful, comprehensive, concise breakdown. I’m 8 weeks out from my first full distance Ironman and while I think I’ve got the fitness / stamina (stubbornness) sorted, it’s the dark art of fuelling that’s worrying me most. I’ll save your video and keep referring to it until it’s dialled in/ second nature. The tip about fuelling heaviest on the bike leg just makes sense👍👍👍
Hey Kristan! That's great to hear, I'm glad you found it useful! Good luck for the ironman, you've got plenty of time to finetune things 👍 I'm sure you'll have a blast!
Stubbornness 🤣 the most relatable thing ever 😂
How did it go? :)
I discovered this channel yesterday and subscribed. Today I was thrilled to see this video in my feed!!! Thank You. I am training for Ironman Lake Placid in July. I raced Ironman Mont Tremblant 4 years ago and neglected my nutrition prep and execution. I’m determined not to make the same mistake this time.
Hi Sheryl, thank you for the comment, that's awesome to hear! Sounds like you've got the right mindset and July is plenty of time to nail your nutrition this time round 💪 great stuff!
One of your most informative videos, James. Great work, as always.
Thank you! 🙂
Excellent !! Absolutely 100% useful. Thanks.
My pleasure 😊 thanks
Great information
Thank you!
Fantastic video! This will help me greatly in prepping for IM Florida this fall.
Good luck with Florida! 💪
This kind of video is really useful!! Thank you so much!
😀 My pleasure! Thank you
Mustve read my mind, exactly what I was looking for! Great info!
Awesome, glad I could help!
Great video and well made. Loads of information, easy to understand and learn. Thank you for taking the time.
Thanks for the comment Pedro, appreciate it! You're welcome 🙂
This is an awesome video thanks for the info
Thank you 🙂 you're welcome!
My persona Ironman nutrition strategy goes like this:
Pre swim:
For breakfast, I really only have fruit and coffee because I'm too nervous to eat anything else.
While waiting for the swim to start, I already start drinking water with electrolytes.
T1:
I take two gels before I start the bike
In my bike bag is also a small water bottle with electrolytes in it. I take a big gulp of this but I take my time in taking everything in.
On the bike:
I usually go through 2 700ml bottles and 2-3 500ml bottles.
The two 700ml bottles are mine and the 500ml bottles are what I get on the aid station
I take a sip of my drink (iso + electrolytes) EVERY 15 mins, regardless of what I'm feeling. If I am a bit thirsty I just take a bigger gulp but I maintain the 15 mins.
I take a gel every 45 minutes, followed by a drink
I take a salt cap every 1 hr, followed by a drink
On the second half of the bike, I usually start taking gels every 30 minutes instead. This is also because sometimes, the isotonics they give you don't have that much carbs and you don't really know the composition of it. I take my last gel for the bike 30 mins before I start running
T2:
Salt cap and i finish the water bottle with electrolytes from my bike bag
Run:
I take advantage of every aid station (both iso and water) and I take a gel every 45 minutes. If you're bringing your own gel on the run, make sure that it is the type that doesn't require water because you might be between two aid stations by the time 45 mins is in. Salt tablets still once per hour.
Don't forget to take imodium in the morning!
Post race nutrition for me is mainly maid up of a protein drink and more isotonic. At this point I have 0 appetite but I still try to eat something. No alcohol until after 1 or 2 days after (alcohol halts your body's ability to recover).
Looks like a good plan to me! What gels do you take on the bike? If you're not taking any other carbs then one gel every 45 mins is quite low. I presume you're using isotonic drinks with carbs?
If you've got your nutrition right in the lead up to a race and then during a race you shouldn't need immodium!
@@NutritionTriathlon Yes, the drinks have carbs. I use the Sponser gels because it's in a tube that you can flip open. I can't open sachets with my mouth even if my life depended on it.
Also, there were races were I found it difficult to take nutrition on the bike, like Lanzarote. The crosswinds were too strong so instead of risking falling over I just stopped and took my nutrition while stationary.
@@NutritionTriathlon The immodium is from a past trauma. I suddenly had diarrhea the night before a marathon with no immodium in sight so I just take it just in case something happens
today i completed my first training for thriathlon, 1mileswim, 20milebike, 4mile run, im watching this while eating everything inside my fridge
Haha I hope you enjoyed your well deserved food. Well done!
Great video!
Thank you! 🙂
Thank you for this info. Very helpful and user-friendly.
You're welcome, glad it was helpful! 🙂
The only time that you can take nutrition in during the swim is if it is a two loop course with an australian exit. I've seen pros take in a gel before heading on to the second lap.
That's a lot of extra brainpower and chance to ruin your concentration. Personally wouldn't suggest it as I don't see it being a bit enough benefit to outweigh the risks
@@NutritionTriathlon Definitely not for age groupers, for sure!
Lovely lovely Stuff!! Thanks so much😊😊😊😊😊😊
You're welcome 😊
Thanks for the useful tips
You're welcome Michael!
Great video. Thank you!
You're welcome Gerson! 🙂
Great video!
Thank you Shaun!
Great vid!
Thanks Patrick!
Great video
Thank you! 😊
Very nicely done, but I disagree with the Special Needs bag advice = these have been incredibly reliable across all IM events I've done and it's essential, I believe, to plan for this access. The advice to be prepared with a backup plan utilizing on course options is important, but I wouldn't discount the SN bag options, especially at IM events, which are always very well organized and supported. It takes less than 1 minute to re-load.
Hey, thanks for the comment Keith. You're not the only one to disagree with that advice! 🙂 You're right, and I do think that triathletes can use it. My main reason for saying about not relying on it and for considering other options is to make people think about their nutrition properly. It's much easier to make a noncommittal effort with nutrition if they have a safety blanket of the special needs bag.
But if they take the time to plan things properly, explore and understand their nutrition then I think they will be far better off. If you do that and find that you need your special needs bag still, then of course use it!
Cool video and great explanation, have you ever tried Percusion fuel and hydration products, I've used their gels, drink mix, electrolytes and chews for awhile and find them very efficient. They also provide a personalised sweat test to allow you to optimize your hydration. recently had one and after finding out my sweat rate and how salty my sweat is I can not hydrate efficiently
Thanks Reece. I haven't tried PF no, but I have had athletes use their products and had success. I will give them a go and review them at some point!
Sweat tests are a dubious one in my opinion because there is so much that can affect the results. Pun intended, they need to be taken with a pinch of salt!
AMAZING! Thank you
😊 You're very welcome!
best vid ever
Thanks!
23:46 Hi! How would you modify this for Long Distance Duathlon, specifically Powerman World Championships? 10k run 150k bike and 30 k run over super hilly course?
Hey! Just to check, you're talking about your nutrition strategy generally, right? Not one specific part of this video?
I wouldn't really change things that much when it comes to the overall plan. Still the same nutrition requirements and advice for carb loading and breakfast.
I would also still consider the pre-race snack if you've practiced it and can tolerate it, and then I would start my fuelling about 15-20 mins into my run, and then just continue from there with fuelling plan of choice.
Personally I would go for 1 or 2 gels containing 20-30g of carbs during the 10k and then everything that follows is as per the video 🙂
If you meant anything more specific than that then let me know!
@@NutritionTriathlon thank you! I was most curious about what the 10k would do to the timing of beginning to fuel. You’ve addressed it perfectly!
Good working
Thank you!
great!!! thx!
My pleasure 🙂
Hi James great video again 👏 I am focused on olympic distance triathlon i am wondering should i ride 60-80km endurance rides or 30 mins. HIIT 's ? What is the correct balance with them? İf you have time maybe you make a video about effective cycling training.
Hey Okan, thank you! So I think a mix is probably best. You should have some easy long endurance rides where you just accumulate easy time on the bike, and then some higher intensity work too where the closer you get to the race the more specific your workouts. So for example, for Olympic distance you might do 3 x 20 mins at race power/effort with a short rest between each block.
I'll see about a cycle training video. I'll confess to not being an expert in training plans/progressions so not sure if I should stray into it too much!
When you say 250mg of sodium for 500ml of water. Does it work if I spread this quantity of Sodium through Water/Gels/Bars or it specifically needs to be only in water ? Thanks for the videos it helps a lot :)
Yep, it's fine to spread it across in drinks/tablets/gels etc. But the sodium quantity in gels and bars is usually so low it's not meaningful in terms of overall sodium content.
Ima smisla. 🎉
10g PER kg??!! Je-zuz, that's so many carbs for me 😮
😊
all great info but consuming animal protein after an ironman sounds like an inflammatory hell, better to stick with vegetable proteins :D!
You're welcome! Animal protein is perfectly fine to consume after an Ironman, and this is coming from someone who doesn't eat meat.
Eating protein from animal sources doesn't just 'cause inflammation'. That's way too vague and wide a statement.
I want to disagree with the "special needs" advice given. I am not sure why anything should go wrong at an IM race, and in some cases it is just not possible to carry enough nutrition on the bike for a 6 hour ride. So, special needs would be unavoidable. In case something does happen, it is then best to have a plan B, like consuming official race nutrition. However, plan A can and should include the special needs station.
Hi Ry, great to hear your perspective on it, thanks for the comment!
One big reason for suggesting not to use your special needs bag in plan A is because it means triathletes think more about their nutrition. By saying not to use it, it really makes triathletes think properly about their nutrition and have a good plan in place. It means they explore different options, get to know their bike storage and practice things. In a lot of cases they'll realise they can do it all without a special needs bag and instead use that as a back up.
If they follow this and still can't work out how to do it, then it makes sense that to use the special needs bag.
Nutritionists? Carb loading? Do you have a clue about ketosis and endurance and the time it takes to transition thereto? Go back to school.
Want to explain more about your comment? 🙂
Happy to engage in sensible discussion!