Event Nutrition and Preparation

SIS Guide

Ok – so first this is done better than me elsewhere! For specific sport tailored advice see the excellent "Library" at Science in Sport's website http://www.scienceinsport.com/solutions.htm

Basics

More detail on the basics are set out on the previous post or on the original guide written for IC http://www.channing.eclipse.co.uk/ems-nutrition/icqt_novices_nutrition.htm

References for ease to Go (hydration & simple carbs), Smart Gel (Go & caffeine) PSP22 (complex carbs), Rego (complex carbs and protein for recovery) and Nocte (protein complex for night time) are to SIS products, but most reputable sports nutrition companies will have something similar.

48 hour guide (R=Race Day DR=Day before Race Day)

2 days before R: Its ok to take your usual evening protein shake and have meat this evening, but generally speaking, not again until after the race.

DR 6 am – 6pm: Depending on your view – training as normal or light training.

• Hydration: Needs to be done by the guidelines, there's a chart on the Summary - but for 80kg/180lb guy its 2.5 litres/5.25 US pints – ie while you're awake 200ml an hour, and 600-800ml an hour for moderate activity.
  
• Carbohydrates: Key is little and often and you've need to stay on top of this. Best is to use an energy drink, but supplement with bars and gels. 100gm/4 oz of carbohydrate within 20 minutes of exercise to help muscle glycogen storage, followed by additional 100gm feedings every 3 to 6 hours.
  
• Protein: Other than your daily glutamine keep this to easily digestible dairy/egg based proteins, and max 5% of your food intake.
  
• Alcohol/Smoking: Just in case it has to be said – none of.
  

  
   

DR 6pm – 10 pm: You should be off your feet and looking after yourself. Warm bath and/or physio/sports massage. Go through your race plan and any visualisation you do to prepare (at the sharp end of things 80% of racing is after all in your head). Basic stuff but make sure your rucksack/bag is packed and ready to go including all the energy gels and bars and bottles of plain water you'll need, and that everything's ready to make up your hydration, energy and recovery drinks in the morning.

• Hydration/Carb/Protein: rules continue to apply – if you're really sore or carrying an injury then take a Nocte or other protein shake you use, but only if you're really sure it'll clear your system by the following morning.
  
• Evening meal: For 80kg/180lb guy you're looking for a total of 600-900gms/1.3-2lbs carbohydrate a day. There is some evidence that 'carbohydrate loading' ie eating lots of carbohydrate the last two days before a race helps with energy/glycogen storage in the muscles. So big meal based around pasta or rice is a good plan.
  

DR 10 pm: You want to get your full 8 hours sleep, so get into bed early.

R 6 am: Get up early and leave on time. Don't rush around, try to stay nice and relaxed – this is when people classically waste energy or injure themselves in really dumb ways. Mix up your drinks for the day (don't forget whatever you add to make them taste ok ie fresh juice or cocoa powder – nothing worse than getting to the race course with drinks that you can't stand), check your rucksack again and set off.

R: Depending on when your race is – and your view point – either do a normal light training or rest until you start preparing for your race (about 30 mins prior to racing normally). Generally speaking for most part of the time you want to keep off your feet somewhere sheltered and warm with your team, and keep chilled out. Until you've done a 5 minute warm up, stretching is pointless and can damage – but do keep moving around gently so you don't get stuck in one position.

• Hydration/Carb/Protein: The above rules continue to apply.
  
• 60-30 mins before Race: No more solid carbohydrates, but keep sipping a sports drink (ideally Go not PSP22 by this point).
  
• 5-10 mins before Race: Smart Gel or Go Gel for an additional buzz.
  

Then get in your zone and flatten the competition!

General points: Race days are about staying in the best place to get in your zone when you come to race, so particularly for events involving heats, prepared to be bored out of your mind. It is not possible to check equipment too many times, but also have books and mp3 player with you, short sleeps (30-60 mins) are great, and generally speaking, stay with your team or squad, support other people who are racing before you and, in a very focused way of course, keep away from the competition unless you're prepared to swagger or stare better than they can. Whoever they are, the competition are there to be beaten on your terms on the race course, nowhere else. Winding up the competition is a very specialised job, and only a few people (usually coaches) do it well. Virtually anything else is off limits including: wandering around, sitting in the sun, sitting in a draft or somewhere too cold, chatting only to people who aren't racing, playing with a board or ball or anything else that involves moving around, practice sprints/racing other than with your team as part of warm up etc. If this sounds draconian then that's spot on – an old (and very successful) coach of mine refers to his team as the "Blue Army" (kit is primarily blue) and it works very well.

Post Race:

• If you're doing heats, then within 20 minutes of stopping racing – PSP22 and a Go bar, stretch and get off your feet, treat injuries, snatch some sleep and then back to the R guidelines above until your next race. Stick to a routine so you don't even have to think about it.
  
• If you're all done- Rego and a Go bar, stretch and get off your feet, treat injuries (sound familiar?!) then once you're all sorted go shout for the rest of your team still competing.
  
• Then get out of there asap and get home to a proper meal and bed.
  
• If an evening out has to be done, then it should be done after a full meal. Mid season bear in mind (1) minor injuries become big ones and whole new ones can be developed when tired, emotional and in the presence of alcohol (2) shots are the fastest stupidity accelerant known to man.
  
• Oh and SIS do something great called "Headstart" for hangovers. Failing that – mix up a large bottle of Go, drink the lot (even better if you can also do that before you fall in to bed) then try to eat – bananas or eggs should help. Follow up with painkillers. Hangovers are primarily dehydration and low blood sugar, and there is little worse than a cold morning's post race training on a hangover.
  

Guidelines

For a bit more general advice and some reasons why – below are some key things that you need to remember preparing for an event:

1. You don't want lots of food in your digestive system near the event. This is because adrenalin and demands of the event pull blood supply away from your digestive system to the big muscle groups. Ever thrown up before or after a race? This is the main reason.
   
2. You do need the energy or glycogen stores in your muscles to be well stocked. This means you must eat carbohydrates within 20 minutes of finishing your last training session prior to racing.
   
3. You do need a good blood sugar level and to be well hydrated – water and sugar are fuel for your muscles. This means keeping the carbohydrates and fluid going in until about 30 minutes before you race bearing in mind point no. 1.
   
4. Due to point no. 1 you should not eat protein too near an event (ie roughly 12-24 hours). Protein helps build and repair muscle, it is not (in the reasonable range of things) a fuel, so you don't want to be wasting blood supply on it. This isn't an absolute rule, protein from meat can take anything from 6 to 48 hours to digest (so going to a BBQ the night before a triathlon isn't going to go well) whereas dairy protein should take approximately 1 to 4 hours.