MARATHON NUTRITION PLAN

It's marathon and half marathon season. In the UAE there is the Abu Dhabi marathon, the Dubai marathon, the iconic Creek Striders Half, the Burj2Burj, whilst overseas it’s the Valencia marathon in December…
For some runners this will be either their first half or full marathon whilst for others it will just be another race. A well planned and executed nutrition strategy can be the difference between a struggle and a good day and a great race. We get a lot of athletes coming to our Sported.ae store asking for nutrition advice so we have put together this guide which you may find useful. However, your nutrition strategy very much depends on the outcome you are hoping to achieve - a new PB or just to finish. So there is not a "one-size fits all" approach.

Nutrition is very personal and what suits one athlete may not work well for another. We recommend to test out your nutrition strategy several times before race day so that your find the optimal combination.

For racing

Usually, the challenge is to supply enough energy to fuel the performance we want.

In training

It is important to remember that some of the adaptations the body requires for endurance performance are dependent on energy stores being challenged (easier sessions done fasted, or on slow release carbs). Other adaptations require a steady supply of fast carbs (interval and race pace sessions).

For training

A good summary is to consume the minimum to achieve training objectives (in some cases this could be zero).

Ultimately your race day strategy depends upon what sort of runner you are and what sort of time you are aiming for. We would recommend that you come into our store and have a discussion with our team on what strategy would work best for you. Elements to consider are what is the on course nutrition and can you stomach it? Alternatively do you want to be self-sufficient and carry your own?

Sources of Energy

Energy for racing comes from two sources: Fat and carbohydrates. Our bodies have accumulated fat stores and limited amounts of carbohydrates. At low exercise intensities the percentage of energy drawn from fat stores is very high, but as intensity increases the percentage drawn from carbohydrates increases.

As our bodies have limited carbohydrate stores exercising for longer periods at higher intenrsities require external sources of carbohydrates once your own stores are depleted. Typically a runner should be taking on approximately 60-80g of carbohydrates per hour and this can either be in the form of solids or liquids which will depend upon personal preferences.

Training Days

For training sometimes this would be done fasted, ie without carbohydrates to improve the body’s fat burning capabilities. Typically this would be done early in the morning before breakfast on just a cup of black coffee (How to use Caffeine for Training and Race Days). The length of fasted runs can be increased from say 45 mins up to 90 minutes.
For the long run, which you would typically increase by around 10% per week as you get deeper into the training plan, we recommend using Training Mix (Hydration and Energy Drinks) which contains a slow release carbohydrate called Isomaltulose. Two scoops of Training Mix to a 500ml drinking bottle or flask will provide 20 grams of carbohydrates (40g per litre). The slow-release carbohydrates provides a gradual release of energy avoiding insulin spikes. If you would like some solids then take some easy to eat Juice Bars containing 27g of carbs. A key thing to practice is actually taking on nutrition in training.

Some parts of your marathon training will include race pace, or faster intervals, and for these we would recommend gels. STEALTH Isotonic Gels contain 22g of easy to absorb carbohydrates, maltodextrin, fructose and sticky rice starch. Isotonic Gels do not require any additional water to aid consumption and therefore you do not need to time your fuel intake to the location of aid stations on the course.
Post intense or long training sessions it is recommended to take a protein shake containing 20g of protein within 20-30 minutes. This will aid muscle recovery.

Pre Race Nutrition simulation

We would always recommend doing a pre-race nutrition simulation to ensure that nutrition is not the reason for a bad race. Test it and trial it. Probably for your last long run it’s a good idea to work out exactly how you plan to fuel the race and give it a full trial. You will then know if it works for you.

Race Day

Avoid last minute surprises on race day by knowing the parking zones, bag drop etc. If you are going to take breakfast then something approx. 2.5 hours before the gun goes is a good idea but ensure you have practiced this before hand. One choice is brown toast with lots of honey. A banana 30 mins before the start is also a good strategy and sipping on a 500ml water bottle of Training Mix as you wait for the start.
For an athlete looking for a fast time of say 3 hours that is 180g of carbohydrates required for the race. One strategy would be to just use STEALTH BiG Endurance Drink Mix which is 180g of carbohydrates per liter carried in two 500ml flasks plus a Caffeine Gel (75mg of caffeine and 22g of carbohydrates) to keep you going in the last 10km.
A four-hour marathon requires approx. 240g of carbohydrates based on 60g of carbs per hour. This could be achieved through two flasks of BiG Endurance Drink Mix (180g), three Isotonic Gels (66g) and one Caffeine Gel.
Alternatively we recommend Race Mix which is a blend of faster acting carbs, glucose and sucrose, of 40g per liter with a higher amount of gels contained in the our Marathon Pack.

*A lot of athletes think that they need to just drink water. This, along with simply underestimating the amount of nutrition required to complete the race, is one of the most common mistakes. Water contains no energy value or electrolytes and drinking too much water may cause you to suffer Hyponatremia, or low sodium levels in your blood, the symptoms of which are nausea and vomiting.

By David Hunt