Common racing mistakes - nutrition
You have trained for weeks, months, or years and it’s finally time to put all the effort to good use. It’s race day!
Everything is mapped out, you see yourself finally crossing the finish line, achieving a personal best, or even making it onto the podium.
Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out as you expected. Maybe you made some of the most common racing mistakes without even knowing it.
Let’s see if you made some nutrition mistakes along the way.
Nutrition and hydration planing
After having a bad racing strategy or none at all, not having a good nutrition and hydration plan is the second biggest mistake (amateur) athletes make. It’s important to pay attention to details in the final days leading up to a race as well as race day itself.
Inadequate carb loading
Carbohydrate, or carb, loading is an essential tool for any race that isn’t just a few minutes long. It’s a process where you consume more carbs than usual in order to fill the glycogen stores in your muscles and liver. A general rule is to consume around 10g of carbs per kilogram of body mass in the days leading up to your race. This can be quite tricky for many people because they might not be used to eating such amount of foods. Some fear that they might upset their stomach so they skip carb loading altogether while others are afraid of the weight gain associated with it.
The solution to problem number one (upset stomach) is to spread a lot of smaller meals throughout the day. The weight gain associated with carb loading is due to water being bound to the glycogen (1g of glycogen binds to 3g of water). Carb loading, along with delaying fatigue due to heightened glycogen reserves, has the added benefit of delaying dehydration as well.
Once the race is over and you have depleted your glycogen levels, you will shed the excess weight too :)
Skipping breakfast
As you wake up on race morning it’s all butterflies in you stomach and it can be hard to eat something so many skip breakfast altogether. You then come to the start line sluggish and in a bad mood.
The prevent this from happening practice your morning meal a few times before the race. You will know if it suits you and won’t have to think too much about getting your meal ready. Aim for something like 50g of carbs for each hour until the start of the race. Just make sure to stick to as little fiber as possible in the days leading up to the race as well as race morning to prevent you from having a last minute nature call.
Trying something new
If there is one thing you should keep in mind, it’s DON’T TRY ANYTHING NEW ON RACE DAY!
I have seen a lot of people trying an energy gel for the first time during a race, or having some extra special smoothy or energy drink and then fighting to keep it down during the race. Practice your racing nutrition during training sessions leading up to the race and make sure you are comfortable with them during and after the training session. If you don’t feel well, trying some other brand or medium (gels instead of bars, energy drops, or something similar)
Race nutrition strategy
When it comes to the actual race, you should have a plan in mind on how you want to space out your nutrition. Aim from at least 60g of carbs per hour and try bumping it up as much as you feel comfortable. Just make sure to practice it during training sessions (never try something new during the race!). It’s important to know which brands of drinks, gels, or bars will be served during the race. If you can, buy those products early and try them out. If you don’t feel well, plan on being self sufficient and stick to water from the aid stations.
Many try avoiding the sports drinks on a race and stick to only water but in the process dilute their blood of electrolytes which are essential for transmitting signals from your brain to your muscles. You will start feeling light header and fatigued and can experience cramping in your muscles. If you are sticking to water only, make sure to carry electrolyte tables or powders with you.
Over-hydration
Just like mentioned above, a lot of people over-hydrate by sipping a lot of water throughout the days leading up to the race and on race morning. This again can cause your body to flush out a lot of electrolytes like sodium and magnesium out of your body and you will cripple all the progress you have made in training leading up to the race.
Nutrition is an essential tool in having the best performance possible but it’s easy to make mistakes.
I hope that by reading this blog post you get a better understanding of some of the mistakes even experienced athletes make and can avoid some of them. If you are in doubt, talk to a sports nutritionist and they will be happy to guide you to your best possible result.
