Recipe of the Month: Race Nutrition

I've tried a few different race nutrition options through the years. As a short course dude, nutrition isn't all that crucial compared to what it is in long course racing, but it can still make a difference at the tail end of a race, especially when it's really hot. I think a sprint race is totally doable without any nutrition at all, but I still like to have a little something on the bike just to make sure my blood sugar is topped up for the run and I'm also getting electrolytes in as I'm a heavy sweater and do plenty of races with temps running into the 30s.

I think if I were racing long course I'd separate my carbs from my electrolytes (i.e. eat calories, drink electrolytes), but in short course the intensity is not conducive to eating solids, and I just like to get what I need by sipping away during the bike.

I've used Skratch and Infinit with some success, but have fallen victim to the classic mistake of "I'll just mix this a little more concentrated that what's called for so I get more calories", not having any understanding of osmolarity. Of course the results were not pretty.

Maltodextrin comes in plastic baggies and looks very incriminating

After having made my own protein bars for a couple of years, I figured I'd take a stab at race nutrition. For calories I mostly use maltodextrin, which is easily available at home brewing stores. Maltodextrin has a super high glycemic index, so enters your blood quicker than sugars. Because it consists of big molecules, it allows you to concentrate a lot more calories into a solution than other sugars like glucose or fructose, while still maintaining a proper osmolarity for absorption. There's also sucrose from the lemonade, which is absorbed through different channels so increases your caloric uptake, while having a slightly lower glycemic index, spacing out the rate at which the sugar enters your bloodstream.

Like many of my ingredients, I get my lemonade from Costco

For electrolytes I just use a Nuun tab - it's readily available and has everything you need. Coming up with a way to get all the necessary electrolytes in there some other way is more than I want to get involved with.

Sprint Drink:

6 tbsp maltodextrin

125 ml Kirkland Organic Lemonade

300 ml  water

1 nuun active tab

Calories: 225

Magnesium = 25 mg

Potassium = 115 mg

Calcium = 13 mg

Sodium = 377 mg

I have other variations of this recipe I use. For example my pre-race drink is made with green tea for caffeine, and is more evenly split between maltodextrin and sucrose. My Olympic distance mix is a greater quanitity, also with caffeine and some extra salt. I may post those sometime down the road.