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Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation?
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I have done a lot of experimenting with food during Ironman. Some successful, some not so. What are your favorites for food during Ironman on the bike? I'm always interested to hear new ideas.

Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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I used Gatorade bars in my last Ironman. Oatmeal raisin I think. Those things taste so good that I am able to get them down. I ate four on the bike, which may have been overdoing it, but at least I got them down.

They taste so good, the only problem is not eating them before the race. They taste good even if you aren't working out, unlike Gatorade.
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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I've only done 3 IM and I'm still searching for the "perfect meal". I will keep it simple for IMNZ with H2O, accelerade, powerbars and 1 or 2 peanut butter and honey sandwich(on wheat bread of course). I've had problems in the past with gells on the bike. I have heard people take immodium or pepto bismal (sp?) to combat the GI distress off the bike. Anyone else try this? I may take some in my special needs bag.
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [CS7] [ In reply to ]
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Interesting. I've used Metabolol Endurance with some success. It uses MCTs (Mono Chain Triglycerides?) as its primary calories source. It is frothy and hard to mix though, and develops an odd black color when exposed to heat. I also too "Muscle Nytro" and that stuff seemed to help delay muscle fatigue. I have no idea how it works, butit seemed to.

Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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I've found that listening to your body is way to go for IM nutrition. Drink at every aid station, eat when your hungry (bars, bananas, etc) and start on the coke around mile 13 of the bike. Also, on hot races, take in plenty of sodium. The chicken broth on the run is mmm mmm good.
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [CS7] [ In reply to ]
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If you're planning on using Accelerade at IMNZ you should plan on bringing your own and putting bottles in your Special Needs bag. The official drink on the course is PB, which I think stands for Putrid Bullocks -- it's absolutely the worst rubbish I've ever put down my gullet. I'm so glad I ordered a batch of their powder well in advance of IMNZ in time to discover there was no way I could use PB drink during the race. Instead, I used super-concentrated Gatorade and took water at some stops, and took two Accelerade bottles from my Special Needs bag.

A bit more on topic regarding IM nutrition, I've never been able to get any solids down while riding or running, so I rely exclusively on sports drink (anything but PB so far), water, and gels, plus salt tablets. I've never felt a big bonk in four Ironmans and have only erred on the side of too many concentrated carbohydrates in too short a time, resulting in some interesting projectile vomiting at IMNZ;-)

-David in Taipei
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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I have had very good luck with Carbo Pro.
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [tri_taiwan] [ In reply to ]
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Accelerade: The two guys I train with that have tried Accelerade has had the same problem that I have...unbelieveable upper GI pain from air/gas. It feels like your heart is in pain...all the way from the epigastric area to the spine and up the sternum. It's debilitating, to say the least. Whenever we can manage to release that air, everything is OK, for a while, but it comes back. This goes on for about 30 minutes to an hour after taking the stuff, and gradually subsides. It also seems to be worse as the workout intensity increases. We don't get the same distress with Endurox, made by the same company, but, we all threw our Accelerade in the trash. Anybody else have that same experience with this or other "aids"?



Quid quid latine dictum sit altum videtur
(That which is said in Latin sounds profound)
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [ktalon] [ In reply to ]
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For my '99 Ironman Florida race I did 18 servings of HammerGel on the bike (they were in a water bottle diluted with water.) I took a bottle at every station, alternating between the sports drink and water just to keep everything diluted. I did another 8 gels during the marathon using a fuel belt. I had no nutrition issues during the race, but I do have an iron stomach. My only post-race issue was too many of those gels were caffienated. Ugh!
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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I stick to the liquids, too, since anything else usually comes right back up. I used the Ironman Cocktail recipe (Metabolol Endurance+Cytomax) for a couple years, but the stuff is like sludge and can block the water bottle nozzle...then you've got real trouble. The last few years I've used Champion's Heavyweight Gainer 900. I know it sounds like one of those bodybuilder mixes, but I spent quite a while in the store, reading labels, and this one is different from most others. 4 scoops in water gives you...1260 calories! 17g Fat, 206g Carbohydrates, 70g Protein. And the best part is that it dissolves completely in water. Also has an assortment of vitamins and minerals and even MCTs. I use the vanilla flavor, and last year I added a bit of Espresso flavored Hammer Gel. One bottle on the ride, along with bottles of Gatorade from the aid stations is plenty. I set a timer to beep every 15min, and take a good hit from the bottle each time it beeps. YMMV

________________________________________________________________________
"that which does not destroy me will only make me stronger" Frederick Nietzsche
andrew peabody
http://BREAKAWAYMULTISPORT.COM
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [andrew] [ In reply to ]
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I prefer the GU powdered drink mix (GU2O). It's easy on the GI and is almost pure maltodextrin and sodium. Simple and quick into the muscles. I use Extran Pro as heavy artillery on the carb/calorie front.


=============
Adam Duncan
New York, NY
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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I did IMF2001 on Gatorade, milk, salt tablets, and a little gel. I had a decent race with a 10:27. Okay everybody say, "MILK??!!" I always drink it before I ride, and on breaks during long rides. I had been using a bunch of other stuff, but decided to use it during the race since my body digests it well. I was not completely pleased with my race, but I felt I nailed the nutrition.

And that is whole milk, not any of that watered down crap.

---------------

"Remember: a bicycle is an elegant and efficient tool designed for seeking out and defeating people who aren't as good as you."

--BikeSnobNYC
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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Like many aspects of training for and doing an Ironman the nutriational situation on race day can be very individualistic. You have to find what works for you in training at racing intensities and in similar environmental conditions to race day. Note carefully the last part of the last sentence. What works on an easy 4 - 5 hour ride at 18C may be disastrous for a hard, hilly and hot and humid Ironman race-day bike/run or vice versa!!

A common mistake is too eat/drink too much or two little in the early stages of the bike ride. Either way you can get into trouble early and never really recover. The swim can often leave you with a very unsettled feeling early on in the bike. Some people start gourging on food/drinks right away wich can lead to gastric shut down. At the other end of the spectrum the unsettled feeling may make you NOT want to have anything for the first hour or so on the bike, but by this point you may already have one foot in the graveyard of bonking. Try to get that first hour or so on the bike dialed in for what works for you. 1/2 Ironman races are perfect opportunities to try out some options at racing intensities.

For what it's worth what worked for me( Low 9 hour Ironman):

Bike - one energy bar an hour for the 5 hours on the bike. At least one bottle of water consumed between each aid station( about every 5 miles) so about 4 bottles an hour. If race beverage was gatorade - try to get in a couple of bottles of that if it felt OK and a couple of bananas

Run - take one energy bar with me and nibble on that for the first hour or so. Several cups of water at each aid station. Maybe a banana or two. Assuming about a 3 hour marathon, shift to coke/water combo with about an hour to an hour and a 1/2 to gobut no sooner!


Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog
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4 bottles per hour? [ In reply to ]
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Did I read that right? Did you say 4 20-24 ounce bottles of water per hour? Wow, that seems like an awfully lot.

Then again, I wound up two quarts down in the med tent on my last IM.
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Re: 4 bottles per hour? [ajfranke] [ In reply to ]
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Note that I said about and those are the smaller H20 bottles I am reffering to.

Also, I never ended up in the Med tent after my 9 IM races and with the exception of a minor blow-up in Hawaii one year, always closed strongly on the run. I attribute that to being well hydrated at T2.

Sorry to hear about your experience. I hope that your next race goes better.


Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog
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Re: 4 bottles per hour? [Fleck] [ In reply to ]
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Actually, it was my best run in the Ironman yet. I imagine it would have been better had I been hydrated.

What size bottle do you refer to? They usually hand out 20 ounce bottles. I do need to hydrate better on the bike. That a top priority for next year.
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Re: IRONMAN Game plan [ In reply to ]
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Tom,
Some of the above is very, particularly the part that it is very dependant on the individual. I am no where near in Fleck's league, but I have done 12 IMs and usually go under 11 hours (that , for me is like 8 hrs for the pros!). Here is my game Plan cut and pasted:

IRONMAN Game Plan
“Positive Attitude Makes You Faster!”

Smile and have fun the whole day - This is voluntary! Hey, what could be better than doing three of my favorite things - swimming, biking, and running - all day(!) with people handing out food and drink, and people cheering! Not a bad day! I think we’ll get it done.
I Love my SWEETIE!!


Equipment

To Race Start:
Wetsuit
Goggles
Valve adaptors
Gatorade
1 Gel
Helmut and glasses }
Bike Shoes } Leave at
Food to tape to bike } Bike
Bike Bottles }

T 1 Bag: > > > >
# Belt (?) Or put # on Bike shorts
Bike Shorts
Gel flask
Subito top (or wear under wetsuit)

** Pictures of the girls

On bike - shoes, helmut, glasses, bottles, bars



T 2 Bag: > > > >
# Belt
Hat or visor
Gels
Black socks
Race Shoes
Run Speedo
Knee Strap
Nutrition

Morning:
Tape Ring on Finger!
5:00 - 2 Bars + 2 Ensure
1 Quart Gatorade - stop drinking ˝ hour before race
1 Gel 10 min before start
Sip of water b/f start




Bike:
1 bottle Cytomax mixed double to dilute during ride
1 bottle Cocktail
3 scoops Cytomax
1 scoop Metabolol II
2 scoops Metabolol Eundrance
2 Bars - 1st ˝ hr into ride, and 2nd after Cocktail
1 Gel flask on bike
Drink 1 bottle every ˝ hour

Run:
1 Gel every 30 - 40 min + 1 at the start
Coke sits well - save for 2nd half of run
Whatever you can get down!



Oh well, the formatting didn't come out so well, but hope it helps. It works very well for me.

David
* Ironman for Life! (Blog) * IM Everyday Hero Video * Daggett Shuler Law *
Disclaimer: I have personal and professional relationships with many athletes, vendors, and organizations in the triathlon world.
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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I'm lame I guess - I keep it simple as possible. No special needs, no magic elixirs. Gatorade and HammerGel on the bike, a quick RedBull in T2 and Coke on the run (with a spare HammerGel flask just in case). If it's particularly hot, I'll mix in some Endurolytes with my gel. That's it, works very well for me - I've yet to have a nutrition problem (save for the time I went to Olive Garden the night before the race, but that's another story).





"To give less than your best is to sacrifice the gift." - Pre

MattMizenko.com
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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I used something very similar to what Dan has in his article (race fueling) and have a gu every 20 mins on the bike, although first and last gel are actually carbo shotz (more liquid and bigger (bit like leppins))) on run use carbo shotz and power gels (need something different after all thoses gu's) As for drinking I start with all my bottles containing a mix of PB and Maxim. (I thought the same as he guy above originally about PB but I forund you get used to it very quickly and now prefer the taste to just about any sports drink and I have never had any bad effects using it (think it has higher salt than most))
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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I have used both the Metabolol Endurance (pre-race) and Muscle Nitro (pre-race and mid-race) and feel they have been part of a successful nutrition plan during 1/2 IMs. (I used GU/CliffShot and G-Push/Revenge Pro for during race hydration and fuel). I am a big believer in the MCTs as a fuel source. I also use these during long training efforts. I have had problems with cramping on the run in the past but it seems that the Muscle Nitro helps this. For a full, I would probably take some more Metabolol mid-bike, start of run, and mid-run as well as Muscle Nitro every 2-3 hours. The thing I have noticed about the Muscle Nitro is that, if I don't get enough carbs, I absolutely reek of ammonia (a by-product of protein break-down) by the end of the day. However, if I keep fueling at the appropriate rate this does not happen.
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [garth] [ In reply to ]
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Tom,

After a lot of experimentation I've gone to all liquid (Accelerade) for long and ultra. I'm aiming for 300-400 cals/hr, 900-1000mg sodium/hr, 32-40 oz hr of fluids while on the bike. 6'1" 210 and a sweating machine. Range of intake takes into account the conditions.

I pack 100oz of Accelerade on the bike (3x24 plus the Jetstream). It's a lot of weight but I rationalize I get some time and safety back bypassing aide stations. I mix 2 Thermotabs in each bottle and in the Jestream. In hot/humid conditions I'll supplement with water at the bike aide stations. Usually take 2 hits and pour the rest over my head. I'll take a flask of Hammergel, anything I can knock down are bonus calories. The Thermotabs dissolve well enough but over time it tends to clump, so a little gentle bubble-making in the Jetstream helps.

Using the above I finally got through a run split, after 4 attempts, in long/ultra without nausea/vomiting.
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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I am currently very happy with UCAN on the bike. I mix two concentrated bottles (one for each loop) and just have water in my aero-bottle. I take a sip up ucan every 10 minutes and a sip of water every 5. If it's windy, I put the ucan in my speedfil. If it's humid/hot I supplement with base salts. I carry a few picky bars in case I need additional calories. Good luck finding your secret sauce!
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [Tom Demerly] [ In reply to ]
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20 Ironman Races, more than 100 triathlons, no GI distress yet...

1. Keep it simple.
2. Pick and stick
3. Train with it. Don't test. Enzymes and digestion work similar to a muscle, you dont box with the klitschkos for a couple of rounds to decide, whether boxing is for u.
4. Train as you race. If you plan 400 cals and 1 Liter of water per hour (like I do) you should train with ... you get the idea (but adjust slowly, maybe with 150 cals on the second hour) and add until you reach goal load.

The simpler, the better. I usually check whats on course, decide on a minimum of products (usually non caffeinated gels on the bike (which I take with me but I prefer to use the on course brand - just in case), caffeinated gels on the run and a sports drink). If the products dont contain at least 500mg Sodium per 400 cals, I add sodium in the form of sodium caps. I always add water according to thirst but try to keep intake small, as fluid is supposed to carry carlories and salt.

Amount: Ironman 400 cal / hr (1 bottle of sport drink, 1 bottle of water, 1 salt cap, 2-3 gels)
Half Ironman 300 cal / hr (fewer gels), Short DIstance 200 cal /hr (just the sport drink), Sprint Only one bottle of sport drink which I don't finish ... bottle being 500ml, if 750 ml are served on the course the number of bottles changes.

Whenever the shit hits the fan (usually km 30 on the run) coke and water usually go a long way. But again, thats because when in training the shit hits the fan, I enter the closest petrol station to get ... coke and water.
Last edited by: adal: Aug 30, 20 12:53
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [charlietris] [ In reply to ]
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Out of curiosity what prompted you to dig up and respond to an 18 YEAR old thread?
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Re: Liquid Food: Ironman food in general- Recommendation? [logella] [ In reply to ]
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Ive ran 3:17 by eating the following on the bike (4:55).

1 24 oz bottle EFS (2 scoops) per hour
1/2 pkg of clif shot bloks per hour
Water at aid stations as needed

I think that’s about 72g CHO per hour, heavy on electrolytes from the EFS, and I train the hell out of that and have had no GI distress.

I have to stop at special needs to get 2 bottles but I just can’t drink the Gatorade Endurance.

When racing resumes I am going to experiment with 3 scoops per hour and try to get my hourly Cals from carbs up to 90g
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