I have my first olympic tri coming up this sunday and i am not sure about nutrition on the course itself. i have the pre race breakfast worked out but i am not sure what to eat during the race.
I have a few cliff shot block for the beginning of the bike but i dont think that is going to be enough, can somone give me a good idea on what to eat during the bike to give me energy for the run? thanks!
I usually eat a cliff bar or energy gel at the one hour mark plus have a bottle of gatorade/whatever; for a 2-3 hour race you don’t really need to eat much more than that.
A sports drink on the bike is enough for me. Flat coke works too.
I have my first olympic tri coming up this sunday and i am not sure about nutrition on the course itself. i have the pre race breakfast worked out but i am not sure what to eat during the race.
I have a few cliff shot block for the beginning of the bike but i dont think that is going to be enough, can somone give me a good idea on what to eat during the bike to give me energy for the run? thanks!
I have one gel right before heading out onto the bike and then one bottle of Infinit (310 calories) on the bike, then just take in whatever they have on the run.
I have my first olympic tri coming up this sunday and i am not sure about nutrition on the course itself. i have the pre race breakfast worked out but i am not sure what to eat during the race.
I have a few cliff shot block for the beginning of the bike but i dont think that is going to be enough, can somone give me a good idea on what to eat during the bike to give me energy for the run? thanks!
I have one gel right before heading out onto the bike and then one bottle of Infinit (310 calories) on the bike, then just take in whatever they have on the run.
x2 except gatorade and coffee in the morning before.
I always run a bit before the race to help move things along so I can use a porta pottie so I dont have to stop.
a couple hundred calories of sports drink during the bike would be enough, i cant see why you would want any solid food during an olympic
.
I think, as others have said, that you probably don’t need any solid food. This might vary slightly depending on how long the race is likely to take, but I’d stick with gels and energy drink depending on what you’re already used to.
So, how long are you expecting the race to take?
Here’s my usual plan:
Bfast about 2.5 hours before, hopefully a pre-race meal that has been practiced with in advance
1/2 powerbar 1 hour b4
Gel 15 min b4
bottle of sports drink on bike w/1 gel about halfway
another gel early on in the run and then blast it from there
.
I slip a gel into my tri short leg at T1 and consume early on bike. 1 bottle on bike and 12 oz fluid between t2 and mile 2 run. Since I time my runs with a calendar and not a watch, I am not rushed.
Remember to drink fluids with gel to speed up digestion.
x2 fluids matter most. Nutrition not that important under 3 hours
Personally for me in an Olympic dist race.
Breakfast…Normally 2 to 4 pop tarts (400-800 Cals)
Bottle of Infinit (250 cals)
1 gel before race
2 gels on the bike, drink Infinit as I feel
Take 1 gel on the run and use it if I need it. Drink water as I feel
jaretj
Best food for an Oly is probably a light breakfast 3 hours before, followed by whatever the post-race spread is. 
But, if you insist on some sort of nutrition on the bike, given it’s an hour-ish in duration, I’d go w/ some watered-down gatorade or similar.
You don’t need a whole lot of calories (if any, frankly), and your bigger concern is not giving yourself gut issues by trying to take in too much while at a high intensity.
x2
some of you guys eat a TON in an oly. Oly for me = a gel midway through the bike, maybe.
You should work toward the goal of not eating.
Now with that said I can’t just say “don’t eat”. I don’t know how long you will be on the course and I don’t know how long that duration compares to your longer workouts.
given the following, you shouldn’t eat:
For instance, I don’t need any nutrition for a 2 hour bike ride.
I don’t need nutrition for a 10k run
I don’t need nutrition for 2-3 hour mtn bike races
And I don’t eat in training, so wouldn’t try it in a race.
But your situation may be different. So if you need nutrition I suggest you limit it to gels…they give plenty of carbs in a pretty easily digestable form. Just make sure you aren’t dehydrated when you eat these or they will sit like lead in your stomach and not be absorbed readily.
x2
some of you guys eat a TON in an oly. Oly for me = a gel midway through the bike, maybe.
yeah well when you weigh as much as a bag of potatoe chips, you can likely get away with that.
And I am not talking about the Jumbo bag either.
Try not to eat too much.
Personally I have a GU before the swim start and maybe one at the beginning of the run. Water on the bike.
Good luck, just have fun. Dont worry you will not run out of energy.
Be careful with the blanket advice you are getting from everyone here. You really should try and mimic what you have done in your training thus far and not venture too far from this. What you have done with your longer brick workouts should give you some insight into what you body needs for your race. Also, everyone on this forum has different caloric intake requirements based upon size and personal tolerance. For example, I am 6’7’’ and about 225. If I don’t get some calories on the bike I know I will pay for it on the run. It has happened to me before and I know it will happen again. So, I am very careful about how much I take in on the bike. It is not that I need it on the bike but I need it to kick in when I’m on the run.
I would adhere to the #1 rule in triathlon…don’t change anything on race day. Race like you trained. Now, if you have not trained your nutrition then you may have a bit of a problem, but be careful picking out one person’s strategy on this page and deciding that is what you are going to mirror for your race. You may regret it later.
I have my first Olympic on Saturday and am just planning on 1 Gu at the beginning of the bike. Figure the swim will burn 200-300 calories, the bike will burn 700-800, and the run 600. Gives a total of 1600-1700. Body stores about 2000 calories, so nutrition isn’t too important.
Something to think about:
Yes, your body stores X amount of calories but I rarely go into an Olympic distance race without doing my normal long workouts the day before. That being the case my stores are not up to their max and I need something to supplement them. I’ve tried going very minimal and it results in a very slow run for me.
Also, I have to train afterwards and/or the next day as well.
To put out a blanket statement that says you don’t need anything other just a sports drink because you already have enough calories stored is just not right for everyone.
jaretj
Something to think about:
Yes, your body stores X amount of calories but I rarely go into an Olympic distance race without doing my normal long workouts the day before. That being the case my stores are not up to their max and I need something to supplement them. I’ve tried going very minimal and it results in a very slow run for me.
Also, I have to train afterwards and/or the next day as well.
To put out a blanket statement that says you don’t need anything other just a sports drink because you already have enough calories stored is just not right for everyone.
jaretj
It’s generally assumed that taking in calories is a tradeoff…it’s inconvenient if not uncomfortable to take calories during a race and slows you down a second or two. therefore it’s only done if necessary for performance…There is and should be a built in bias against eating…the same is true of drinking: In a 1 hour sprint, don’t drink unless you just want to give up some performance to have a comfortably wet mouth.
When you do your regular long workout on Friday, don’t you fully replenish those calories Friday afternoon and evening? Why would you purposefully carry a calorie deficit in to a race (even a ‘C’) race and try to make up for that deficit in the race?
and why in the world would you eat in your race just so you have enough stored energy for the next day’s workout?
That’s just very flawed…I don’t think you thought carefully about what you were saying before you posted your reply.