At the Tinman 1/2 I had some stomach troubles that plagued me for the entire bike and run and even into the evening after the race.
The moment I got on the bike I felt bloated. When I started taking in my usual nutrition (which has never caused stomach problems for me before) it didn’t settle well on my already bloated stomach and it affected my race performance. The only time I got any relief was when I was burping or farting.
Some people I have spoken with think that my problem was nutrition based, or nutrition combined with race intensity. I think it was caused by my swallowing too much air and/or water on the swim.
I went out a little too hard on the swim and was struggling for air at a few points. While I eventually settled in and had a decent swim, I think that first part of the swim caused me to ingest water and/or air. That upset my stomach and from then on I don’t think any of my nutrition agreed with me because my stomach was already upset.
I don’t have these issues when swimming hard in training, but I think that’s because I’m rarely swimming 2k+ sets. That said, I do recall swallowing air and becoming bloated when I first started tri training and pushing myself hard on swims. It has been years since I’ve had that problem in training though.
I had one other race where I experienced this in the past, and again I think it was due to too hard of a swim, not nutrition. I have used my nutrition plan on many other races and never had any trouble.
I’m curious to know if anyone else has had trouble ingesting air or water on the swim and if it has caused problems later in the the race. If so, what did you do to remedy it?
Right now my solution is to pull back on the swim (especially at the beginning). If that’ll help keep me from upsetting my stomach then I’m sure the few seconds lost on an easier swim will be made up for by a stronger performance with no stomach problems later in the race.
I did IMWI 5 years in a row (dnf one year) and I had bloating and stomach problems every year. Most years I yaked on the bike and ru, every year I yaked on the run. Always started right out of the swim. I tried everything from anti-acid/gas, changing nutrition/salt intake, to taking anti-nauseau pills. Granted, some of those years were friking blazing hot, so it most likely was the heat. However, I’m still convinced that the lake water had some bacteria that made me ill every year as I would feel sick even after the practice swim.
In other words, could be the lake water you swam in.
Learn to breath without swallowing air. Do a search it has been discussed before. Gas-x helps the bloating if you take double or triple the recommended dosage, but it only masks the issue.
Learn to breath without swallowing air. Do a search it has been discussed before. Gas-x helps the bloating if you take double or triple the recommended dosage, but it only masks the issue.
Thanks. Should have searched first. Got some good info from search regarding breathing, which it seems most agree is my problem… in other words, not my nutrition.
That said, I’m a decent swimmer, can breath every 2 strokes, every 3, 4, 5 or , 2/3, etc. without any trouble. I always exhale under water and don’t usually feel like I"m gasping for air.
The only time I do feel I"m gasping is when I’m really pushing hard. I still breath out underwater, but I guess my oxygen needs are greater than the time I have to breath out and get ready for a clean inhale.
As mentioned before, one solution would be to not push so hard which will help keep my breathing clean and avoid swallowing air/bloating, but it’s hard not to push in a race.
It happens to me in races. Something about the start of the race and I just had to learn to push hard without messing up my breathing. All you need is to be conscious of it and not go crazy, you can still push very hard.
1 on previous advice. I have the same issue and it usually it starts with bloating on the bike, then turns to farting, and if I try to hold 'em in (strategically released), it’ll eventually turn to stomach/gastro cramping on the run. During this years Nola 70.3, it damn near stopped me in my tracks during the run (Stomach cramps combined with heat).
So now… I have Gas-X waiting for me in T1, which I consume on the spot, and carry 1 or 2 more on the bike. I’ve only practiced this once in a Olympic distance and I was fine, no gas. I was using the Extra-Strength Gas-X Thin Strips, and I only consumed 2 in T1 (below recommended dosage). You have to pre-open the strips and avoid getting them wet which is hard to do, so I plan on switching to pill form.