I need to get in shape for the UTMB (Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc) that will take place in Chamonix the 1st of September 2023! Created in 2003, the UTMB is "the most mythical and prestigious trail running race in the world" with 171 kilometers and 10,000 meters of positive elevation gain around the Mont-Blanc through Italy, Switzerland and France.
LINK:
https://montblanc.utmb.world/races/utmb
There are a lot of documents and research out there regarding what the right (or wrong) way to fuel for training and racing is (or should be). Nutrition is of course one of the most important parts of training for endurance events and long training sessions. The longer the effort, the more important proper nutrition becomes.
Of course, drinks and foods that are ingested during a race must be tried and evaluated during training. The best approach to do that is during those longer weekend runs or local races that I use as preparation for bigger events. I even found out that the same approach and the same product can and usually does vary as result of other important factors such weather conditions (rain, snow, air humidity etc.), the overall psychological state during the effort (overall tiredness, poor sleeping pattern, stress etc.), the food ingested prior the effort (I usually look back a few days before the session in order to assess the relative impact to the body and the overall feedback that I have during the session).
The thing is that I might receive completely different results with the same product and amount/dosage of it!
It's very important to test products in different situations using different parameters.
The exact intake quantities and the time interval of the used products must be determined on an individual basis. This is of course most effectively done through consultation with a registered dietician and experimentation during specific training. A good practice is to do a test of your blood and and overall check of body functions before important events.
Because of the psychological "stress" during races it is very common for runners to be so extremely excited and nervous before and during a race that they forget to fuel and hydrate. By developing a proper strategy and a method to reinforce the "fueling strategy", the chance that an athlete will make mistakes during the race will hopefully decrease. It's very important that the athlete has a constant reminder of the importance of the proper energy intake during the endurance event.
A proper fueling strategy supplies an athlete with fuel in the right amounts and at the correct times. As the race develops, the runner will need to adjust the energy intake accordingly to the race development, the effort, the weather conditions, the surface conditions, the intensity of the effort etc.
Extreme conditions like high altitude, extreme heat, or cold weather require special nutritional considerations. The athlete has to determine which foods and fluids to prefer and in what quantity to meet their energy needs as well as the proper time "schedule" when to ingest adequate fuel for optimal results.
Thus the importance of "training the gut" is a key to tolerance and avoiding gastrointestinal disturbances while running. The athlete has to test ths prior an important race event in order to avoid unpleasant GI distress or other situations that may negatively impact the race outcome.
There are many good and interesting documents and research out there regarding what the right (or wrong) way is to fuel for training and racing. Nutrition is of course one of the most important parts of training for endurance events and long training sessions. The longer the effort, the more important proper nutrition becomes.
Of course, drinks and foods that are ingested during a race must be tried and evaluated during training. The best approach to do that is during those longer weekend runs or local races that I use as preparation for bugger events. I even found out that the same approach and the same product can and usually does vary as result of other important factors such weather conditions (rain, snow, air humidity etc.), the overall psychological state during the effort (overall tiredness, poor sleeping pattern, stress etc.), the food ingested prior the effort (I usually look back a few days before the session in order to assess the relative impact to the body and the overall feedback that I have during the session.
The thing is that I might receive completely different results with the same product and amount/dosage of it!
It's very important to test products in different situations using different parameters.
The exact intake quantities and the time interval of the used products must be determined on an individual basis. This is of course most effectively done through consultation with a registered dietician and experimentation during specific training. A good practice is to do a test of your blood and and overall check of body functions before important events.
Because of the psychological "stress" during races it is very common for runners to be so extremely excited and nervous before and during a race that they forget to fuel and hydrate. By developing a proper strategy and a method to reinforce the "fueling strategy", the chance that an athlete will make mistakes during the race will hopefully decrease. It's very important that the athlete has a constant reminder of the importance of the proper energy intake during the endurance event.
A proper fueling strategy supplies an athlete with fuel in the right amounts and at the correct times. As the race develops, the runner will need to adjust the energy intake accordingly to the race development, the effort, the weather conditions, the surface conditions, the intensity of the effort etc.
Extreme conditions like high altitude, extreme heat, or cold weather require special nutritional considerations. The athlete has to determine which foods and fluids to prefer and in what quantity to meet their energy needs as well as the proper time "schedule" when to ingest adequate fuel for optimal results.
Thus the importance of "training the gut" is a key approach to tolerance and avoiding gastrointestinal disturbances while running. The athlete has to test this prior an important race event in order to avoid unpleasant GI distress or other situations that may negatively impact the race outcome.
It is therefore recommended to experiment with ingesting carbohydrates in varying amounts and at various times prior to exercise
The time now during these weeks prior the race are crucial for me from a nutritional testing aspect. Being vegan and having a few allergies that severely impact my usual nutrition this represents a huge challenge for me during long races.
Right now, after months of dealing with a nasty ankle injury, I'm trying to increase my training volume without stressing my body too much. I am trying to implement some "alternative" training forms/sports as well in order to address a few issues that I had in the past where my upper got unpredictably fatigued impacting my running form, my energy consumption and eventually the race outcome.
At the same time, while training, I'm trying to do my best to use my acquired knowledge about endurance nutrition and better my future race outcome.
I'm experimenting a lot with different products, I will have to bring my own nutrition due to allergy problems that might occur if using the offered products so I will need to plan the race very well. It's going to be really challenging.
During these few weeks I will try to test many products that potentially and hopefully will work well for me. I'm searching for energy bars that have:
- a good amount of calories
- a good carb/fat ratio
- few natural ingredients without unnecessary "mambo jumbo"
- no soy
- vegan
- a few products with higher protein % for the last parts of the race.
The list is not impossible. Still, only a few companies meet these "requirements"! We'll see the outcome of this....
When it comes to the sport drinks, I think that I will mix a bit between Enervit and Umara. Still, nothing is 100% decided. Unfortunately, the UTMB World series will use Näak as Official On Course Sports Nutrition and Sports Hydration Supplier.
The list of ingredients of the Energy Drink Mix the is the following:
Dextrose, maltodextrin, hydrolyzed oat flour (gluten-free), pea protein isolate, soy protein isolate, natural lime flavor, sea salt, magnesium citrate, citric acid, potassium citrate. Contains: Soy. May contain: Milk, eggs.
As you may see, in the list above it's stated that the product contains soy protein isolate! My body does NOT react well with that item! Like at all! I could have an anaphylactic shock which is nothing I want/need to play with in the mountains!
Anyway, I might create a video about these thoughts and my decisions prior the race. Let me know if you find these information/articles of any value for you.
Kind Regars,
Aramis
