Nutritional Considerations: IM World Championships (Nice, France)

On September 22nd, 2024 the best female professional and age group triathletes from around the world will race 140.6 miles in Nice, France. For the second year, the Ironman World Championship will be split between Nice, France and Kailua-Kona, Hawaii for the men's and women's races. Last year the men raced in Nice, France and this year the women will take the stage in Europe. 

The course consists of a 2.4 mile swim in the salty blue Mediterranean sea, a one-loop 112 mile stunning and spectacular bike course with over 7,800 feet of elevation gain and a four-loop 26.2 mile run on the iconic Promenade des Anglais. 

Although a beautiful race venue, the course brings with it some challenging situations. With a good understanding of the following nutritional considerations, you can improve your chances of delivering a great performance on race day - while enjoying this incredible experience. 

Carb loading
Authentic French Cuisine places great emphasis on using fresh, high quality ingredients to create great flavors. However, much of French food is rich in butter, dairy, meat and oil. Although the food is delicious, consuming large quantities of fat and protein in the days leading up to the race may reduce gastric motility and emptying, contributing to feelings of fullness and nausea, along with increasing the risk for Gi issues during activity. More so, foods rich in protein and fat are more calorie dense, which makes it difficult to effectively carb-load and fill the muscles and liver with glycogen in the days leading up to the race. On the flip side, if you are concerned about eating unfamiliar foods or you have specific dietary needs (ex. vegan/vegetarian/gluten-free) and feel limited with your food options, you may find yourself not eating enough and going into the race feeling depleted and low in energy. 
TIP: Have a plan for carb-loading. Know exactly what foods you will eat (and where) and how much to consume at least 8g/kg/bw of carbohydrates in the 48 hours before the event. By prioritizing a higher-carb consumption in the earlier hours of the day and reducing carb volume in the evening, you can minimize the risk of feeling lethargic, uncomfortably full, gassy, nauseous and bloated on race day morning. With grocery stores and markets at almost every corner, you should have no trouble finding a variety of familiar food options to prepare in your Airbnb/hotel room. 

Sea water 
The salty sea provides great buoyancy for swimming but there's a risk for swallowing air or sea water. The first condition is called aerophagia. Swallowing too much air can cause stomach distress, reflux, burping, belching and GI issues. Examples include not fully exhaling underwater before taking the next breath, mouth-only breathing, rapid breathing and swallowing big gulps of air. As a result gas is trapped in the stomach, which can lead to gas and stomach aches. 
TIP: Keep a steady and rhythmic breathing pattern. Make sure to forcefully exhale when your face is in the water. Try to work with the rhythm of the ocean by changing your cadence of your stroke to keep yourself moving forward (and not slapping waves/chop). Chewing gum, drinking carbonated beverages, and consuming too much caffeine can also increase the risk for stomach pain, reflux and belching. 

Sport nutrition timing 
Whereas general nutrition guidelines advise consuming carbohydrates, fluid and sodium in 10-15 minute intervals to optimize digestion and absorption and to help delay fatigue, a bike course with significant elevation changes, technical long descends, step and gradual uphills and potentially wind in certain sections presents challenges for fueling and hydrating on specific intervals. First off, with a significant amount of climbing in the first 1-2 hours of the bike, your energy requirements may be slightly higher but your gastrointestinal tract (blood flow) may be compromised if you are working too hard to get up the climb. Because proper fueling on the bike can reduce the risk of bonking and becoming progressively dehydrated as the race progresses, keeping your fueling strategy simple to execute is key. The more steps in your fueling/hydration strategy, the more you risk GI issues from consuming concentrated nutrition products. 
TIP: Look for opportunities on the course to coast/ease up on effort in order to take in nutrition when breathing/heart rate is controlled. Start with enough nutrition on your bike to get you through 3 hours of riding (with the help of aid stations for water as needed). Your sport nutrition is your most important currency in racing and it's not worth sacrificing bottles to save weight on the bike. Be mindful that you won't always be able to drink on a schedule - you need to work with the terrain of the course. Therefore, try to take smaller sips more frequently over 10-15 minutes (or a few big gulps every 15 minutes) when your breathing is controlled. Do not go more than 20 minutes without fueling/hydrating. In the 10-15 minutes before a long descend, it's advised to take in a little more nutrition (~50-80 calories) to reduce the risk of dropping blood sugar while coasting (plus digestion will be easier while descending vs. climbing). Be mindful that it takes ~15 minutes to digest nutrition so don't take in more than 25-30g carbs within 15 minutes. Lastly, your nutrition strategy can only work if you are well hydrated. It doesn't matter how many bars, gels or chews you consume, if you are behind on your fluids, your muscles will tire faster and your risk for nause and GI issues increases. Dehydration slows gastric emptying and gut motility. Although gels, bars, chews are convenient and easy to consume, they often lack adequate sodium and they obviously lack adequate fluid.

More is not better
The bike course is demanding and it will require a lot of muscular work, endurance, strength and stamina. There may be times during the bike, but especially during the run, when you may think that you need more nutrition to give you more energy. Although this is true to a point, your gut can only tolerate so many carbohydrates (and fluids) per hour. And if you plan to consume more than 60g carbs per hour, it needs to be a combination of glucose/maltodextrin + fructose and your gut needs to be trained to be able to absorb higher levels. Overfueling and overhydrating present much worse side effects than being a little underfueled and dehydrated. 
TIP: Understand your individual carb, sodium and fluid needs per hour and don't let your sore/tired/fatigued muscles fool you into thinking that taking a few more gels each hour or several cups of sport drink (on top of what you plan to consume) will give you more energy. Think small amounts consumed frequently throughout the run and recognize that your muscles will be tired and sore - it's an Ironman! 

Your Ideal Recovery Meal

Are you under the impression that protein powder is the only way to recover after a workout?
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Athletes who train consistently hard on consecutive days are the ones who are able to get stronger and perform better in races. The key to this isn't just a loud alarm clock or superhuman willpower, however, it's recovering quickly from training so you can train hard, day in and day out. Nailing your post-workout nutrition promotes quick recovery, reduces muscle soreness, builds muscle, improves immune system functioning, and replenishes glycogen—all key building blocks in setting you up for tomorrow's session.

When we consume meals or snacks as soon as possible post workout (ex. within 30 minutes), our muscles become primed to accept key nutrients that can replenish glycogen and encourage protein synthesis. As a reminder, recovery includes everything that happens between two workouts which theoretically means that your recovery nutrition "window" is open all day.

Together, carbohydrates, protein, and fats are essential to maximize recovery, and thus, training. When athletes load up only on protein or carbohydrates—two of the usual suspects in most recovery meals—athletes will likely fall short of meeting dietary fat needs, which play an understated but important role in overall health, as well as promoting feelings of fullness.

The day to day foundation of an athlete's diet should be made up of real foods—wholesome by nature and rich in a variety of vitamins and minerals.

Whereas the purpose of recovery nutrition is to help an athlete refuel, rehydrate, and repair (and eventually build), athletes often fall short on recovery nutrition due to a rushed lifestyle, poor planning, loss of an appetite, or the tendency to reward or restrict food (for a variety of reasons). Coupled with a body that is mentally and physically exhausted, it's not a shock that athletes find it easier to make time to train, but not to plan healthy recovery meals.

Although recovery nutrition has evolved into a precise and complicated science, taking into consideration age, gender, environmental factors, fitness level, workout intensity and duration, endurance athletes should recognize that a real world setting may not allow you to eat perfectly after every workout. Thankfully for us, recovery nutrition is quite simple. 

Check out my latest Ironman article with a detailed 4-step guide to building the perfect post-workout recovery snack or meal.
Proper recovery nutrition is at your fingertips.

CLICK HERE to read the article. 

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