A few weeks ago I wrote up a nutrition/fueling plan for my friend James to use while racing the Chicago Marathon. He'd had intestinal issues during the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, and wanted to make sure his stomach was solid in his attempt to qualify for Boston. It was a detailed plan, listing exact quantities of gels/liquids at various times, starting two hours before the race and listing at which times/mile markers in the race to take another gel.
My last text to him before the race was "stick to your plan even if there's chaos." By this I meant that during a race with 10,000 people, the unexpected is sure to occur. Maybe it'd be hard get to crowed aid stations, or he'd drop a gel packet or two, or something else entirely. Regardless, it was important for him to maintain his calorie intake.
To help himself stick to the plan, he wrote the mile markers (and corresponding times) of when he should take each gel. And when the race started, he stayed with his plan perfectly.
Because he likes drinking Gatorade at aid stations, we had made that a major component of his fueling plan--over the whole race he would take in 400 calories worth of Gatorade. This would comprise almost half of his calories and all of his fluids (about 2 quarts, or 3.5 bike bottles).
One unforeseen condition was that the raceday temperature was much cooler than he's used to training in. Because he was sweating a lot less than normal, he didn't need as much fluid as usual. So by midway through the race his bladder was very full...
His choices at that point were to 1) stick to the plan and figuratively cross his legs; 2) stop and pee; 3) stop drinking fluids; or 4) substitute a gel for some of the Gatorade.
Stopping to empty his bladder would have taken precious time, and stopping drinking fluids would have had the effect of him not getting the calories he needed. Substituting a gel for the Gatorade would have worked, but it would have required some thinking that's not always present during the single-focused mind that comes with racing.
So he chose option 1, stick with the plan and cross his legs. It worked out perfectly. He ran a remarkably consistent pace the whole race, beat his goal time by a minute, and qualified for Boston!
Knowing (or not) When to Adapt to New Conditions
Last Saturday I raced the Olympic distance course at Pumpkinman, outside Las Vegas. The course features a long, hilly bike course through the desert. On Saturday it was particularly hot (low 90s) and windy. I had made up a hydration/nutrition plan knowing the weather forecast, but had failed to grasp just how much fluid I'd really need, even though I've trained quite a bit in those conditions.
The last climb on the bike course took almost 40 minutes (it was a long course--my bike time was 1:38, and even the fastest bike splits were almost 1:30). There had also been a last-minute change in the course that lengthened it--and I hadn't grasped the magnitude of it. We were on the bike course for 15 minutes longer than we were anticipating.
Anyway, during the last climb, I knew something was wrong because my power output was about 10% - 15% lower than what it "should" have been. But it didn't dawn on my that it was dehydration at that point--so I stuck with my hydration plan.
Or at least I meant to. The unforeseen condition was just how steep this last climb was, meaning that my speed was generally less than 14 mph (often lower than 10 mph) and that I was out of the aero bars, grabbing the bullhorns in a more upright position. The problem with this is that I use a drink holder on my aero bars that holds the straw right at mouth level--but only when I'm in an aero position. It's normally a great way to effortlessly drink.
But, with being out of the aero bars for 40 minutes, the straw was out of my immediate vision, and I forgot to drink. The consequence was that not only did I come into T2 thoroughly dehydrated, but I did it with water still on my bike. So when I blazed out of T2, thinking I was in a really good position, I promptly doubled over with stomach cramps within 200 meters.
Stomach cramps while running are a classic sign of dehydration. But it still hadn't dawned on me, and I stuck with my original plan of thinking I just needed a cupful of energy drink at each aid stations. So I walked off the cramps and started running again (at my planned race pace, instead of slowing down...). And within a mile was doubled over again.
It wasn't until mile three that I finally realized how dehydrated I was, and started gulping water at aid stations. Of course by this time it was far too late--my stomach was still cramping, and I was thoroughly exhausted. My "run" was reduced to shuffle, walk, bend over, repeat. I was glad to just cross the finish line.
Even though I drank probably a gallon of fluids after the race, it wasn't until 9:00 o'clock that night I finally urinated. Dehydrated, indeed.
All the Ways that I Failed to Adapt
- When we got to the race site on Friday I realized how hot it was--but didn't adjust my plan.
- I didn't learn more about the course adjustment, and didn't plan for more water for the extended time.
- Halfway through the bike course I noticed how hot and windy it was--but didn't grab an extra water bottle at the aid station.
- During the steep climb when I was out of the aerobars, I should have reminded myself to drink, even though it was inconvenient.
- After my first bout of stomach cramps on the run (and feeling a huge ring of salt around my mouth) I should have stopped at the first aid station and drank a lot of water.
- During the run I should have slowed down my pace--instead I tried running at my planned race pace, and consequently had to walk quite a bit.
