Leadville Trail 100 MTB

One of the biggest challenges for Anna has been GI issues during races, so rating her stomach comfort this time as an 8 out of 10 is a massive step in the right direction. She used a variety of carb sources to fuel her efforts, including some bottles of Carb Only Drink Mix but ‘decoupled’ the rest of her fuel from her fluid intake so as not to overload her stomach from drinking more than she’s used to. However, her carb intake still has room for improvement, as it was significantly lower than the recommended 90g per hour for a race of this duration and intensity. Before her next race, she should undergo more structured gut training to increase her tolerance of carb and reduce the likelihood of her hitting the wall in future races, like she did in Leadville.

After a Sweat Test with the PF&H Team on the ground at Leadville, Anna was able to dial in the relative sodium concentration of her strategy to match her lower than average sweat losses. Since she learned she’s not a very salty sweater, she primarily used PH 500 with some PH 1000 to account for any plain water she was taking on. She didn’t experience any cramping, but her fatigue, low overall fluid intake and not having to urinate throughout the race suggests she may not have replenished enough of her total sweat losses. It’s likely that her hydration status was also impacted by the high altitude, which can make staying hydrated even harder than normal. It’d be helpful for Anna to do some strategic sweat rate testing to understand exactly how much fluid she needs when training and racing, to further dial in her strategy. Additionally, preloading on the morning of the race with a stronger concentration of electrolytes to make sure she starts optimally hydrated should also be part of her plan.

Anna had a coffee the morning of the race, but chose not to use any additional caffeine throughout. Since she has historically battled GI issues with a sensitive stomach, it’ll be important to test out any caffeine usage in training and start small with the dosage. If all goes well, she could incorporate the stimulant into her strategy to help mask fatigue and reduce perceived effort levels to further benefit her performance.