62nd
Danni Shrosbree's scorecard
Tour of Britain
Monday 6th June, 2022
Within recommended ranges
Just outside recommended ranges
Significantly outside recommended ranges
46g
Carb per hour
392mg
Sodium per hour
375ml
Fluid per hour
1,045mg/L
Relative sodium concentration
0.34mg/kg
Caffeine per bodyweight
How Danni hit those numbers
How Danni's hydration and fueling went...
- Amateur rider, Danielle Shorsbree (representing team CAMS-Basso), pushed herself to the limits over the six stage multi-day Tour of Britain, where she performed extremely well against tough professional competitors to finish 62nd overall
- Danni had an excellent and unusual first stage, breaking away and leading the pack by over a minute before a serious traffic accident stopped the race for over an hour. Once the race resumed, Danni got back on her bike and finished strongly, but was unfortunately caught by the chasing pack 15km from the end
- Her efforts were recognised however, and Danni was named the most ‘combative rider’ on day one, finishing in just over 4 hours and in 37th position
- Riding for six consecutive days from Colchester to Oxford (734km/456miles in total), Danni was proactive with her fueling and hydration strategy during and following each stage to ensure she was optimising her performance and recovery (this case study outlines her stage one strategy)
Hydration
- Before starting each stage, Danni preloaded with a PH 1500 (Tablet) to increase her blood plasma volume and make sure she started each stage optimally hydrated
- During multi-day events, it’s essential for athletes to stay on top of their fluid and sodium losses to avoid a large deficit accumulating over the course of the event which can hinder performance. To replenish her sweat losses, Danni concluded each day by drinking ~500ml/16oz of water mixed with PH 1500 (Tablet) to aid effective recovery
- During stage one, Danni drank only PF 30 Energy Drink Mix, totalling ~1.5L/51oz of fluid, which averaged ~375ml/12oz per hour. As a result of the mild and wet conditions, Danni’s sweat losses were low during the stage, and therefore this low intake was as to be expected and likely to have been enough to keep her well hydrated over the 4-hour period
- Danni continued to drink relatively little during the course of the whole race, reporting that “no days were too hot”. That being said, she did take on slightly more on days five and six (450-600ml/15-20oz per hour) to account for the slightly milder conditions and longer stage durations
- Using PF 30 Drink Mix meant that the relative sodium concentration of Danni’s intake was around ~1,000mg/L during the stage. Although we won’t know Danni’s sweat sodium concentration until she’s had a Sweat Test, this moderate-high concentration will likely have replaced a good proportion of her low sweat sodium losses given the cold conditions
- As the event progressed, the relative sodium concentration of Danni’s intake dropped slightly during stages where she drank more of a carb drink mix provided by her team, which contained few electrolytes
- Despite this, she continued to take on solid quantities of sodium and fluid before, during and after stages allowing her to avoid any hydration-related issues, including cramping, and reflected positively on her hydration strategy over the race
Fueling
Quick Carb Calculator Recommendation
30g
carb 30 mins before
60-90g
carb per hour during
- Ahead of each stage, Danni fueled with carbohydrate-dense foods including overnight oats and an omelette, which will have increased her glycogen stores and given her sufficient energy during the race
- After each day of racing, she would also refuel with foods high in carbohydrate, such as pasta and granola, to replenish burnt calories and aid rapid restoration of muscle glycogen stores. Over the six-day race, this high daily carbohydrate intake is necessary to sustain high-intensity, maximal performance throughout. (Learn more)
- Danni may benefit from having a final carb dose (~30g) in the last ~15 minutes before each stage with the aim to spike her blood glucose levels, thus preserving her glycogen stores for later in the race
- During stage one, Danni consumed ~184g of carb in the form of PF 30 Drink Mix, PF 30 Chews, a caffeinated gel and some rice cakes; an average intake of ~46g per hour. This falls short of the general carb recommendations for a race of this duration and intensity of between 60-90g/h, which she was able to hit in some of the latter stages of the race
- Over this kind of multi-day event, Danni should try to push towards 90g/h during each stage to sustain high performance in the latter days of the race. As a result of her low carb intake during stage one and two, Danni felt she later paid for this by experiencing “some dips in energy on day three and four” and subsequent finishing positions
- When looking to increase her carb consumption, Danni will likely need to undergo some gut training to allow her to comfortably tolerate 90g/h while exercising at a high intensity
- Danni didn’t experience any gut discomfort on day one but did mention feeling sick at times on other days when she was drinking her team’s very concentrated energy drink mix. As a result, Danni may want to rely more on chews, gels and rice cakes when looking to increase her carb intake (learn more)
- In terms of caffeine, Danni is an avid coffee drinker, who could benefit from using caffeine to her advantage on race days. She took on small doses (20mg in each caffeine gel) during a few of the stages, but she generally fell short of the general recommendations for optimal performance (3-6mg/kg). Introducing a greater caffeine dose (100-200mg) at a strategic point in the race could be effective, especially during the later race stages when mental, as well as physical, fatigue would be highest
Conclusions
- Against a tough field containing professional riders, Danni performed well over each of the six stages of the Tour of Britain, achieving her best result on the second day (31st). Reflecting on the race, Danni was happy with her efforts and was already looking forward to getting back in the saddle to race again
- Danni implemented a well planned hydration and fueling strategy to maintain a high level of performance over the six days, which included effective rehydrating and re-fueling between stages
- In future, Danni should look to increase her carb intake due to the positive trend between carb consumption and performance, especially over multi-day races, to keep her energy levels high throughout
Key info
Danni Shrosbree
Female
59kg
Result
Position
62nd
Overall Time
4:00:04
Event information
Sport
Cycling
Discipline
Road
Event
Tour of Britain
Location
Colchester, England
Date
6th June, 2022
Website
Total Distance
142.1km / 88.3mi
Total Elevation
1,197m / 3,927ft
Race conditions
Weather Conditions
Mild
Precipitation
Rain
Min Temp
12°C / 54°F
Max Temp
15°C / 59°F
Avg Temp
13°C / 55°F
Humidity
77%
Athlete feedback
Toilet stops
No
GI comfort
10/10
I had no issues in stage one, but I did feel a bit sick during some other stages when I had a double strength energy drink mix
Cramping
No cramping
Danni's full stats
Carbohydrate (g) | Sodium (mg) | Fluid (ml) | Caffeine (mg) | Relative sodium concentration (mg/L) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Overall | |||||
Total intake | 184 | 1,568 | 1,500 | 20 | 1,045 |
Per hour | 46 | 392 | 375 | 5 |
Data Confidence
1
2
3
4
5
There is an adequate level of accuracy in the data collected and the numbers reported. The athlete manages to recall what they ate and drank including most specifics (brands, flavours, quantities, plausible estimations of volumes). However, there are estimations made within the data which affect the overall confidence level in the data reported.