Mel Varvel
Hyrox London
Mel's headline numbers
Mel's strategy
Fueling
Carbohydrate is the main fuel you burn when racing. Failing to fuel properly is a leading cause of underperformance in longer races.
Mel did a great job tackling this unique style of event, as Hyrox requires strength, functional fitness and endurance. It’s a short race (Mel came in just under 75 minutes) but with a high intensity throughout and as a result, her pre-race fueling strategy became the main focus. Mel prioritised carbohydrates in the day before, which could have been extended to the 24-48 hours beforehand in-line with the current literature. She was able to get a solid meal in on the day of the race, but didn’t want to overdo it, especially as she was battling a bit of a cold. In the final 30 minutes, she strategically pre-fueled, which successfully peaked her energy for the start. Due to the duration of this event, Mel didn’t need any exogenous carbohydrates throughout, as her stored glycogen was enough to see her through.
Hydration
Taking on board an appropriate amount of fluid and sodium is essential to maintaining blood volume and supporting the cardiovascular effort needed to perform on race day.
Whilst the absolute amount of sodium and fluid consumed per hour is important, it’s critical to consider these in relation to each other. This is known as 'relative sodium concentration' and it’s expressed in milligrams per litre (mg/L). How much sodium you’re taking in per litre of fluid is more important than the absolute amount taken in per hour.
Sweat sodium concentration (mg/L) is largely genetically determined and remains relatively stable. Knowing how salty your sweat is enables you to replace a good proportion of your sweat losses, which can range from 200-2,000mg/L.
Given Mel’s losses are Very High (1,475mg/L), nailing her hydration strategy becomes especially crucial when it’s hot and/or humid.
Learn moreSimilarly to her fueling strategy, Mel’s hydration hinged more on the hours before the race than what she took on board during. She preloaded with a strong electrolyte to increase blood volume for optimal hydration by taking PH 1500 tablets the day before and the day of the event. Despite Mel being is a salty sweater, she was able to just drink plain water to thirst during her race since it was relatively short.
Caffeine
Beyond the Three Levers of Performance (carb, sodium and fluid), caffeine is one of only a few substances that is proven to improve performance for most endurance athletes as it can help stave off mental and physical fatigue.
Mel’s a regular coffee drinker so had two double espressos the morning of the event. Her final gel before starting was also caffeinated, topping off her energy levels whilst ensuring her blood caffeine levels would peak around halfway through the race. She executed this part of her strategy perfectly, and we wouldn’t change anything going forward.
How Mel hit her numbers
Here's everything that Mel ate and drank on the day...
Mel's weapons of choice
Final thoughts
PF&HMel's full stats
Data Confidence?
There is good confidence in the accuracy of the data reported. An athlete feels that the numbers closely reflect what they consumed despite a couple of estimations which may carry some degree of error. The majority of what was consumed is recorded to a high level of specificity (most volumes are known through the use of bottles brands quantities flavours). The numbers are very plausible and align with previous data recordings (if an athlete has collected data previously).