2nd
Anna-Marie Watson's scorecard
South Devon Marathon
Saturday 5th February, 2022
Within recommended ranges
Just outside recommended ranges
Significantly outside recommended ranges
33g
Carb per hour
636mg
Sodium per hour
421ml
Fluid per hour
1,509mg/L
Relative sodium concentration
0mg/kg
Caffeine per bodyweight
How Anna-Marie hit those numbers
1 x Bowl of porridge with seeds, goji berries and peanut butter
1 x Cup of decaffeinated tea
250ml x Plain water
2L x PH 1500 (Tablets)
1 x PF 30 Chews
1 x Banana
1 x Energy gel (11g carb)
1 x Energy bar (39g carb)
1 x Energy bar (40g carb)
How Anna-Marie's hydration and fueling went...
- Anna-Marie Watson, a long time Precision Fuel & Hydration ambassador and a professional performance coach, hadn’t raced the marathon distance since July of 2021 because of an ankle injury
- Despite her time away from racing, Anna-Marie finished the South Devon Marathon as the second-fastest woman in a time of 4 hours, 45 minutes and said that she finished with a smile on her face
- In mild conditions (9℃/48°F), she performed well and after “getting into her groove after 15km”, she averaged 6:46min/km over the marathon, which included a staggering 1,397m of elevation, and rated her overall race satisfaction as 10 out of 10
Hydration
- For future races, we would recommend that Anna-Marie preloads before by drinking PH 1500. Preloading with an electrolyte drink containing a high amount of sodium before the race would help make sure she was starting optimally hydrated
- Over the entire race, Anna-Marie stopped three times to refill her 500ml/16oz soft flask of PH 1500, drinking a total of ~2 litres (68oz), equating to an average of ~421ml/hr (14oz/hr)
- Without data on Anna-Marie’s sweat rate, it’s hard to determine whether this will have adequately replaced her sweat losses in these mild conditions, but she did pee once during the race which suggests she didn’t under hydrate -In total, she consumed ~3,019mg of sodium, which worked out an average of ~636mg per hour. Given she drank solely PH 1500 during the race, the relative sodium concentration of Anna-Marie’s fluid intake was a high ~1,509mg/L. Anna-Marie has a high sweat sodium concentration - we know from her Sweat Test that she loses 1,187mg of sodium per litre of sweat - so benefits from a proactive hydration strategy when total sweat losses are high. That said, temperatures were mild (which will naturally result in a lower sweat rate) and Anna-Marie could have considered drinking slightly less PH 1500 and more plain water on this occasion
- Regardless of this, Anna-Marie was extremely happy with how her hydration strategy went (rating it 10 out of 10) and she didn’t experience any cramp
Fueling
Quick Carb Calculator Recommendation
30g
carb 30 mins before
30-60g
carb per hour during
- Anna-Marie ate a bowl of porridge with seeds, goji berries and peanut butter alongside a cup of tea and a glass of water on the morning of the race. This is a nutritious pre-race meal, in which the carb-rich porridge will have topped up her glycogen stores ahead of the early race start (9.00am)
- Anna-Marie could benefit from taking a final ~30g of carbohydrate in the last 30 minutes before the race. This is usually in gel form, but as she doesn’t like gels, Anna-Marie could consider other sources of carbohydrate in order to achieve this final spike in blood glucose level and spare glycogen stores for later in the race
- During the run, Anna-Marie stopped three times at aid stations, consuming a third of a banana at each stop as well as having two energy bars, an energy gel and PF 30 Chews throughout the race
- Using this strategy, she consumed an average of ~33g of carbohydrate per hour. During a race of this duration, the Quick Carb Calculator would recommend Anna-Marie tries to push towards 60g/hr, as there is a correlation between higher carb intake and performance
- She rated her energy levels as 7 out of 10, and said “I felt like I ate more than I usually do and that eating more will have made me bloat”
- To help Anna-Marie increase her carb intake in future races, we would recommend that she begins to gradually train her gut to be able to tolerate higher volumes of carbs in training (learn more)
- Anna-Marie didn’t consume any caffeine before or during the race. The use of caffeine will come down to an athlete’s personal preference and Anna-Marie knows from experience that her body doesn’t tolerate caffeine well, as it makes her jittery. Therefore, in this situation, consuming no caffeine was the optimal choice for her
Conclusions
- For future races, we would recommend that Anna-Marie preloads before by drinking PH 1500. Preloading with an electrolyte drink containing a high amount of sodium before the race would help make sure she was starting optimally hydrated
- Over the entire race, Anna-Marie stopped three times to refill her 500ml/16oz soft flask of PH 1500, drinking a total of ~2 litres (68oz), equating to an average of ~421ml/hr (14oz/hr)
- Without data on Anna-Marie’s sweat rate, it’s hard to determine whether this will have adequately replaced her sweat losses in these mild conditions, but she did pee once during the race which suggests she didn’t under hydrate -In total, she consumed ~3,019mg of sodium, which worked out an average of ~636mg per hour. Given she drank solely PH 1500 during the race, the relative sodium concentration of Anna-Marie’s fluid intake was a high ~1,509mg/L. Anna-Marie has a high sweat sodium concentration - we know from her Sweat Test that she loses 1,187mg of sodium per litre of sweat - so benefits from a proactive hydration strategy when total sweat losses are high. That said, temperatures were mild (which will naturally result in a lower sweat rate) and Anna-Marie could have considered drinking slightly less PH 1500 and more plain water on this occasion
- Regardless of this, Anna-Marie was extremely happy with how her hydration strategy went (rating it 10 out of 10) and she didn’t experience any cramp- In future, Anna-Marie may benefit from trying to increase her carb intake towards the 60g/hr mark with the aim to enhance performance. This would require some gut training prior to race day in order to make sure that she’s able to increase her carb intake without experiencing any gastrointestinal issues
- Anna-Marie has a number of upcoming races throughout the warmer summer months and we’re looking forward to helping her adjust her strategy accordingly
Key info
Anna-Marie Watson
Female
53kg
Sweat sodium concentration
1,187mg/L
Sweat sodium classification
High
* determined by our Sweat Test
Result
Position
2nd
Overall Time
4:45:42
Event information
Sport
Running
Discipline
Marathon
Event
South Devon Marathon
Location
Beesands, England
Date
5th February, 2022
Total Distance
44.3km / 27.5mi
Total Elevation
1,397m / 4,583ft
Race conditions
Weather Conditions
Mild
Precipitation
No Rain
Min Temp
7°C / 45°F
Max Temp
11°C / 52°F
Avg Temp
9°C / 48°F
Humidity
85%
Athlete feedback
Race Satisfaction
10/10
Hydration rating
8/10
I felt like I drank and ate more than normal
Energy levels
7/10
Took a while to settle in but felt really strong around 35km in
Toilet stops
Yes
Once in last 17 miles
GI comfort
10/10
Cramping
No cramping
Anna-Marie's Thoughts
After I badly injured my ankle last year, I really enjoyed being back racing and I finished with a big smile on my face
Anna-Marie's full stats
| Carbohydrate (g) | Sodium (mg) | Fluid (ml) | Caffeine (mg) | Relative sodium concentration (mg/L) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | |||||
| Total intake | 156 | 3,019 | 2,000 | 0 | 1,509 |
| Per hour | 33 | 636 | 421 | 0 | |
Data Confidence
1
2
3
4
5
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).