California International Marathon

After being convinced to take the start line just days before the race, Brad’s build up and training weren’t ideal heading into the highly competitive California International Marathon (CIM). Luckily as a life-long athlete, he knew that his fueling (and hydration) would play a critical role in getting him through the 42.2km (26.2 miles) in one piece. Before the 7am race start he began the day with ~1.2g/kg of carbohydrate to top up his glycogen stores, followed by a PF 30 Caffeine Gel and PF 60 Chew Bar within the last 30 minutes to raise his blood glucose levels and energy availability.

Having averaged over 90g/h in recent ultra races, Brad’s typical high-carb intake and long-term gut training allowed him to tolerate large amounts of fuel mid-race comfortably, averaging ~109g/h. His slight dip in perceived energy came after a misunderstanding with mile markers and aid stations that meant he did not have his planned PF 30 Gel between mile 17 and 21. While he doesn’t believe this was the sole reason for his fade towards the end, prioritising a more self-sufficient approach with fixed fueling intervals in future races may help avoid energy dips and better support his performance all the way to the end.

Brad drank over 1.5L ahead of the early 7am race start. Although this fluid contained a high sodium concentration, 1,500mg/L, this large volume likely played a part in him needing a portaloo stop after 16km (10 miles). In contrast, 500ml of PH 1500 in the 2 hours before the race would have been more optimal for his race morning preload to make sure he was starting well hydrated without overdoing it. With race temperatures averaging 6℃ / 43°F, Brad relied on thirst to guide his intake from the 17 on-course aid stations. He drank close to ~1.5L across the 3 hours 20 minutes to sufficiently keep up with his low-to-moderate sweat losses. Brad used a decoupled fuel and hydration strategy by relying on PF 30 Gels for carbs, plain water for fluids and Electrolyte Capsules for sodium. This gave him the flexibility to manage his fluid and sodium needs separately and at a concentration aligned with his individual sweat losses without impacting his fueling - a solid and common approach for marathon racing.

Brad’s caffeine intake was simple and effective, consuming one PF 30 Caffeine Gel pre-race and then spreading three more across the marathon. This put his total intake at ~400mg caffeine (~4.3mg/kg) which is right in the sweet spot of the recommended dose for a race of this duration. This will have provided the ergogenic effects of the stimulant, including increased alertness and reduced perceived effort without getting close to the high doses that can lead to negative side effects.