Gorge Waterfalls 50km

Lauren doesn’t enjoy eating much during races, so she usually chooses to consume more energy-dense gels. However, she felt hungry during the race and found herself fueling more frequently than in her previous races. This increased hunger was likely as a result of a slight change to her pre-race nutrition, as she didn't have her usual pre-race high carbohydrate breakfast or her usual final gel in the last 30 mins before the race. Regardless, Lauren managed to stick to her overall fueling target during the race to reach and exceed the recommended carb guidelines without any GI discomfort.

Lauren experienced some cramping in her calf in the last three miles of the race after she had a small fall. It’s fairly common for runners to get cramps in the latter stages of endurance events, so understanding the multifactorial causes of cramp can help when reflecting post-race. In Lauren’s case, it may have been prevented, or at least attenuated, by increasing her relative sodium concentration to more closely match her losses, but this twinge was most likely a result of the fall itself and didn't last too long. Since the milder climate in this race discouraged her from consuming the fluids she was carrying, it would be good practice for Lauren to start increasing her fluid intake in preparation for the warmer conditions expected at Western States in a few months to get her body used to tolerating more fluid.

Lauren’s caffeine intake was in line with the recommended guidelines for races of this duration. Despite consuming a PF 30 Caffeine Gel earlier in the race than she usually would, she could have benefited from pre-caffeinating in the last 30 mins before the race, and strategically timing another caffeine gel later on to perhaps offset the symptoms of fatigue.