Frankfurt Marathon

Louise’s goal of a sub 2:30 marathon required her to be able to run continuously at a high percentage of her VO2max (80-85%). Since the demand for energy is so high when working at this intensity, the majority of her energy would be coming from carbohydrates, as this is the most efficient fuel. As well as an effective carb-load to maximise her muscle and liver glycogen stores before the race, she also needed to be able to consume carbohydrates at a high rate during the race to appropriately fuel the required work. Louise did a fantastic job executing her strategy on race day, using a combination of Carb & Electrolyte Drink Mix (taking ~250ml every ~5km) and PF 30 Gels (having one gel every ~10km), to hit the fueling recommendations. In the elite field, athletes have access to personal aid stations every 5km, so Louise’s plan hinged upon this which allowed her to distribute her carb intake relatively evenly through the race. From a practical perspective, she mentioned that when she picked up and drank each bottle, she would wait a couple of kilometers before taking on the gel, rather than rushing to get it down at the same time. This strategy is supported by the scientific literature as a means to maximise the oxidation (use) of the consumed carbs, and the pattern of intake has the added benefit of minimising the risk of GI issues by spacing out and limiting the aggression of the fueling strategy.

Louise’s fluid intake fell in line with our recommendations and helped her stay adequately hydrated throughout the race. Using Carb & Electrolyte Drink Mix enabled her to combine her carb, fluid and sodium intake, which can be a sensible approach for races of this duration and intensity when it’s appropriate to consume them together instead of having to take on separate elements. It also helped Louise maintain her relative sodium intake in line with her sweat losses, which helped her to avoid any cramping or dehydration-related issues as the race progressed.

Louise had a small coffee with her breakfast which would have provided some caffeine leading into the race, and she also consumed some cola in the last ~10km. However, her intake of the stimulant was not sufficient to meet the recommendations for caffeine intake, so incorporating a PF 30 Caffeine Gel in place of one of her planned PF 30 Gels could be a practical tweak to her strategy in the future and in theory deliver benefits from the purported ergogenicity of caffeine on performance.