Sean O'Mahony
California International Marathon
Sean's headline numbers
Sean'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.
As an experienced age-group athlete and long-time member of team PF&H, Sean has tested many different fueling approaches across his years of racing various disciplines. For his first flat, fast road marathon, Sean implemented a simple but effective strategy using the PF 30 Gels and PF Carb & Electrolyte Drink Mix available on course at California International Marathon (CIM). Relying on aid stations, Sean consumed six PF 30 Gels during the race as well as one just before the start, plus four cups of Carb & Electrolyte Drink Mix, giving him a steady stream of over 70g of carb per hour. This consistent fueling was enough to maintain energy and keep any GI discomfort at bay. With a sub-3 hour marathon in his sights for the future, Sean should continue to implement a similar strategy in training and consider increasing his intake towards 90g/h, which more closely aligns with the literature on optimal performance for high-intensity efforts of this duration.
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.
Sean picked up and drank equal volumes of plain water and Carb & Electrolyte Drink Mix using eight of the 17 aid stations on course. Given the cold race-day temperatures, this was a sufficient volume to avoid accumulating a level of dehydration that would impact his performance. Alongside the plain water, Sean took two Electrolyte Capsules to achieve a relative sodium concentration similar to and even slightly above that of his sweat losses. This helped him maintain his fluid and electrolyte balance, which he felt was optimal across the race.
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.
Sean had two cups of coffee as well as some cola on race morning to elevate circulating caffeine levels ahead of the gun and try to reach the pre-race caffeine guideline, taking an estimated ~3.5mg/kg in the final hour. With a half life of 4-5 hours, this would have still been in his system across the race and boosted his perceived energy levels. In future races, he may benefit from adding one or two additional doses with a known caffeine content, such as PF 30 Caffeine Gels, during the marathon itself to top up his caffeine levels and make sure he maintains the recommended 3-6mg/kg throughout the run.
How Sean hit his numbers
Here's everything that Sean ate and drank on the day...
Sean's weapons of choice
Final thoughts
Sean
PF&HSean'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).