Trina Dawkins
Country to Capital
LondonTop 50, F40-44Trina's headline numbers
Trina's strategy
Fueling
A carb rich meal (low in fat & fibre) ~1-4 hours before would help Trina start optimally fueled
Trina would benefit from taking in a final dose of carb <30 minutes before
"I just had some fatigue but in general my energy was fine as I had no major dips. I even had enough energy for a sprint finish!"
Trina started the race with PF Carb & Electrolyte Drink Mix in two flasks, but then relied mostly on ‘real’ food sources to fuel her throughout. Her snacks of choice included high carb ones, with some fat sources mixed in to prevent flavour fatigue. While higher fat intake during exercise can contribute to GI distress, Trina gave a 10/10 for GI comfort levels. She fueled in small doses (likely contributing to her stomach’s comfort), but her overall carb intake was significantly lower than what we’d recommend. Trina has ample room to increase her intake, such as by adding a PF 30 Gel every 45-60 minutes, to help optimise her performance.
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.
T - 60mins: Drank ~500ml of strong electrolyte drink
"I had some twinges of cramp in my left quad and calves but no severe cramps. I always think I could drink more but I don’t want to have to go to the toilet too much."
Refilling each of her two soft flasks twice enabled Trina to consume an adequate amount of fluid to replenish her high sweat losses. As a subjectively salty sweater with a high sweat rate, she used to struggle with significant cramps during ultras, but by working on increasing her sodium intake she has reduced her cramping bouts. Trina did begin to experience mild twinges this time around in her quads and took electrolyte capsules when she noticed them to fend them off. Even though the weather was on the colder side, Trina could have increased her sodium concentration, particularly since she’s struggled with cramps historically and has the classic salty sweater signs. In warmer conditions, she would *definitely* need to increase her relative sodium concentration to account for her total losses and proactively address any negative performance impacts from the heat.
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.
Consuming caffeine in the hours before the start may have increased perceived energy levels
Trina didn’t use any caffeine the morning of or during the race. As caffeine tolerance varies greatly between individuals, depending on her usual day-to-day caffeine intake, she may look to implement and benefit from a moderate dose during races, for example in an attempt to prevent the fatigue she felt kicking in towards the end of the race.
How Trina hit her numbers
Here's everything that Trina ate and drank on the day...
Final thoughts
“I think I had a really good race and still had loads of energy at the end. My satisfaction with the race is very high and PF&H has made all the difference.”
“Incorporating a variety of fuel sources worked well for Trina, as her energy levels were great throughout and she shared that she recovered smoothly over the weekend. Going forward though, increasing her carb intake before and during could lead to even *further* improved endurance performance, such as through gels or chews so her fuel isn’t tied to her fluid intake. We’d also recommend doing some sweat rate testing to quantify the fluid she’d need in warmer conditions, and then apply a higher sodium concentration to match her high losses and prevent any cramp symptoms.”
PF&HTrina's full stats
Data Confidence
We rate each of our case studies from 1-5 based on the level of accuracy, and our confidence in the data.
There is an adequate level of accuracy in the data collected and the numbers reported. The athlete manages to recall what they ate and drank including most specifics (brands flavours quantities plausible estimations of volumes). However there are estimations made within the data which affect the overall confidence level in the data reported.