Diego Ibarra
IRONMAN 70.3® Gulf Coast
Panama City Beach, Florida5th, M35-39Diego's headline numbers
Diego's strategy
Fueling
T - 1-4hrs: Ate a carb rich meal (Low in fat & fibre)
T - 15mins: Took in a final dose of carb
"My energy was really great throughout the whole race and I had no GI issues at all which made it easy to stick to my nutrition plan. However, I did feel a bit full towards the end."
Diego had a really solid fuel strategy to implement during the race, made up of predominantly Carb and Electrolyte Drink Mix alongside a few PF 30 Gels. Like many other athletes racing middle distance events, Diego front-loaded his nutrition on the bike leg with a carbohydrate drop off from ~103g/h to ~61g/h, bike to run. This would have meant that he absorbed higher quantities of carbohydrate earlier in the race when it was easier for the body to process fuel, and meant he could be slightly less aggressive later on, just focusing on running fast.
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 didn’t feel too thirsty or dehydrated but I did have a bit of cramping in T2 when I was putting on my left shoe. Luckily it came and went without any other muscles feeling overly tired."
Diego knew the importance of starting the race hydrated and made sure to pre-load with PH 1500 before the race start. This would have helped boost his blood plasma volume, not only assisting his hydration needs with both fluid and sodium being more available, but also helping his body with cooling in the hot race conditions. Despite a small amount of cramp in T2 due to his muscles getting used to the change in position from bike to run, Diego managed to stay on top of his fluid intake, comfortably sitting within the recommendations for a race of this distance. By supplementing the water he picked up at aid stations with Electrolyte Capsules, Diego was able to stick to a sodium concentration that would appropriately replace his moderate sweat losses.
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.
T - 0-4hrs: Had a final hit of caffeine
One PF 30 Caffeine Gel pre-race, and three others during the race was enough to keep Diego’s caffeine intake in line with the scientific recommendations and maintain his energy levels. With no GI distress, we wouldn't recommend changing anything with this part of his strategy.
How Diego hit his numbers
Here's everything that Diego ate and drank on the day...
Final thoughts
“I had my best run off the bike by four minutes and was able to land on the podium at a very popular USA race. I also didn’t cramp for the rest of the day which is a first for me!”
“Diego put on an incredible performance and successfully secured a spot on the podium in a tough field. For the first of many races, he experienced almost no cramping which suggests he nailed his fluid and electrolyte replacement and he consistently fueled his body to ensure he got to the finish line feeling strong.”
PF&HDiego'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.