6th
Ellie Salthouse's scorecard
PTO US Open
Saturday 5th August, 2023
Within recommended ranges
Just outside recommended ranges
Significantly outside recommended ranges
87g
Carb per hour
322mg
Sodium per hour
465ml
Fluid per hour
693mg/L
Relative sodium concentration
7.02mg/kg
Caffeine per bodyweight
How Ellie hit those numbers
500ml x PH 500 (Tablet)
300ml x PF 60 Drink Mix (1/2 Serving)
1 x Bagel with Butter
2 x Slices of White Bread with Almond Butter and Banana
2 x Slices of White Bread with Nutella and Banana
2 x White Coffee
1 x PF 30 Caffeine Gel
*** Review technique if drinking much at this point!
500ml x PF 60 Energy Drink Mix (Double Serving)
3 x PF 30 Energy Gel
2 x PF 30 Caffeine Gel
500ml x Plain water
1 x PF 30 Energy Gel
1 x PF 30 Caffeine Gel
420ml x Plain water
210ml x Energy drink (22g carb)
75ml x Coca Cola Original
How Ellie's hydration and fueling went...
- Professional triathlete, Ellie Salthouse took on the world's top ranked middle and long distance triathletes over the 100km distance at the PTO US Open
- She had a breakthrough performance and fought her way to a 6th place finish, with just 30 seconds separating 4th from 7th
- Ellie has been dialling in her fuel and hydration strategy with the Sports Science team at PF&H, and executed this tried-and-tested plan with precision
Hydration
- With weather forecasts predicting scorching temperatures, before the race Ellie attempted to preload with a PH 500 Tablet in 500ml (16oz) water, and by sipping on ½ a serving of PF 60 Drink Mix up until the race start
- To dial in this process, and prepare her body optimally for long periods of sweating, Ellie should consider swapping out this PH 500 for a stronger PH 1500, which will stimulate an increase in her blood plasma volume, and reduce the strain on her cardiovascular system in the early parts of the race
- During the race itself, Ellie added two servings of PF 60 Drink Mix to her 500ml (16oz) aero bottle, and sipped on another 500ml (16oz) bottle of plain water to dilute the concentration
- This simple, yet effective strategy saw her fly round the 80km (50 mile) bike course, and set off onto the run feeling well hydrated and full of running
- During the run, Ellie’s hydration strategy relied on grabbing cups of water and sports drink from the on course aid stations, and she made sure to hit every station, picking up ~420ml (15oz) of water and ~210ml (7oz) of sports drink throughout the ~70 minute run
- Towards the end of the run, Ellie also picked up three cups of Coca Cola (which is commonly referred to as the red ambulance in triathlon) to help boost her energy levels, which brought her average fluid intake to ~465ml (15oz) per hour across the entire race. As Ellie has a moderate sweat rate, and temperatures were milder than expected (22℃ / 72℉), this fluid intake will have helped her maintain adequate hydration to sustain her performance
- Ellie is a “low salt” sweater, losing just 655mg of sodium in each litre (32oz) of her sweat, as measured by our Sweat Test. And she did well to average a relative sodium concentration of ~693mg/L (mg/32oz) across the entire race, predominantly from the concentrated PF 60 Drink Mix she consumed, which will have replaced a high proportion of her sweat electrolyte losses
Fueling
Quick Carb Calculator Recommendation
30g
carb 30 mins before
60-90g
carb per hour during
- Similarly to other athletes racing the PTO US Open, Ellie was less familiar with the afternoon start time (4:15pm) when it came to pre-race fueling. She chose to stick to her routine, and eat carb-rich foods she knew she liked and didn’t upset her stomach
- This carb-loading strategy began with her usual bagel and almond butter, followed a couple of hours later by some white bread with almond butter and banana, and her final meal pre-race was another two slices of white bread with nutella and banana
- Finally, to top off her blood glucose levels, Ellie took a PF 30 Caffeine Gel ahead of the swim, which will have initiated some glycogen sparing, thus saving some of her stored energy for later in the race
- Once on the bike, Ellie’s carb intake primarily came from a super-concentrated 500ml (16oz) fuel bottle, containing four scoops of PF 60 Drink Mix, a PF 30 Gel and a PF 30 Caffeine Gel. She drank the mix throughout the race, diluting as she went with a bottle of plain water
- Ellie also carried two additional PF 30 Gels and one more Caffeine Gel in her bento box, bringing her total carb intake to ~210g for an average of ~108g per hour
- This high intake set her up well for the run, which she knew was going to be a very high intensity, and her capacity to fuel would be reduced. Ellie still did well to take two more gels, one Caffeine and one Original, which in addition to the small amount of carb in the sports drink and Coca Cola, meant she averaged ~69g per hour on the run, and ~87g/h across the entire race
- This is almost spot on the 90g/h recommendations from our Fuel Planner, and Ellie reported high energy levels throughout, with no GI discomfort, suggesting she’s trained her gut well to tolerate this high quantity of carb
- Ellie also utilises the benefits of caffeine by steadily taking some before and during races. She had two coffees throughout the morning, ensuring she had some circulating caffeine in her blood before the race began. This was then topped up with the PF 30 Caffeine Gel ahead of the race, and throughout she had a further 300 milligrams
- Overall, Ellie averaged ~7mg of caffeine per kg (2.2lb) of her bodyweight, which is slightly higher than the 3-6mg/kg general scientific guidelines, but as someone who drinks coffee regularly, her tolerance is high and she didn’t experience any negative side effects
Conclusions
- In all, Ellie executed not only a superb fuel and hydration strategy, but also delivered what she felt to be “one of her best races she’s ever done”, beating some serious opposition on her way to 6th place
- Ellie’s next race will be two weeks after Milwaukee, when she tackles the PTO Asian Open in Singapore, where she’ll be looking to adapt her hydration strategy in particular to account for the typically high temperatures and humidity
Key info
Ellie Salthouse
Female
58kg
Sweat sodium concentration
655mg/L
Sweat sodium classification
Low
* determined by a PH Advanced Sweat Test
Result
Position
6th
Overall Time
3:40:13
Swim Time
0:28:16
Bike Time
1:57:58
Run Time
1:10:51
Event information
Sport
Triathlon
Discipline
Middle distance
Event
PTO US Open
Location
Milwaukee, USA
Date
5th August, 2023
Website
Swim Distance
2.0km / 1.2mi
Bike Distance
80.0km / 49.7mi
Run Distance
18.0km / 11.2mi
Total Distance
100.0km / 62.1mi
Race conditions
Weather Conditions
Hot and Humid
Precipitation
No Rain
Min Temp
21°C / 70°F
Max Temp
25°C / 77°F
Avg Temp
24°C / 75°F
Humidity
70%
Athlete feedback
Race Satisfaction
9/10
Hydration rating
9/10
I skipped a 500ml bottle on my bike because I didn't feel like I "needed" it
Energy levels
9/10
GI comfort
10/10
No issues during the race, but had some stomach pains post-race
Cramping
Twinges but not full-on cramps
Ellie's full stats
| Carbohydrate (g) | Sodium (mg) | Fluid (ml) | Caffeine (mg) | Relative sodium concentration (mg/L) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | |||||
| Total intake | 321 | 1,181 | 1,705 | 407 | 693 |
| Per hour | 87 | 322 | 465 | 111 | |
| Bike and Run | |||||
| Total intake | 291 | 1,181 | 1,705 | 307 | 693 |
| Per hour | 93 | 379 | 547 | 99 | |
| Bike | |||||
| Total intake | 210 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 200 | 1,000 |
| Per hour | 108 | 513 | 513 | 103 | |
| Run | |||||
| Total intake | 81 | 181 | 705 | 107 | 257 |
| Per hour | 69 | 155 | 604 | 92 | |
Data Confidence
1
2
3
4
5
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).