Felix Wernham
T100 London
London2nd, M25-29Felix's headline numbers
Felix's strategy
Fueling
A carb rich meal (low in fat & fibre) ~1-4 hours before would help Felix start optimally fueled
T - 15mins: Took in a final dose of carb
"My energy levels were consistent, but I did feel like I only had one gear most of the day. Hard to tell what’s muscular fatigue vs depleting energy levels, but I think the former caused my soreness towards the end of the bike. "
Felix chose to fuel almost entirely with PF 300 Flow Gel, along with the 15g of carb found in PH 1500 (Drink Mix). After front-loading his carb intake on the bike (~84g/h), he only consumed one PF 30 Gel on the run (~30g/h), leading to an average overall intake just below the scientific recommendations. Felix suffered from some stomach cramping at the start of the run, which kept him from consuming any more carbs so as not to exacerbate the problem. Before his next event, we would advise Felix to do some structured gut training to allow him to fuel consistently across the race and keep energy levels up without experiencing GI discomfort.
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 drank a lot of water as soon as I finished as I was quite thirsty, and it was getting quite warm (for London!). "
During the race, Felix only consumed sodium on the bike in the form of one sachet of PH 1500 (Drink Mix). It’s likely he didn’t replace enough of his fluid and sodium losses, as he mentioned starting to feel dehydrated heading into the run. Felix could do some sweat rate data collection to figure out exactly how much fluid he requires to stay adequately hydrated in these conditions at race intensity and ideally have a Sweat Test to further dial in his sodium intake. He could do this by swapping some of the plain water for another bottle of electrolytes and taking some Electrolyte Capsules on the run.
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
After pre-caffeinating with a PF 30 Caffeine Gel, Felix didn’t consume any additional caffeine during the race, putting his intake below the recommended guidelines. He could consider adding another PF 30 Caffeine Gel into his plan in the future, allowing him to reap the ergogenic benefits that the stimulant provides more consistently throughout the race.
How Felix hit his numbers
Here's everything that Felix ate and drank on the day...
Final thoughts
“I’m pretty happy, not stoked as I just wanted to feel fresh and never really did. I know I’ve got things to work on with my nutrition, so I’m looking forward to putting them into practice as I build for my next race.”
“Despite a solid 2nd place finish at T100 London, Felix has an opportunity to adapt both his fuel and hydration strategy to further enhance his performance. By introducing some gut training, Felix will be able to increase his carb intake for his next race. Dialling in his fluid and electrolyte needs should also help Felix feel better and aid his performance. ”
PF&HFelix'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.