Fenella Langridge
IRONMAN® World Championships
Utah8th, FPROFenella's headline numbers
Fenella's strategy
Fueling
T - 1-4hrs: Ate a carb rich meal (Low in fat & fibre)
T - 15mins: Took in a final dose of carb
"I felt hungry towards the end of the bike but I think my energy levels were pretty good across the race."
Fenella planned to consume ~95 grams of carb per hour during the bike leg using a mixture of PF 30 Gels, PF 30 Chews and the on course energy drink mix. Unfortunately, she misplaced one of her pre-mixed bottles before the race so had to adjust her strategy slightly, which resulted in a lower-than-planned carb intake on the bike. We would typically expect a higher carb intake on the bike than the run for an IRONMAN race, but Fenella got off the bike feeling slightly hungry and decided to increase her carb intake accordingly. She has trialled some gut training during sessions to tolerate a higher carb intake and she felt comfortable increasing her intake on the run without fear of GI distress. Fenella made good use of the professional athlete’s fueling stations where she had placed bottles containing PH 1500 with PF 30 Gels and PF 30 Caffeine Gels taped to the outside. Taking the gels at regular intervals throughout ensured she was able to maintain good energy levels during the marathon.
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.
Fenella1331mg/L
Fenella has been Sweat Tested to dial in her hydration plan
Sweat sodium concentration (mg/L) is largely genetically determined and remains relatively stable. Knowing how salty your sweat is enables you to replace a good proportion of your sweat losses, which can range from 200-2,000mg/L.
Given Fenella's losses are High (1,331mg/L), nailing her hydration strategy becomes especially crucial when it's hot and/or humid.
Learn moreT - 60mins: Drank ~500ml of strong electrolyte drink
"I felt quite thirsty and sometimes wished the water stations would come sooner. It was a hot race so maybe I could have drunk more fluid, but I didn't think it affected my performance."
Fenella did a good job to sufficiently replace her sweat sodium losses during the race using Electrolyte Capsules, PH 1000 and PH 1500. She increased her sodium intake compared to previous races which proved effective in the hot temperatures in Utah to avoid any unwanted dehydration-related symptoms. But, she did report feeling thirsty so next time she could drink some more plain water to reflect her sweat losses more closely.
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
As we have seen her do before and during previous races, Fenella used caffeine doses effectively throughout the day with the aim to reap the ergogenic benefits of the stimulant. Although Fenella’s dosage of caffeine was greater than the scientific recommendations, she knows she can comfortably tolerate this high intake and finds it beneficial, so we wouldn’t recommend she changes this.
How Fenella hit her numbers
Here's everything that Fenella ate and drank on the day...
Final thoughts
“I could definitely have gone quicker if it all went to plan and I didn't have a wetsuit malfunction in T1 or the drafting penalty, but this has definitely fueled the fire for my next training block and I am excited to see what I can do!”
“Fenella raced hard on her IRONMAN® World Championship debut to earn herself a solid top-10 position. With some minor tweaks to her fluid and sodium intake, and executing her pre-race fueling plan more closely, Fenella will be primed for future full distance races.”
PF&HFenella'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 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).