Hannah Berry
IRONMAN® World Championship
Kona7th, FPROHannah's headline numbers
Hannah's strategy
Fueling
T - 1-4hrs: Ate a carb rich meal (Low in fat & fibre)
T - 15mins: Took in a final dose of carb
"It wasn't all smooth, and none of it was easy, but overall I'm very pleased to achieve another top 10 result at the World Championship."
Hannah's fueling on the bike was incredibly strong and something she has worked hard to achieve without stomach issues. She averaged ~139g/h over nearly five hours, well beyond the recommendation of 90g/h. Even with multiple transportable sugars (e.g. glucose and fructose), research in trained cyclists has observed maximal oxidation rates of ~1.5g per minute, or about 90g/h, when taking in 120g/h. That means Hannah likely took on **more** than her muscles could feasibly use in real time on the bike. However, that isn't necessarily wasted. In the heat, her body will have relied more on carbohydrate, so arriving in T2 with carbs still in high supply from her gut may have helped support her energy demands through the marathon, where her intake dropped to ~88g/h.
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.
Hannah471mg/L
Hannah 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.
Whilst Hannah's losses are on the low side, getting her hydration strategy right is still crucial when it's hot and/or humid as her higher sweat rate in these conditions can result in significant net losses over the duration of a race.
Learn moreDrinking a strong electrolyte drink before the race could have helped Hannah start optimally hydrated
"The humidity was really tough but I stayed on top of drinking."
Hannah's low sweat sodium concentration means her fluids only need a relatively dilute concentration of sodium to adequately replace her losses. On the bike, her drinks averaged ~513 milligrams of sodium per litre she drank, which is almost a perfect match for her sweat. The run was slightly different, with her drinks averaging just under ~100mg/L. By alternating between mouthfuls of water and cola, she only drank ~553ml per hour during the marathon, compared with ~1.6L per hour on the bike. This is lower than ideal for the run portion, especially with predicted sweat rates being higher on the run than the bike. Using the pro aid stations and picking up bottles or soft flasks to run with would help alleviate this.
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
Hannah had some coffee at breakfast and a PF 30 Caffeine Gel shortly before the start to optimise her focus and alertness during the swim. Her total intake during the race (~10.4mg/kg) far exceeded what the current caffeine guidelines suggest to be optimal for enhancing endurance performance (3-6mg/kg). Although that may appear a lot, it’s worth noting that across almost nine hours of racing, the concentration of caffeine in Hannah’s blood will likely never have exceeded 6mg/kg, given a half life of the stimulant is usually ~4-5 hours. It’s also worth mentioning, and perhaps most importantly, that she had no adverse effects, meaning this is a strategy she will continue to utilise and benefit from.
How Hannah hit her numbers
Here's everything that Hannah ate and drank on the day...
Final thoughts
“I was carrying a bit of a niggle into Kona this year, which had been affecting my running since arriving on the island. It's never easy going into a race with a big question mark due to an injury, especially when it's the biggest race of the year. So even though it was one of the slowest marathons I've run, I was pleased with how the race went. ”
“Another top-10 at the World Championship in Kona, on a body that wasn’t 100%, is an impressive feat. Her bike fueling was incredibly strong, and the way she decoupled carbs from fluid, matched her sodium to her sweat and front-loaded it ahead of the run is testament to her experience as a professional triathlete.”
PF&HHannah'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.