3rd
Harry Palmer's scorecard
Challenge Wales
Sunday 19th June, 2022
Within recommended ranges
Just outside recommended ranges
Significantly outside recommended ranges
81g
Carb per hour
388mg
Sodium per hour
489ml
Fluid per hour
794mg/L
Relative sodium concentration
0mg
Total caffeine
How Harry hit those numbers
500ml x PH 1500 (Tablet)
2 x Slice of toast with jam
1 x PF 30 Energy Gel
*** Try to avoid drinking too much at this point in the race!
1L x PH 1500 (Drink Mix)
4 x PF 30 Energy Gel
1 x PF 90 Energy Gel
650ml x Plain water
0.5 x PF 90 Energy Gel
240ml x Plain water
How Harry's hydration and fueling went...
- Harry’s first visit to the podium since turning pro earlier this year came at Challenge Wales where he ran his way to 3rd place in the final 5k.
- He described this race as a “classic British course with classic British weather” as it was cool and wet for the most part
- Harry’s spent several months trialling his fueling and hydration strategy over numerous race scenarios, and Challenge Wales saw him execute this dialled plan with great succes
Hydration
- Harry preloaded the night before and the morning of the race with ~500ml/16oz of PH 1500 to ensure his sodium levels were high, and his body’s ability to retain fluid was optimal before the race began
- During the bike Harry took a 1L/32oz bottle with two PH 1500 (Tablets), and two 500ml/16oz bottles each with gels topped up with water. This gave him a total fluid intake of ~1.65L/56oz on the bike with a relative sodium concentration of ~909mg/L. Given Harry’s sweat sodium concentration of 929mg/L, as measured by our Advanced Sweat Test, and the mild temperatures (average ~14℃/57℉), this intake will have adequately replaced his losses
- On the run, Harry picked up two cups at each aid station, one of which he poured over his head to keep cool, and he drank the other. This gave him a total fluid intake of ~240ml/8oz during the run at a rate of ~197ml/h (7oz/h)
- Harry didn’t take any sodium during the run but felt his preloading strategy and solid sodium intake on the bike would put him in good stead to run well and not suffer consequently. He also mentioned that if the temperatures were higher, he’d sensibly have taken a couple of Electrolyte Capsules with him to top off his sodium levels
- Harry rated his hydration strategy 9/10, saying he felt well hydrated all day and that his strategy was appropriate for the weather conditions
Fueling
Quick Carb Calculator Recommendation
30g
carb 30 mins before
60-90g
carb per hour during
- Utilising his usual carb-rich breakfast made up of two slices of white toast with some jam, Harry will have topped off his stored glycogen levels for use during the race. Harry also took a PF 30 Gel ~25 minutes before the race which will have hit his bloodstream quickly as he began the race, thus sparing his aforementioned stored glycogen for later in the race
- To avoid having to open packets during the bike discipline, Harry emptied four PF 30 Gels into a 500ml/16oz bottle, which he then topped up with ~300ml/10oz water. He also squeezed a PF 90 Gel into another bottle, topping that up with ~350ml/12oz of water too
- Harry also managed to take half a PF 90 Gel on the run, giving him a total carb intake of ~315g across the whole race (including his pre-race gel)
- This meant he averaged ~107g/hr on the bike and ~37g/hr on the run. This carb intake on the run is lower than the 60-90g/hr recommendations from our Fuel & Hydration Planner, but Harry took the decision to stop eating after his stomach felt “a bit off” at about 10k into the run, and it soon settled so he felt he made the right decision
- Hitting ~107g/hr on the bike is really impressive and we would typically expect his fuel intake on the run to be less, but not as low as ~37g/hr
- Harry finished the run strongly, picking off several of his competitors in the final 5k, suggesting he had fueled adequately in the early stages of the race to ensure that his performance didn’t drop, despite not eating for the last ~35 minutes
- When rating his energy levels, Harry mentioned experiencing some fluctuations. After feeling 10/10 on the bike as he pushed his best 70.3 power ever, he dropped to 5/10 at the midpoint of the run where his stomach felt uneasy. He returned to feeling 10/10 in the final 4k as he began to surge through the field and secure a podium finish
Conclusions
- This race saw Harry take his first professional race podium, and gave him great confidence heading into another big block of training in preparation for his first full distance IM later this year
- Harry gave an overall race satisfaction rating of 8/10, saying “there’s always an itch that needs to be scratched, and there’s always room for improvement, but on the whole I can’t complain”
- We’ve seen Harry execute a solid fueling and hydration strategy at Challenge Wales, which facilitated his most successful race as a professional triathlete to date, and are looking forward to seeing how he modifies this going into his full IM
Key info
Harry Palmer
Male
Sweat sodium concentration
921mg/L
Sweat sodium classification
Moderate
* determined by a PH Advanced Sweat Test
Result
Position
3rd
Overall Time
3:52:37
Swim Time
0:22:24
Bike Time
2:14:58
Run Time
1:13:50
Event information
Sport
Triathlon
Discipline
Middle distance
Event
Challenge Wales
Location
Fishguard, UK
Date
19th June, 2022
Website
Swim Distance
1.9km / 1.2mi
Bike Distance
90.1km / 56.0mi
Run Distance
21.1km / 13.1mi
Total Distance
113.1km / 70.3mi
Race conditions
Weather Conditions
Mild
Precipitation
Rain
Min Temp
9°C / 48°F
Max Temp
16°C / 61°F
Avg Temp
14°C / 57°F
Humidity
70%
Athlete feedback
Race Satisfaction
8/10
Hydration rating
9/10
Felt well hydrated all day, didn't feel thirsty nor did I feel 'full'
Energy levels
9/10
Best power I've ever held, thought I'd overbiked but it never came back to bite me. Other than the rough patch between 10-15k on the run, I was at 10/10 throughout
Toilet stops
Yes
GI comfort
9/10
10/10 until ~10k on the run when my stomach took a turn, backed off the carbs and this soon passed. Back to 10/10 in the final 5k
Cramping
No cramping
Harry's Thoughts
A classic British course with classic British conditions, good honest racing
Harry's full stats
| Carbohydrate (g) | Sodium (mg) | Fluid (ml) | Caffeine (mg) | Relative sodium concentration (mg/L) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | |||||
| Total intake | 315 | 1,500 | 1,890 | 0 | 794 |
| Per hour | 81 | 388 | 489 | 0 | |
| Bike and Run | |||||
| Total intake | 285 | 1,500 | 1,890 | 0 | 794 |
| Per hour | 83 | 435 | 548 | 0 | |
| Bike | |||||
| Total intake | 240 | 1,500 | 1,650 | 0 | 909 |
| Per hour | 107 | 672 | 739 | 0 | |
| Run | |||||
| Total intake | 45 | 0 | 240 | 0 | 0 |
| Per hour | 37 | 0 | 197 | 0 | |
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).