Jason West
T100 Miami
Miami7th, MPROJason's headline numbers
Jason'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 wouldn't say I had any energy dips, the race was just really tough so it's hard to tell what's tiredness and what's 'energy lows'."
Jason managed his pre-race fueling well with the later race time of 13:15, compared to the usual 06:30-07:00, meaning his regular breakfast wouldn’t suffice. Trial and error has led him to use a fairly bread-heavy pre-race fueling plan to keep his energy stock full ahead of the afternoon gun time, without increasing his risk of GI distress from overconsumption. Throughout the bike and run, Jason’s carb intake was similar to most of his previous races, including his victory at this same race 12 months prior. With no stomach upset, and no fueling-related energy dips, Jason is confident in this strategy that he’s been using. We’d agree that it seems to be working for him, and that changing anything wouldn’t be advantageous.
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.
Jason512mg/L
Jason has been Sweat Tested to dial in his 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 Jason's losses are on the low side, getting his hydration strategy right is still crucial when it's hot and/or humid as his higher sweat rate in these conditions can result in significant net losses over the duration of a race.
Learn moreT - 60mins: Drank ~500ml of strong electrolyte drink
"I wasn't exactly thirsty, but I should probably try and figure out a way to drink more in conditions like this. I didn't pee for a few hours after the race even though I was drinking. "
With both temperatures and humidity expected to be high, avoiding dehydration was going to be a challenge considering Jason’s higher-than-average sweat rate. To prevent this, he doubled the volume of his preloading routine with PH 1500, and he made sure to consume all his planned drinks by mid-race to appropriately replace the fluid and electrolytes lost through sweating. Jason has felt tight chest muscles in some previous races where he’s gotten dehydrated, and had some slight sensations of this in Miami. Despite not feeling like he was ever *thirsty*, he’s going to try and incorporate some more fluid into his next race in similar conditions in an attempt to prevent the chest cramping sensation.
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
Having consumed the same amount of PF 30 Caffeine Gels in each race we’ve analysed in the last 12 months, it’s safe to say Jason is comfortable with the amount he’s getting, and this sits well within the scientifically recommended guidelines for endurance performance. As a result, there’s nothing we’d recommend changing to this part of his strategy.
How Jason hit his numbers
Here's everything that Jason ate and drank on the day...
Final thoughts
“I was really pleased with how I finished the swim even after a poor start. The bike course didn't really play to my strengths, but the numbers were pretty good. Then for the run, I'm quite happy with where I'm at in the season really. Overall a positive race to build from.”
“Once again Jason executed a robust and well practised fuel and hydration strategy that helped propel him to another top 10 finish, and maintain his 100% record of having the fastest run split at every PTO race he’s completed. With the later start time meaning temperatures were at their highest, Jason did well to stay topped up with food and drink and consume everything he planned *during* the race and avoid the heat degrading his performance like several of his competitors.”
PF&HJason'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.