Joel Wooldridge's scorecard
Triathlon de l’Alpe d’Huez
Thursday 28th July, 2022
Within recommended ranges
Just outside recommended ranges
Significantly outside recommended ranges
- 75gCarb per hour
- 177mgSodium per hour
- 568mlFluid per hour
- 312mg/LRelative sodium concentration
- 3.57mg/kgCaffeine per bodyweight
How Joel hit those numbers
Before race (>30mins)
1 x PH Electrolyte Capsule
2 x Black Coffee
1.5 x Slices of toast with peanut butter and jam
30ml x Plain water
Pre-race (<30mins)
1 x PF 30 Caffeine Gel
Race - Swim
*** Tip: For sea swims, put a bottle of water at T1 to rinse your mouth out
Race - Bike
3 x PH Electrolyte Capsule
4 x PF 90 Gel
2.5L x Plain water
500ml x Electrolyte Drink Mix (302mg sodium)
Race - Run
1 x PF 30 Caffeine Gel
330ml x Plain water
200ml x Electrolyte Drink Mix (302mg sodium)
- Joel Wooldridge is a promising elite triathlete who excelled at the Alpe d’Huez full distance triathlon, claiming 13th place, and told us “I felt like my fueling strategy went quite well”
- Having carried out some sweat rate testing leading up to the race, Joel was able to plan an appropriate hydration strategy, knowing approximately what he needed to take on board in the hot conditions
- On a tough course with significant elevation, Joel rated his race satisfaction as an 8 (out of 10) with just slight nutritional adjustments to think about for future races of this duration
Hydration
- On the morning of the race, Joel didn’t drink much fluid, opting for just ~30ml/1oz of water and two black coffees. Ahead of hot, long races, we would recommend that Joel preloads ~90 minutes before his race with ~500ml/16oz of PH 1500 to ensure that he’s starting well hydrated (read more on why starting hydrated is important here)
- In addition to this, if conditions are looking likely to be very hot, Joel could choose to introduce this preloading regime the night before the race alongside his dinner as well
- Whilst on the bike, Joel drank ~700ml/24oz of fluid per hour, a volume which appears to be sensible. He achieved this by drinking ~500ml/16oz of the on-course energy drink mix and ~2.5L/84oz of plain water with three PH Electrolyte Capsules taken alongside
- During the 1 hour 20 minute run, Joel drank a total of ~530ml/17oz which averaged ~393ml/13oz per hour. Once again, Joel used water and the on-course drink mix to meet his fluid needs
- Prior to the race, Joel conducted some sweat rate testing and found that he has a ‘moderate sweat rate’, losing ~1L/32oz of sweat per hour in very hot/humid conditions. From this, we can conclude that his fluid intake on the bike was in the right ballpark, which was corroborated by Joel needing a pee, as this suggests that he wasn’t under-hydrating
- His fluid intake on the 20km run was possibly a bit low for the high temperature (~28℃/82°F) and the level of effort he was exerting. But Joel did such a good job of frontloading his fluid intake on the bike leg that he only needed to manage his thirst and prevent any major fluid deficit on the run, which he did by picking up the on-course hydration
- In terms of Joel’s sodium consumption, he could benefit from increasing his intake across the race as his relative sodium concentration on the bike and run was fairly low for a race of this temperature (~334mg/L and ~190mg/L, respectively). To do this, we would encourage Joel to trial adding PH 1000 into at least some of his fluids across the four-hour bike leg, in addition to the PH Electrolyte Capsules he took
- That all being said, Joel didn’t experience any cramping on a course which is renowned for its elevation and toughness, so it’s plausible that his net sodium losses are low and that he wasn’t far from his ‘sweet spot’ with his sodium replacement. When possible, it would be interesting for Joel to be Sweat Tested to determine whether this is the case
Fueling
Quick Carb Calculator Recommendation
30gcarb 30 mins before
60-90gcarb per hour during
- Joel started the morning by consuming some toast with peanut butter and jam to top up his glycogen stores. On top of this, he also consumed one PF 30 Caffeine Gel within 30 minutes of the race start, a tactic which helps to increase blood glucose availability in the early stages
- Overall, Joel averaged ~75g of carb per hour across the six-hour race which meets the general recommendations for a race of this intensity and duration (60-90g/h). This solid carb consumption seemed to be reflected in Joel’s performance and perceived energy levels, with Joel commenting “I had no flat spots energy-wise”
- His carbohydrate intake broke down into a higher ~91g/h on the bike and a lower ~31g/h on the run. It’s not uncommon to see athletes follow this trend of ‘front loading’ their fueling on the bike and it can be effective when the run leg isn’t too long in duration
- Joel reported “I still felt energised in the final stages of the run” which is a positive indicator that his strategy was appropriate
- To meet his carbohydrate needs, Joel used gels throughout the race, opting for four of the larger PF 90 Gel pouches on the bike and a single PF 30 Caffeine Gel on the run
- When asked if he would change anything in his plan, Joel said “I would have had my gel earlier than the halfway point (on the run), although I could feel a stitch coming on so decided to hold off until I had it under control”
- Given the positive relationship between carbohydrate ingestion and performance, it’s worth Joel considering the idea of increasing his fuel consumption on the run, and aiming for two PF 30 Gels on the run rather than one
- Very importantly, Joel experienced minimal gut discomfort during this race, despite the high temperatures which can sometimes cause problems. He rated his GI comfort an 8 (out of 10), commenting that only the stitch on the run caused him an issue. Given his high carbohydrate intake on the bike especially, this bodes very well for future races
Conclusions
- From start to finish, Joel did incredibly well to conquer the tough course and manage his fueling and hydration strategy well
- In future hot races, Joel could look to dial up his sodium intake throughout the race to facilitate a greater overall relative sodium intake and implement a better pre-hydration strategy
- A greater carbohydrate intake on the run would also be a good target for Joel to have, due to increased carbohydrate intake reaping larger performance effects
Key info
Joel Wooldridge
Male56kg
Result
Position13th
Overall Time6:13:19
Swim Time0:29:21
Bike Time4:18:33
Run Time1:21:43
Event information
SportTriathlon
DisciplineMiddle distance
EventTriathlon de l’Alpe d’Huez
LocationHuez, France
Date28th July, 2022
Swim Distance2.3km / 1.4mi
Bike Distance118.0km / 73.3mi
Run Distance20.0km / 12.4mi
Total Distance142.8km / 88.7mi
Bike Elevation3,200m / 10,499ft
Run Elevation340m / 1,115ft
Race conditions
Weather ConditionsHot
PrecipitationNo Rain
Min Temp23°C / 73°F
Max Temp31°C / 88°F
Avg Temp28°C / 82°F
Humidity69%
Athlete feedback
Race Satisfaction8/10
Hydration rating7/10
Energy levels8/10I had good energy levels all day
Toilet stopsNoI needed to pee at the beginning of the run but decided to hold on until I finished the race
GI comfort8/10I didn’t have any noticeable GI issues and my slight stitch went away after 10km
CrampingNo cramping
Joel's Thoughts
My fuelling, hydration and caffeine intake seemed to work well, but I'm not sure how accurate my sodium intake was
Data Confidence
1
2
3
4
5
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.