3rd
Justin Metzler's scorecard
IRONMAN 70.3 Augusta
Sunday 25th September, 2022
Within recommended ranges
Just outside recommended ranges
Significantly outside recommended ranges
101g
Carb per hour
1,191mg
Sodium per hour
627ml
Fluid per hour
1,899mg/L
Relative sodium concentration
548mg
Total caffeine
How Justin hit those numbers
750ml x PH 1500 (Drink Mix)
1 x PF 30 Caffeine Gel
*** Try to avoid drinking too much at this point in the race!
1.5L x PH 1500 (Drink Mix)
2 x PH Electrolyte Capsule
1.5L x PF Energy Drink Mix
3 x PF 30 Caffeine Gel
1 x PF 30 Energy Chews
500ml x Plain water
1 x PF 30 Caffeine Gel
1 x Energy gel (25g carb)
60ml x Energy drink (22g carb)
120ml x Coca Cola Original
120ml x Red Bull
How Justin's hydration and fueling went...
- Justin has developed a solid fuel and hydration strategy over the 2021/22 season which he has executed several times successfully
- In Augusta, Justin was looking for another strong performance to add to his resume, and finishing third with a rapid 1 hour 12 minute run split certainly showed his strength
Hydration
- Justin has suffered with leg cramps in previous races, and has worked hard on his hydration strategy, primarily by reducing the total fluid intake, alongside extensive gut training to overcome these
- Justin preloaded the morning of the race with 750ml (24oz) of PH 1500 (Drink Mix) to top up his sodium levels and ensure he began the race optimally hydrated with maximal blood plasma volume
- For the first time, Justin also drank 500ml (16oz) of PH 1500 the night before as part of his preload, and he said that he felt like it made a big difference to his race performance
- On the bike, in his two 750ml (24oz) bottles containing PF Energy Drink Mix, he also added a PH 1500 (Drink Mix), bringing the total sodium in each bottle to ~1,500 milligrams. Justin also took two Electrolyte Capsules on the bike, which combined with the ~2L (64oz) of fluid consumed, gave him a relative sodium concentration of ~2,125mg per litre (32oz)
- This is a very strong electrolyte concentration, but Justin’s intake tapered significantly on the run to ~393mg/L (mg/32oz), which brought his average across the entire race to ~1,899mg/L (mg/32oz). This is a similar ‘frontloading’ strategy we’ve seen Justin execute previously and is something we’ve recommended given his moderate-to-high sweat sodium concentration of 1,044mg/L (mg/32oz) as measured by our Sweat Test
- Alongside his hydration strategy, Justin kept himself cool as temperatures began to warm up towards the end of the run by pouring lots of water over himself and tipping ice into his trisuit. Whilst it may not have reduced his core body temperature, the reduction in perception of heat is often enough to help performance
Fueling
Quick Carb Calculator Recommendation
30g
carb 30 mins before
60-90g
carb per hour during
- Justin has hit an average carbohydrate intake of in excess of 100 grams per hour this season both at Oregon 70.3 and Eagleman 70.3, and it was superb to see him average ~101g of carb per hour with no GI issues this time round in Augusta. This supports the theory that he’s successfully been able to train his gut to tolerate this quantity of carb, and as someone who has previously suffered with GI distress from overloading with carbohydrate (130g+/h in one instance), it’s great to see him reaping the rewards of his gut training efforts
- Justin ate carb-rich foods the night before the race, followed by a PF 30 Caffeine Gel ~15 minutes before the swim start. He has reaped the benefits of caffeine in most of his previous races, and this 100mg dose before the race will have helped heighten his alertness and reduce his perception of effort later in the race
- The 30g of carb in the PF 30 Caffeine Gel will likely have hit his bloodstream rapidly, and encouraged the sparing of his stored glycogen for later in the race
- Justin’s bike was loaded with two 750ml (24oz) bottles with three scoops of PF Energy Drink Mix in each. He also took three PF 30 Caffeine Gels and one PF 30 Energy Chew, which brought his total carb intake to ~255g, which averaged ~124g/h for the bike discipline
- On the run, he took another PF 30 Caffeine Gel, picked up an on-course energy gel and a mixture of on-course energy drinks from aid stations as he felt necessary. In total, Justin took a further ~85g of carb during the half marathon, giving him an average of ~70g/h. This “front-loading” of carb intake on the bike will likely have set him up well for the significantly lower intake on the run, whilst still allowing him to perform at a very high intensity
Conclusions
- Justin was pleased with his execution of the race, battling against two of the fastest runners in the sport, Jason West and Trevor Foley, to finish on the podium for the fourth time in 2022
- Justin nailed another solid fuel and hydration plan at Augusta 70.3, and is looking forward to his next race in the heat of Waco, Texas, later this year
Key info
Justin Metzler
Male
Sweat sodium concentration
1,044mg/L
Sweat sodium classification
Moderate
* determined by a PH Advanced Sweat Test
Result
Position
3rd
Overall Time
3:40:20
Swim Time
0:21:14
Bike Time
2:03:20
Run Time
1:12:34
Event information
Sport
Triathlon
Discipline
Middle distance
Event
IRONMAN 70.3 Augusta
Location
Augusta, USA
Date
25th September, 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
Hot
Precipitation
No Rain
Min Temp
20°C / 68°F
Max Temp
27°C / 81°F
Avg Temp
23°C / 73°F
Humidity
51%
Athlete feedback
Race Satisfaction
9/10
Hydration rating
10/10
Energy levels
10/10
Felt solid all day long
GI comfort
10/10
Cramping
Twinges but not full-on cramps
Justin's full stats
| Carbohydrate (g) | Sodium (mg) | Fluid (ml) | Caffeine (mg) | Relative sodium concentration (mg/L) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | |||||
| Total intake | 370 | 4,368 | 2,300 | 548 | 1,899 |
| Per hour | 101 | 1,191 | 627 | 149 | |
| Bike and Run | |||||
| Total intake | 340 | 4,368 | 2,300 | 448 | 1,899 |
| Per hour | 104 | 1,344 | 708 | 138 | |
| Bike | |||||
| Total intake | 255 | 4,250 | 2,000 | 300 | 2,125 |
| Per hour | 124 | 2,073 | 976 | 146 | |
| Run | |||||
| Total intake | 85 | 118 | 300 | 148 | 393 |
| Per hour | 70 | 98 | 250 | 123 | |
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).