• Less than three weeks after securing 1st in his age group at the IRONMAN World Championships in Kona, Matthew was looking to replicate his performance at the IM 70.3 World Championships in St. George, Utah
• After experiencing a “bag mix up” and bike gear issue in transition one, Matthew said he was “playing catch up” from early on in the race
• Matthew was able to secure a respectable 3rd place, despite multiple setbacks. His solid fuel and hydration plan, which he executed as closely as possible despite the cold conditions, would have contributed to this strong performance on the day

Hydration

• We would have liked to see Matthew preload with a strong electrolyte drink like PH 1500 to ensure he started the race optimally hydrated. But on this occasion he relied on electrolyte intake through his food, sports drink and lactose free milk on the morning of the race
• Matthew planned to follow a similar hydration strategy to his performance in Kona during this event, which was ~22°C / 72°F colder on average. The difference in environmental conditions was reflected by a reduced sweat rate, meaning he could drop his average fluid intake by ~16%, from ~1.16L (39oz) per hour in Hawaii to ~972ml (31oz) per hour in Utah without experiencing any hydration related issues
• While on the bike, Matthew used a range of energy drinks to meet his fluid and energy needs, averaging ~1.05L (33oz) per hour. Then, on the run all of his fluid came from aid station water, energy drink and Coca Cola collections giving an average of ~846ml/h (28oz/h)
• This fluid intake was relatively high when compared to other athletes racing in St George in extremely cold conditions (~ 7℃ / 45°F average), like pro female and PF&H ambassador, Emma Pallant-Browne who drank just ~288ml/h (9oz/h) when racing the day before
• Matthew explained his mindset behind this by saying “no matter the weather, cold or hot, my top priority was to execute my race strategy. It can be really difficult to eat and drink when it is so cold and your hands barely work, but I know from experience in training and racing that getting in enough fluid and fuel is crucial to perform. Even though it was at times unpleasant to eat or drink, I knew that it was required for success and that losing as a result of not following the race plan would hurt even more”
• Across the race, largely through the use of salt capsules, Matthew was able to maintain a relative sodium concentration of ~672mg/L (mg/32oz). This value is certainly close to his own sweat sodium concentration of 655mg/L (mg/32oz) as determined by a Sweat Test, and would have replaced a good proportion of his losses across the race
• Matthew did experience some cramping when transitioning from the bike to run, but it’s unlikely to be due to hydration on this occasion because of his appropriate intake. It’s more likely to have occurred due to one of the many other factors, such as accumulated muscle fatigue, which are thought to cause cramps
• With strong physical performances both on the bike and the run, Matthew was able to rate his hydration strategy 8 (out of 10)

Fueling

Conclusions

• Despite riding his way back to the front of the race after his T1 mishaps, it wasn’t long until Matthew lost his chain and experienced frustrating delays yet again. In the end he only finished 45 seconds behind 1st place, meaning on another day he may have been crowned a double age group World Champion within just three weeks
• Overall, Matthew did really well from both a fueling and hydration point of view, with appropriate sodium intake relative to his individual needs. In the future we’d like to see how his perceived hydration levels might change after preloading with electrolytes
• Going forward, Matthew has the opportunity to work with the PF&H Sports Science team and optimise his strategy further with some time to experiment in the off season. Overall, he’s satisfied with what he’s been able to achieve this season and “can’t wait to race again in 2023”