Singapore T100

After discussing his fueling plan with the Precision Fuel & Hydration Sports Science Team in the build up to the race, Max agreed that ‘decoupling’ his fuel and hydration would be most beneficial given the hot and humid conditions in Singapore. He exclusively relied on PF 300 Flow Gel for his fuel on the bike, with the plan to take three PF 30 Gels in a soft flask to see him through the run. On the day, Max ended up consuming all of his gels within the first 6 to 7km of the run as he was feeling low on energy. Subsequently, he had to rely on the on-course gels and cola for additional carbs. As a result, his carb intake for the bike and run totaled a whopping ~150g/h - much higher than we typically observe for triathletes, although it’s not uncommon for cyclists to be consuming such high quantities while racing. After the race, Max acknowledged that he probably rode a little harder than planned because he felt he was giving up some speed with poorer aerodynamics relative to his competition. This likely meant he was burning carbs at a higher rate than expected, and probably contributed to the lack of energy on the run.

We typically advise athletes to preload with sodium using PH 1500 before the race, especially when racing in hot conditions. However, Max routinely uses sodium bicarbonate before a race for the ergogenic benefits it can provide, and therefore when consumed in combination with water, he would also be getting the pre-hydration benefits given the high quantity of sodium it delivers. During the race, he drank two 750ml bottles containing PH 1500 (Tablets) on the bike and picked up additional water at a couple of aid stations. He also took advantage of the pro aid stations, grabbing 3 bottles (1 per lap) with ~330ml of PH 1500 to ensure he was consuming sufficient sodium alongside the fluid. Inevitably, he picked up water at other aid stations, drinking some and using the others to douse himself in an attempt to cool down. Overall, Max’s fluid intake was ~1.5L/h for the run - an impressive volume to consume, but necessitated by the conditions in Singapore.

Max didn’t intentionally include caffeine as part of his strategy for the race, although he did consume a small amount of caffeine when ingesting cola on the run. It should certainly be strategically incorporated into his future race strategies though, especially since he regularly consumes coffee, and will therefore likely tolerate caffeine when racing. As well as a pre-race espresso, including caffeine pre- and within-race via a couple of PF 30 Caffeine Gels would easily bring his caffeine consumption in line with the range (3 to 6 mg/kg) to reap the ergogenic benefits associated with the supplement.