IRONMAN® World Championships

Neil has been working hard over the past few seasons to build his tolerance to carbohydrates by regularly training his gut. This preparation ensured that on race day, he could comfortably consume a high volume of carbs without experiencing any gastrointestinal issues. On the bike, Neil mixed nine PF 30 Gels with a small amount of water in his aero bottle, which he consumed alongside a PF 30 Caffeine Gel, bringing his average intake to 99g of carb per hour. While this intake was slightly lower than at Challenge Roth, he managed to increase his run intake by 9% compared to Roth - 81g/h in Kona compared to 74g/h at Roth - despite struggling with some discomfort through the first few miles. Having his nutrition conveniently available in his aero bottle and running belt allowed him to ‘mentally park’ his fueling strategy and focus on the race itself during those later brutal miles in Kona.

Neil knows the value of an appropriate hydration strategy as a high salty sweater who has battled hydration-related issues prior to joining the PF&H squad. On the bike, he carried highly concentrated drinks, one containing six PH 1500 (Drink Mix) packets, and two additional bottles with a further three PH 1500 (Drink Mix) packets. He diluted these fluids with water from nine bottles he collected from the aid stations, ensuring the relative sodium concentration closely matched his sweat sodium concentration. Neil went to the medical tent post-race to get checked over and found he had lost ~3.1kg which equated to ~4% reduction in body weight. This highlights the extreme impact of heat on sweat rate and performance, as a 2% body weight loss can impair performance, even for someone as familiar with racing in Kona as Neil.