Sarah Crowley
IRONMAN® World Championships
Kona7th, FPROSarah's headline numbers
Sarah's strategy
Fueling
T - 1-4hrs: Ate a carb rich meal (Low in fat & fibre)
Sarah would benefit from taking in a final dose of carb <30 minutes before
"I felt good throughout the race, there were no points where I significantly lacked energy."
Sarah has made significant progress in increasing her carb intake, as seen in the jump she made from 50g/h in 2021 to consistently exceeding 70g/h in 2022. This improvement reflects her commitment to gut training, allowing her to tolerate larger amounts of carbs without GI issues. While this is a strong step in the right direction, she should continue to aim for the recommended intake of 90g/h for races of this duration and intensity in order to maximise her performance. For this race, she hit her numbers using PF 30 Gels, on-course gels and a variety of carb drink mixes in her bottles. An extra PF 30 Gel would help her hit the recommended intake and provide even more energy availability whilst working hard.
Hydration
Taking on board an appropriate amount of fluid and sodium is essential to maintaining blood volume and supporting the cardiovascular effort needed to perform on race day.
Whilst the absolute amount of sodium and fluid consumed per hour is important, it’s critical to consider these in relation to each other. This is known as 'relative sodium concentration' and it’s expressed in milligrams per litre (mg/L). How much sodium you’re taking in per litre of fluid is more important than the absolute amount taken in per hour.
Sarah387mg/L
Sarah has been Sweat Tested to dial in her hydration plan
Sweat sodium concentration (mg/L) is largely genetically determined and remains relatively stable. Knowing how salty your sweat is enables you to replace a good proportion of your sweat losses, which can range from 200-2,000mg/L.
Whilst Sarah's losses are on the low side, getting her hydration strategy right is still crucial when it's hot and/or humid as her higher sweat rate in these conditions can result in significant net losses over the duration of a race.
Learn moreT - 60mins: Drank ~500ml of strong electrolyte drink
"I think I nailed my hydration, the best I have ever done!"
Given this was Sarah's fifth time at Kona she knew the importance of starting hydrated by preloading with PH 1500 alongside her breakfast on race morning. She avoided ‘flavour fatigue’ by using a mix of plain water and energy drinks as her main source of electrolytes and fluids on the bike. Based on her Sweat Test, she has a low sweat sodium concentration and has refined her hydration strategy over previous races to match these losses. She knew that she didn't have to consume as much sodium as a lot of the other athletes on the course to maintain her levels of hydration. With the hot temperatures causing a higher sweat rate, Sarah made sure to consume a good amount of fluid to stay hydrated and avoid any negative symptoms of dehydration.
Caffeine
Beyond the Three Levers of Performance (carb, sodium and fluid), caffeine is one of only a few substances that is proven to improve performance for most endurance athletes as it can help stave off mental and physical fatigue.
Consuming caffeine in the hours before the start may have increased perceived energy levels
Sarah effectively utilised caffeine during the race, particularly on the run, to boost her energy and recover from a drafting penalty that had placed her 13th after Transition 2. Her caffeine intake, though slightly above the scientific recommendations, was tailored to her personal tolerance, proving beneficial as it helped her regain energy and overtake several competitors, ultimately finishing in 7th place.
How Sarah hit her numbers
Here's everything that Sarah ate and drank on the day...
Final thoughts
“Overall I am disappointed with the race result however, I'm happy with how my fuel and hydration strategy went, I look forward to implementing it in future races hopefully without any time penalties.”
“Sarah did extremely well to come back from her penalty setback on the bike and secure her fourth top-ten finish after five visits to Kona. This in part is down to her ‘well oiled’ nutrition strategy that she continually implements successfully from race to race.”
PF&HSarah's full stats
Data Confidence
We rate each of our case studies from 1-5 based on the level of accuracy, and our confidence in the data.
There is some confidence in the quantities and brands of products consumed but the data may lack specifics (e.g. volumes specific flavours). A high number of estimations have been made and the room for error is moderate-high. There may also be the possibility that some intake has been grossly over- or under-estimated.