1st
Steph Clutterbuck's scorecard
IM 70.3 Staffordshire
Sunday 11th June, 2023
Within recommended ranges
Just outside recommended ranges
Significantly outside recommended ranges
85g
Carb per hour
596mg
Sodium per hour
704ml
Fluid per hour
846mg/L
Relative sodium concentration
1.54mg/kg
Caffeine per bodyweight
How Steph hit those numbers
500ml x PH 1500
2 x PF 30 Chews
1 x PF 30 Caffeine Gel
*** Try to avoid drinking too much at this point in the race!
400ml x PH 1500 (Tablets)
1L x PF 60 Energy Drink Mix
2 x PF 90 Energy Gel
750ml x Plain water
500ml x PH 1000 (Tablets)
1 x PF 90 Energy Gel
600ml x Plain water
How Steph's hydration and fueling went...
- Steph is a member of the 2023 Zwift Tri Academy building towards the IRONMAN World Championships in Kona, Hawaii
- This race was a stepping stone towards her long-distance training block, where she aims to qualify for Kona over double the distance at IRONMAN Vitoria-Gasteiz just four weeks after this race in Staffordshire
- Taking the win at Staffordshire gave Steph huge confidence in her fitness, and how her newly developed fuel and hydration strategy played out in a race scenario
Hydration
- With weather forecasts predicting high temperatures on race day, Steph knew her hydration status would play a key role, so was vigilant in ensuring she started the race optimally hydrated. She did this by drinking a high-concentration sodium drink (PH 1500) the night before, and morning of the race
- Steph used her strength in the swim to exit the water in first position, and set about extending her lead on her new custom Zwift Bike
- On the bike, she had ~750ml (24oz) of plain water in her integrated hydration system, (which sits inside the frame of the bike), along with two highly concentrated bottles of carb and electrolytes
- Steph’s main source of electrolytes came from the PH 1500 tablet in her smaller (400ml / 14oz) water bottle, and three servings of PF 60 Drink Mix in a 1L (32oz) bottle
- In all, her fluid intake was solid at ~860ml (29oz) per hour for the bike discipline, with a relative sodium concentration of ~1,047 milligrams per litre (mg/32oz)
- Steph recently had her sweat tested at the Zwift Tri Academy team camp in Austria, where she discovered she loses 1,105mg of sodium in each litre (32oz) of her sweat. This meant she’ll have replaced a good proportion of her electrolyte losses via the drinks she consumed
- On the run, Steph decided to carry her own electrolytes, heading out of T2 with a Soft Flask of PH 1000, and sipping it throughout the 21.1km run
- She also picked up cups of plain water from every on-course aid station, as temperatures were reaching 27℃ (80℉) and she could feel herself sweating a lot more.The overall sodium concentration she was consuming subsequently dropped due to the amount of plain water (~600ml / 18oz) she drank on the run, to ~846mg/L across the entire race
- Steph didn’t experience any muscle cramps, but did start to fade towards the end of the half marathon, feeling like she “could barely concentrate” and “just wanted to drink”
- Whilst Steph did a good job hydrating during the race, perhaps in future hot races, she may want to increase the strength of her Soft Flask electrolytes to help the water she drank be retained in the bloodstream. Alternatively, she could carry some Electrolyte Capsules with her so once her flask is empty, she can maintain her electrolyte intake by taking two capsules with every ~500ml (16oz) of water she drinks
Fueling
Quick Carb Calculator Recommendation
30g
carb 30 mins before
60-90g
carb per hour during
- Ahead of the race, Steph gave her muscle and liver glycogen stores one final top-up with two PF 30 Chews. Then shortly before the swim start (~15 minutes) she had a PF 30 Caffeine Gel to optimise her blood glucose levels, and also reap the performance associated benefits of caffeine by the time it likely peaked in her bloodstream at the beginning of the bike
- On the bike, Steph’s aforementioned highly-concentrated bottles contained her sole carbohydrate source. The ~1L (32oz) bottle with three servings of PF 60 Drink Mix provided 90g of carb, with her smaller ~400ml bottle containing two PF 90 Gels and a PH 1500 Tablet to give another 180g
- Together this meant she averaged ~109g of carb per hour on the bike, which helped her maintain excellent energy levels throughout the ride. Furthermore, as she experienced no stomach discomfort, it suggests the gut training Steph has undertaken, with the help of her coach and former world record holder over the iron-distance, Tim Don, is well and truly paying off
- On the run Steph carried a PF 90 Gel with her out of transition, and finished this after ~50 minutes of the run. Then, somewhat regrettably, Steph didn’t have her other PF 30 Gel, and finished the race with it still in her tri-suit pocket
- On reflection, Steph couldn’t pinpoint why she didn’t take the gel, but felt it would certainly have helped prevent “feeling like a zombie” in the last ~4km of the race where she was willing the finish line to get closer
- This feeling was likely a result of her body expecting more carbohydrates than it received on the run. Steph’s intake dropped from ~109g/h on the bike to just ~58g/h on the run, and going forward she should aim to reduce this drop off, which in turn will help maintain her energy levels right to the finish
Conclusions
- In all, Steph had an excellent day at Staffordshire, taking the overall win by just over a minute, and with a few things to optimise for her next race
- As an already accomplished triathlete, Steph has worked closely with the Sports Science team at PF&H to optimise her fuel and hydration strategy, and this race shows how she is still iterating her plan to suit her needs
Key info
Steph Clutterbuck
Female
65kg
Sweat sodium concentration
1,107mg/L
Sweat sodium classification
High
* determined by a PH Advanced Sweat Test
Event information
Sport
Triathlon
Discipline
Middle distance
Event
IM 70.3 Staffordshire
Location
Staffordshire, England
Date
11th June, 2023
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
Bike Elevation
850m / 2,789ft
Run Elevation
150m / 492ft
Total Elevation
1,000m / 3,281ft
Race conditions
Weather Conditions
Hot
Precipitation
No Rain
Min Temp
24°C / 75°F
Max Temp
27°C / 81°F
Avg Temp
25°C / 77°F
Humidity
68%
Athlete feedback
Race Satisfaction
9/10
Hydration rating
7/10
I could have done with some more fluid on the bike
Energy levels
8/10
I really started to crash towards the end of the run, I was pretty much a zombie in the last 4km
Toilet stops
Yes
Just on the run
GI comfort
10/10
No issues at all
Cramping
No cramping
Steph's Thoughts
It was an awesome race, and I came away with what I needed
Steph's full stats
| Carbohydrate (g) | Sodium (mg) | Fluid (ml) | Caffeine (mg) | Relative sodium concentration (mg/L) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | |||||
| Total intake | 394 | 2,750 | 3,250 | 100 | 846 |
| Per hour | 85 | 596 | 704 | 22 | |
| Bike and Run | |||||
| Total intake | 364 | 2,750 | 3,250 | 0 | 846 |
| Per hour | 89 | 673 | 796 | 0 | |
| Bike | |||||
| Total intake | 272 | 2,250 | 2,150 | 0 | 1,047 |
| Per hour | 109 | 900 | 860 | 0 | |
| Run | |||||
| Total intake | 92 | 500 | 1,100 | 0 | 455 |
| Per hour | 58 | 316 | 695 | 0 | |
Data Confidence
1
2
3
4
5
There is an adequate level of accuracy in the data collected and the numbers reported. The athlete manages to recall what they ate and drank including most specifics (brands flavours quantities plausible estimations of volumes). However there are estimations made within the data which affect the overall confidence level in the data reported.