Three Factors to Consider when Creating a Race (or any other) Nutrition Plan

Over the past few months, I’ve had several conversations with athletes and personal training clients alike around nutrition. With both beach season and race season just around the corner, everyone is asking about how to create the right nutrition plan. So, what is the ‘right nutrition plan’? That’s a complicated topic, and it’s different for everyone.

​But HOW we create a plan can actually be fairly straightforward for both endurance athletes and those simply looking to tighten up their diet. While there are numerous aspects to consider, we can break down most of these into three important factors or questions to ask regarding any new approach to nutrition:

1) Will this approach be effective? To answer that question we have to understand what the goal is. For an endurance athlete looking to adequately fuel for an 5-7 hour middle-distance triathlon, that might include understanding the caloric, carbohydrates, fluid, and sodium needs over the course of that time frame. For example, most triathletes’ carbohydrate needs require anywhere from 40-90 grams of carbohydrate per hour for a race lasting longer than 2 hours. In this case, an athlete may wish to research various performance nutrition products (gels, bars, drinks, etc.) and/or whole foods (fruits, tortillas, honey, rice cakes, etc.) and find a combination that hits the marks for carbs, sodium, etc.

For the average Joe or Jill looking to lose 5 lbs over the next month, we would look primarily at calories and see where reductions can be made. 3,500 calories equals one pound, so that means we need to reduce our intake by approximately that same number each week, while still getting adequate macro and micronutrient requirements. In this case, someone might look at what substitutions can be made to create the deficit. For example, sour cream contains 445 calories per cup, whereas greek yogurt contains 100. Ribeye steak contains 330 calories per 4 oz. serving, salmon contains 158 calories per 4 oz. serving. Again, we can create a deficit by substituting one for the other.

Now I’m not trying to oversimplify challenging processes, like sustainable weight loss, or dialing in the perfect fueling solutions for top-tier athlete performances. These of course have lots of nuances that need to be acknowledged. However, the takeaway is that simply, the nutrition approach we take needs to be effective, for both the athletes and average Joes and Janes. 

2) Will I eat it? This question may seem trite at first glance for both endurance athletes and everyday gym goers. We like to think that we have the discipline required to eat something if it’s good for us. However, that becomes tricky depending how we grew up, our taste buds and preferences, and current situation. 
    
Is the marathon runner 2.5 hours into the race going to take his 6th consecutive chocolate flavored gel knowing he needs the fuel, but already sick of his ‘favorite’ flavor of gel? Or would a different fueling option at this stage of the race, have been the better choice? 

What about the busy professional eating lunch at the office? Is she going to eat the ‘healthy’ leftover soup from last night’s dinner instead of joining her coworkers at the deli in the lobby of the office? 

Again, it’s a question we all have to ask: Will I eat this? Despite our best intentions, we need to consider our level of discipline, flavor fatigue, and even GI sensitivities when we consider a nutrition approach, whether it be an intense endurance event or simply another Tuesday at the office. 

3) Is this logistically feasible? This is perhaps the most important question of all. It does no good to have an effective, palatable nutrition strategy, if there's no way we can execute it. I’ve seen dozens of endurance athletes create race plans that just won’t work because they literally can’t carry the nutrition they have practiced with.  

For example, if an Ironman nutrition plan is 100% liquid nutrition, but an athlete only has two bottles, it’s going be next to impossible to carry the necessary calories for a 112 mile bike ride. For the runners, if the marathon fueling strategy consists of Sport Beans (essentially electrolyte jelly beans) and water, we’re going to be chewing half a pound or more of candy while running. We may want to consider how to carry all that (and how much chewing has to occur while running). 
    
I’ve also seen many personal training clients’ nutrition plans go south simply because they weren’t able to find the time to meal prep week in and week out. Instagram and Pinterest make things look easy, but when it comes to spending a good part of a Sunday prepping, cooking, and packaging meals for the upcoming week- it can be a real challenge despite the best of intentions. 

Sometimes logistical challenges look like an uncooperative spouse- or one who simply has different goals. When the husband wants to eat steak and potatoes or go out for pizza every night, but the wife wants to go Vegan, that’s a no go. 

Knowing HOW you will execute your nutrition approach is just as critical as developing an effective, palatable one. Plans with too many variables are usually too difficult to implement. Create an approach that is simple, without lots of moving parts. 

So, as our nutrition approaches take shape over the course of race season, beach season, or any season of life, remember to take the least complicated approach that is both effective and works with our own unique tastes and preferences. 

Good luck! 

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