Nutrition Tips for an Ironman

Nutrition Tips for an Ironman

by Luis Alvarez
Winner at Ironman Honolulu -world Record Holder - Only man to complete every Ironman race venue in the world

Though everyone's body reacts in a different way and there exists no body equal to another, I want to share with you my training and competition strategies for nutrition and hydration, I hope they can be useful for you.

Basically, my hydration and nutritional intake, whether it is during training or competition, should almost be the same as you do not want to experiment during an actual IM event. It is during training that one needs to experiment and so I like to test other types of food and drink so I can discover what is agreeable for me or not.

The following are my considerations for a normal hot day (78-95 degrees). Temperature is the most determinant factor that determines any need for nutrition/hydration change; the hotter the day, the more energy you should get from Gatorade (liquids); the colder the day, the more energy is gotten from solids (bars, sandwich, etc…)

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Mainly, this is because when it is cold, you sweat less, and are less thirsty. The less you drink, the less Gatorade you intake, which is your main source of energy during the bike portion, so therefore one would have to eat more.

The day before the competition I try to have the necessary amount of liquid so that my urine is not concentrated (light yellow-clear), but I try not to over hydrate because you may lose too many electrolytes which are necessary so one avoids cramping on race day. With regards to food, the day before, I have my usual breakfast of cereal with milk and a chicken breast; I have an early lunch like some sort of pasta dish, and then try not to have many solid foods for the rest of the day. This helps to prevent not having to go to the bathroom during the competition.

Usually, after lunch I will have such things like bars or shakes (Powerbar, PR Bar, IM bar or Gatorade Nutrition Shake, Ensure etc.). But really something that has been so helpful to me is a supplement called MAP. It basically is a highly concentrated form of tasteless protein; I take 10 pills a day, during the 2 days before a competition.

The morning of the competition, 4AM, I have my favorite cereal with milk and a Gatorade Nutrition Shake or Ensure. This is enough, as I don't want to over stimulate my stomach, if your breakfast is too large you will feel full and you won't want to eat or drink anything during the race. It is better to have the feeling that you want to eat and drink before the race, but remember not to starve.

I put a Gatorade Nutrition Shake on my bike so I have it after swimming; I take 10 pills of MAP, 1 hour before the start and 5 pills more every 4 hours for as long as I am out in the race.

In the Special Needs bag for the bike I put a Gatorade Nutrition Shake and a water bottle filled with CarboPro, both of these are kept cool in a soft sided cooler bag filled with ice. With the CarboPro you can put more than 500 calories in a single water bottle, and there are no troubles having to dissolve it; this product is great because it contains almost no flavor. I ingest the Gatorade Nutrition Shake right after picking up my bag and then the CarboPro during the rest of the 90 km of the bike.

During the bike portion my main method of nutrition is Gatorade, which has the perfect balance of energy for me. Just to change the flavor I have some type of cookie or nutrition bar that are usually found at the aid stations, then I drink a full bottle of Gatorade between every aid station, that is roughly every 10 miles. This can vary depending on temperature and terrain, (climbs & descents).

During the bike I do not have Gels or CocaCola as I use them for the running portion of the race; if I eat or drink something like this on the bike, my stomach and brain rejects them on the run.

Other things I eat, though not always, are several kinds of nuts, dry figs, Pringles, peanut butter with jelly or something that is tasty for me. This usually is a good time to eat the goodies that you like most, when there is not as much jarring on my stomach & I can digest.

In the transition, if my stomach lets me, I have another half of the cold Gatorade Nutrition Shake.

Other articles from Luis: Nutrition Tips for an Ironman - The heart rate monitor as a daily tool - Competions in cold weather - How to do 10 IRONMAN in a year without injuries - 250 MILES BIKE RIDE IN EXTREME CONDITIONS

Luis is a very successful age group athlete, with unusual recovery abilities, energy, and very good speed. From a nutritional viewpoint we don't agree with everything he does and think there are superior nutritional products to Ensure, etc. We do agree that MAP is superior nutrition and very helpful in his overall program.

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