Your Guide to 'On the Go' Nutrition for Endurance Races

Many Outside Sports staff are regular participants in endurance events throughout the Southern Lakes region. You’ll see us at classic events like the Shotover Moonlight Marathon, Glenorchy Gravel Grind, The Hawea Epic, the Mackenzie, and the famous Motatapu, which attracts people from all over the world. 

These are all long races that take from around three hours to over ten hours. The extended duration means you need to take on fuel along the way, or you won’t hit your target time, or you might not finish at all.In other words when you’re competing, or even training for that matter, eating on the trail isn’t just about keeping your hunger pangs at bay - it’s about keeping you going fast when fatigue is trying to slow you down. 

So first let's take a look at the benefits you can expect from the gels, chews, blocks, and energy bars we stock at Outside Sports: 

• Carbohydrate re-loading
• Precise carbohydrate intake
• Consistent energy level
• Faster recovery

And then we'll show you how to create your own individual nutrition intake schedule for during an endurance event.

In an endurance bike or running event, or indeed any strenuous exercise over a period of more than an hour, your body burns through the glycogen stored in your muscles quickly. Once you’re in glycogen depletion mode, several bad things happen: your energy level drops off and your pace slows, your ability to coordinate your movements decreases, and things generally feel very hard and no fun. But by regularly topping up with carbohydrates your blood glucose level remains stable and your remaining stores of glycogen are spared. You’ll go faster and feel a lot more capable too. 

Gels, chews, blocks and bars are designed to be easy to carry, quick to consume, and nutritionally consistent. Knowing exactly how many grams of carbohydrate, calories and essential electrolytes you’re getting makes scheduling your nutrition during an event fuelling much easier and more precise. 

Regular eating during an event helps lower your perceived exertion level. Even when muscles are still capable of working, low blood glucose causes your brain to dial back effort. Being well fed improves concentration which is really important, and can actually be lifesaving, on technical trails. It also keeps you feeling motivated, and helps you make good decisions late in the event. 

Small, frequent doses of energy reduce the stress response associated with energy depletion, limiting muscle breakdown and fatigue.  

Energy needs during competition are an individual thing, but if you practice ‘on the go’ nutrition intake while you’re training you’ll be able to work out what’s optimal for you. The other reason to practice is that your stomach needs to learn to eat comfortably without you having to stand still – you need to train your gut as well as your muscles.  

These are just broad guidelines regardless of your gender and body weight, both of which can make a difference to your nutritional requirements during an event. 

• Event duration one to two hours 30–60g of carbs per hour  

• Event duration over two hours 60–90g+ of carbs per hour. If you’re an elite athlete you could go up as high as 120g/hour. 

Top tip - Begin refuelling within the first 30–45 minutes, rather than waiting to feel hungry. Because by then you’re already in glycogen depletion mode, and slowing down. 

There are certain differences in metabolism that mean men and women athletes have slightly different nutritional requirements 

• Carbohydrate Absorption: Females tend to have a lower limit for carbohydrate absorption – 40-60g/hr versus 60-90g/hr. 

• Fat Oxidation: Females generally rely more on fat oxidation during endurance events than men, which is one reason why women often perform so well in ultra-endurance events. But still female racers do still need to consistently refuelling with carbs to maintain their desired race pace. 

• Menstrual Cycle: Glycogen storage may be reduced during the luteal phase (post-ovulation), so increasing carb intake before and during this phase is crucial. 

• Energy Deficit: Females are at higher risk of Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S), making it important to actively avoid excessive deficits during long events.  

Set your watch alarm for 20 to 30 minutes to remind you to take onboard a small amount of carbo – say half a gel or 2 or 3 chews. 

On longer events it’s a good idea to eat a combination of liquids, gels, and energy bars to avoid taste fatigue from having too much sweetness. For example, every thirty minutes have 30g Gel, a 20g carbo drink, and a 10g bite from a Clif Bar. 

We have a big range of nutrition gels, chews, blocks and energy bars at all Outside Sports stores in Queenstown, Te Anau, Arrrowtown, Wanaka, and Tekapo, as well as online.