Calories, HR and nutrition: what do I need?

Everyone is different in terms of calories/hr burned for aerobic exercise, and it depends on environmental conditions as well, but on average it is around 500-600 for a reasonably fit person. Again it is different for everyone, but in the range just below your "aerobic threshold" (usually referred to as the zone2-zone3 boundary), somewhere around 33% of those calories come from glycogen, which you need to restore during a long-course race, and 67% come from fat, which you don't. But the best answer to how many calories/hour you should take in during long-duration aerobic work is "a little less than the amount your body can process," which is usually between 250 and 400 per hour biking, and maybe 150-300 per hour running. Then there is the total liquid your body can process per hour, whether with or without calories in it, which is usually somewhere between 20-40 oz/hr. Again, you want to be just under the amount your body can process, not over. If you overeat/overdrink on race day, your digestive tacks is going to lock up and take more time to recover from than you have left in the race. If you are going a too far under, you can always sense it and eat/drink more - it will slow you down for a while, but not kill your race.

The only way to learn what is right for you is to start taking a very detailed approach to nutrition on your long rides and runs, right now. Start with maybe 20 ounces per hour of liquid, and 250 cal/hr split evenly between liquid and solid/gel calories. For long runs, try 1/2 to 3/4 of those amounts. If you feel really depleted or thirsty at the end, add more the next week, if you have stomach issues, cut back the next week. But you are doing the right thing by worrying this now, you have plenty of training to get it figured out, but start tracking it closely and learn yourself before you get to race day.

To start, you definitely have to get a good meal in before you go on a long training session (60 mile bike ride).  For me, thats a bowl of oatmeal, fruit, and a wheat bagel w/ PB&J.  Others have different go-to meals which work but you want to get a good mix of carbs and calories that won't upset your stomach.  Your doomed from the start w/out a good meal prior to heading out.

As for nutrition during training, I try to take in 250 calories per hour.  This amount will also vary for you as two people don't burn calories or fat the same way.  I have a custom mix nutrition drink from Infinit for each the run and bike that has all the necessary calories, carbs, and electrolytes.  I drink a predetermined amount each hour and then also eat a Honey Stinger Waffle or Honey Stinger Energy Chews (Fruit Smoothy flavor) every hour to get some solid food in my stomach.  This has worked okay for me although I would like to take in more solid foods as they are easier on my stomach.  Just need to find a good alternative.

Check out www.infinit.com .  You can get a free consultation with them and they are very knowledgeable on endurance nutrition.

Edited by devilfan02 2012-12-18 5:33 PM