We’re coming out of Christmas and let’s be honest, we could all eat a little better. But if you’re spending your free time hitting up triathlons, you need to consider what you’re putting into your body more than anybody else. 

Incorrect nutrition, even with excellent training is a critical way in which your triathlon performance can take a huge hit. We’ve put together a little guide to help you reach peak conditions for your triathlon season.

Practice Makes Perfect

If you are not training in accordance with your racing style, you are preparing your body for unpleasant surprises on race day. 

Simply put, your training nutrition should match what you do on race day. It’s the only way to find out the exact ratios of different food groups you need to be performing at your peak, and it allows your body to get used to the kind of gels and other food stuff you’ll be consuming. 

If you start messing around with new theories come race day, you’re just setting yourself up for failure and a terrible time! Practice until it all becomes second nature, so you only need to enjoy the race experience.

Hydration

We often overlook hydration when talking about nutrition but it’s equally as crucial that you nail hydration, especially in our Aussie summers. 

We’ll split hydration into three categories so you can plan out your strategy more easily.

Pre Training

Hydrate at least four hours before training begins to avoid that horrendous, sloshy feeling that just ruins your session. You’ll need between 500 and 1000 ml of water or you can choose a specialist electrolyte product. Honestly, water is just as effective in this scenario, though!

Whilst Training

Factors like temperature, humidity, and how much you end up training all play into how much liquid you need to consume to remain hydrated during training. On an average day, you should aim for 500 ml per hour spent training but obviously, in our summers this can end up being closer to 800 ml.

After Training

Best practice for a post-training hydration strategy is to replace 150% of the fluids you lost during training. Our biggest bit of advice here is sipping water little and often after your session has ended and never wait until you’re thirsty to drink as you are already dehydrated at that stage.

Maintaining Energy Levels

Energy levels can be pretty hard to predict when you first start competing in triathlons but even experienced athletes make mistakes. It is sensible to keep note of what does and does not work for different levels of training and competition to keep yourself performing well. 

Again, we’ve broken this down into pre, during, and post training to keep things simple!

Pre Training

Carb loading isn’t a myth! Keep feeding yourself a consistently high-carb diet with a slight reduction when training for shorter amounts of time or completing easier sessions.

Don’t be afraid to have a “race day” meal that you sometimes eat during your training regime to simulate a competition day.

Whilst Training

Of course, a lot of this depends on the sort of training you’re going to be doing but a good rule to follow is to consume 30-60 g of carbs for every hour you train. Once you go over 90 minutes of training you can increase this to 60-90 g and past 2 hours you can go up to 80-120 g of carbohydrates.

After Training

Try to replenish your carbs as soon as possible after training and consider investing in some decent post-workout nutrition. It’s a great way to consume more without needing to find the time and energy to cook more meals!

Prioritising Recovery Periods

During rest periods it is just as important to think about your nutrition. Rest doesn’t mean your body stops working, especially if you’re an athlete. 

Rest periods should consist of a healthy balanced diet with plenty of protein and carbohydrates. Of course, hydration is also excellent at helping your recovery and a decent nights sleep is absolutely brilliant for most things!

Race Day Nutrition

You’re coming up to the big day and that can only mean one thing: carb loading. You’ll want to start increasing your carb intake around 48 hours before the race day to make sure your body is able to store plenty of glycogen. 

You’ll need to aim for 8-10 g of carbs per kg of body mass so think about doubling up on servings of things like rice, potatoes, cereal bars, and fruit. Don’t forget to remain hydrated too to keep your electrolyte levels up too.

Just Before You Race

Depending on the type of race, you’ll need to think about a few different things to make sure your nutrition is as effective as possible. 

Your sprint events mean more hydration and electrolytes are needed so think about your electrolyte tablets or drinks designed specifically for race days. 

Between three and four hours before the start of your race you want to load up on carbs. Avoid eating large amounts of fat, protein, or fibre during this meal and simply focus on carbs. 

Your longer events will mean your focus splits from hydration to hydration and carbohydrates. For every hour of competition aim to pack at least 60 g of nutrition so think about gels, energy bars, and anything else you usually use during training.

Race Recovery

Refuelling effectively is the only way to reduce fatigue and injury. You’ll be able to bounce back from even the toughest events if you look after yourself but if you don’t, you’re risking your health every time you compete. 

Between 30 and 60 minutes after you’ve finished, you’ll need to replenish your body of pretty much everything! A balanced meal of carbs and protein with plenty of electrolytes is the best way to recover. 

However, it’s not always possible to refuel with “real food” that close to the finish of a race. This is where meal prep comes in! Make sure your base camp is set up with everything you need to finish a race in peace without frantically pulling out camping stoves when you’re exhausted.

Keep Your Cupboards Stocked

Henrik Orre, Team Sky’s revolutionary chef from 2011 completely transformed the team’s eating habits for the better. His rice cake recipe was a real game-changer for on-the-bike nutrition but he has a few key ingredients he keeps the cupboards stocked with to be able to whip up nutritious meals anytime. 

These ingredients are:

●     Bananas

●     Lemons

●     Eggs

●     Coconut Oil

●     Wild Rice or Quinoa

●     Cinnamon

●     Pasta

●     Coconut Palm Sugar

●     Red Onions

●     Parsley

●     Dried Fruit

●     Oats

●     Nuts

●     Agave Syrup

●     Mixed Spices

●     Prunes 

Orre managed to perfect fuelling a team of hungry pro cyclists so we’re pretty confident his plans will help triathletes too!

Storing Race Day Nutrition

You’re probably now trying to figure out where to keep all the nutrition you’ll need for your next big race. Luckily, SCODY has designed its triathlon and cycling kit with aerodynamic nutrition pockets so you have everything you need. 

You won’t need to compromise speed thanks to the lower back placement and the way the pockets open means your gels and bars are easy to grab even during the toughest races.

Get Race Day Ready

You’ve got the nutrition and we’ll provide the tri suits so what are you waiting for? Just don’t forget to join the SCODY rewards program so you can earn points as you shop for your next race day. Good luck!