In endurance sports, training, nutrition and supplementation, mental aspects are crucial to achieve results. As the duration of an event increases, the last two aspects grow in importance. If it is possible to manage a half marathon without special supplementation, in a marathon and even more so in an ultra you need to know your energy requirements and have a strong motivation to get to the finish line.
When you train for ultra-endurance events, you have to manage the nutritional aspects especially regarding hydration and energy balance. A sporting event is considered Ultra Endurance when it exceeds 6 hours (or when a race exceeds the marathon distance). It can be a cycling race, running, swimming, cross-country skiing and of course triathlon in its Long Distance versions. Each long-duration competition generates an energy deficit of thousands of calories. Such a high imbalance can cause you not only to consume fat mass but also to decrease your muscle mass. There can be consequences not only for your performance but also for your health. The most common problems are anemia and especially gastrointestinal disorders.
Under critical environmental conditions (heat, humidity), sweat and the resulting loss of fluids can first become a hindrance to your performance then a health risk (heat stroke). In extreme situations you can lose up to 2 liters/hour. To avoid problems, you need to calculate your energy and liquid needs already in training by testing and experimenting with appropriate products and intake timing. You need to stimulate your body to consume fat as an energy source because, in such long races, you can also absorb fat as well as fluids, minerals and carbohydrates to support your performance.
To balance the increased energy expenditure during a race you should try to take in an adequate amount of calories. Studies done to date have shown that endurance and ultra-endurance athletes do not consume enough solids and fluids. Nutritional analysis of athletes in the post-competition period invariably shows a reduction in body mass and fat percentage, and especially marked dehydration.
Performance in an ultra-endurance sport also depends on proper nutrition. It is now proven that the greater the calorie intake during a prolonged effort, the better your results will be. The amount of calories and fluids you take in a competition does not depend only on your will. It also depends a lot on the amount of calories you are able to assimilate and fluids you can absorb. This is precisely why the greatest energy imbalances are found in very long open water swimming races where the opportunity to feed is greatly reduced.
While running an ultra-endurance race, you can achieve a loss of body mass of even more than 5 percent of your starting weight. It is not easy to anticipate accurate assessments of body mass loss because the workouts performed in preparation for these events are increasingly shorter in distance and/or duration. If, after a very long workout, you struggle to recover and the intensity has not been high you should increase your caloric intake to assess the difference in your post-workout feelings.
In the area of hydration, on the other hand, you can make more accurate estimates. One of the main risks of ultra-endurance athletes is dehydration. When induced by exercise, it causes not only a loss of aerobic performance but also an increase in body temperature, heart rate, and perceived exertion. To avoid excessive risk you must take fluids during exercise that contain sodium. Useful for reducing dehydration and increasing thirst stimulus. The amount of fluid lost can range from 600 to 2000 milliliters/hour. These amounts cannot be replenished completely because the maximum fluid intake you can get to is ca 300-600 milliliters/hour. In extreme situations of heat and humidity you are barely able to cover 50% of your lost body weight. Higher fluid intakes can cause you gastrointestinal upset and in some cases lead to hyperhydration (hyponatriemia). In low-intensity, low-temperature races you have to be careful about this as well because if you drink too much you risk excessively diluting the concentration of sodium in the body. This can have negative consequences for your health such as nausea and vomiting, weakness, headaches, and even loss of consciousness.
Energy intake depends mainly on carbohydrates, followed by lipids and protein. Thus, the main source of energy even in ultra-endurance disciplines remains carbohydrates. In addition to the quantity, you must also choose the different sources well. For example, using supplements with an optimal glucose-to-fructose ratio during exercise could increase carbohydrate assimilation and prevent gastrointestinal upset. You can also use preventive strategies such as carbohydrate loading to maximize glucose storage in the muscles and liver. It has been repeatedly shown that good “carbo loading” improves performance in ultra-endurance sports.
Compared with endurance sports that rely mainly on carbohydrate metabolism, ultra-endurance sports have a higher demand for fat intake considering both the duration of the races and the high amounts of fat stored in the human body even in very lean athletes. It becomes important in preparation to train your body to use the maximum percentage of fatty acids as an energy source. You can achieve this through both targeted workouts in duration and intensity and through your daily diet. You must in other words train your body to use fat during exertion. However, there remains a need to supplement carbohydrates as the first source of energy because depletion of its stores would lead to a collapse in performance.
A portion of calories can also be taken from protein. This occurs exclusively during very long performances and usually when there is not ample availability of other energy sources. It could be stimulated through amino acid intake to make these molecules available to the body during exertion. At ultra cycling races, this system has already been tried out. The cycling position allows more complex substances to be assimilated for digestion such as fat and protein than running. Intake of amino acids pre and during in any case protects against muscle depletion, which in these competitions can become one of the negative and undesirable effects.
I recommend that you do blood tests at least once a year during periods of intense training to check for deficiencies. In ultra endurance sports, a frequent deficiency is iron. A very important substance also for performance because it is essential, through hemoglobin and red blood cells, for the transport of oxygen in the body.
To participate in races of this length you must therefore be very careful to consume enough calories to offset the race-induced energy deficit. Get your body used to using fat as an energy source, and study your needs well in terms of hydration as well.
(Main image credits: joaquincorbalan on DepositPhotos.com)