By far the best video on nutrition I've seen to date! Down to hearth, discussing only the numbers that matter and differentiating nutrition strategy by distance! well done Jeff!! I totally agree regarding the use of liquid calories, I tend to mess up either my hydration or nutrition with those.
I'd love to know how trainable caloric intake is. You mentioned 60% early on but clearly 100% (or even slightly above since performance tends to improve in surpluses, ignoring gastro factors) is ideal. I wonder if a structured program could bump a person's number up closer to that target.
Really great stuff! I heard on another POD a saying that I love and I recite during all my races: "Food equals mood". Anytime I start to feel tired or "off" in any way shape or form I immediately reach of food. 9 times out of 10 it can make the problem go away:)
I appreciate what you said about liquid calories vs water and non-liquid, as I've often wondered about this. So far, for my longer training runs and races (upcoming first 50m at 59yo), I've appreciated water in the bladder and different concentrations of Tailwind in my 2 front flasks. I like how this helps supplement other options, from real food to gels, blocks, etc. but I'm thinking of switching to pure water with salt tablets instead. Thanks!
For me I'd take a gel for every half hour of exercise, so my usual training runs which are 8-12 miles, I'll have a couple on me just in case I bonk. Otherwise a 2-3 caffeine chews will suffice. Don't forget a pack of tissues, cos you never know.
This is a great video Jeff. I'm not a runner but wanted to come back to let you know that your advice was immensely helpful in preparing me for a 100 mile canoe endurance race that I recently undertook. Cheers!
Awesome, so glad to hear that! Also, I had no idea that long distance canoe races like that existed, but that sounds really cool. I’d imagine there are all sorts of other challenges and considerations that come with something like that.
Hi, I am not young anymore, but I am very inspired by you, I do have a great spark still inside of me. I do exorcise daily as much as I can, hooping to do something great soon. Cheers from NYC
Best fueling video I’ve come across yet. I ran track in college but was simply handed my fuel when I was supposed to take it. I never really knew why or when I should consume. I ran my first marathon a few months ago and… guess what… hit the wall right around mile 22. Never thought that would happen. So now, I’m more conscious of fueling and prepping for a 50 miler in 5 months. Taking notes on this amazing video so I can test the waters during training 🙏🏼
This was really helpful, thanks Jeff! One thing I would emphasize is the importance to double down on salt stick tabs whenever running in both heat+humidity as is common out east. Cramping can creep up pretty quickly without them. Another fuel source I've found to work really well on 2.5-5 hour outings is baby food, particularly pouches with potatoes which have 100-120 calories.
Excellent. Imparting more concept than punting products makes this presentation gold. It shows your insight into not only your own body but the key concepts of nutrition & exercise physiology. Btw, it's the Two Oceans marathon (55k) in Cape Town today. Not a trail run but one of the most scenic runs in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Hook up with Ryan Sandes in CT for some spectacular trail runs for final preparation when you do come over to this bucket list event. (Ryan sponsored by Salomon I think)
drinking water under 90mins run really depends on the temperature and humidity, where I am at the moment can reach 38c with 80% humidity, starts sweating by standing and doing nothing lol, my garmin estimated I lost 1.5 liter of water through sweat in my 1.5 hrs run...
I experience this video very helpful. Made a ton of notes. I love that it is so simple and applicable. It removed for me all the friction, confusion and complexity of the market and gave me a really easy plan to follow. Thank you Jeff!
Salt tabs will be a must for me going forward. I think that 2 every hour when hot is a good amount. I had less than this with me in my race over the weekend and it almost went bad. Lollies, bars, some fruit and bakery goods, are my solid food options over 50km. I like to have gels with me and will eat them depending on aid stations (what they have and how far apart)
Fantastic video. I wish I would have known the details behind my nutrition many years ago. I particularly like your thoughts on separating caloric intake from fluid intake. It makes so much sense. Thanks for another great video Jeff.
@@JeffPelletier You very welcome. I watched your Manning Park thru hike and was wondering if you did a one dayer which leg would say would be the most beautiful. It would be great t todo what you did in stages with support for each day. Do you think this would be doable?
The first section from East Gate to Cayeuse Flats would be the easiest to get support on, since you’d be crossing the same highway twice. After that, the route is pretty remote until you end up back at the lodge, so the other option would be and out-and-back from the lodge, unless you were comfortable doing the entire stretch along the Skagit river and up along the ridge. To access that road is a long drive back around for whoever is providing support.
@@JeffPelletier Thanks so much. Very helpful. PS I had a nice chat with the guys at Distance Runwear on the North Shore this morning. I picked up a pair of Altra Lone Peak 5 shoes and I mentioned your great food video when I saw that they stocked your favourite carb drink. One of them mentioned that he knew you. Small world in the running space down here. Good guys and they were very helpful. Be well.
Thank you for keeping the decibel level the same with each bullet point. I can’t stand when people don’t pay attention to this and it’s at a 5x higher level.
Thanks a lot Jeff, your videos are always well thought out and extremely informative. This food info will be more than valuable as I train for swiss peaks 170 in September!
I totally agree with you Jeff,.... about everything you said in this video! You had me with your opening statement about not being a scientist, but having a decade of intense trail experience. Yeah, I learned the hard way about getting calories from liquids, vs. drinking water and getting calories from solid food. My pipes just can't handle the caloric drinks after a few hours.
Very well thought out summary of nutrition for ultras. Has condensed a lot of my own thought, reading and experience as a mid pack runner into 15 minutes .
Getting ready for my first ultra in about 16 weeks... Done a couple of 3 hor run fueled by Xmas cake. Think I need to start thinking about it more seriously. 🤔
I've heard of people making up a thick gel of tailwind into a bladder with like 2000kcal in it then carrying water bottles for hydration and just sipping on the tailwind as if it was a giant gel on their back.
Great stuff as per usual Jeff! I love chatting this stuff with you, it's truly a fascinating topic. As well, as someone working in the diabetes industry (but not diabetic) it's interesting trying to better understand the role of blood sugar. I think you hinted on this in how you might use gels instead of solid food later in a race and a few other comments. But fueling 100k on gels, no thanks. Haha! Cheers
This was great 👍 it would be nice to hear about problems taking to much off stuff. I'm having serious problems around 33miles and I think it may be due to taking too much salt and caffeine.
Given the crazy per calorie price of gels, I've started making my own from maltodextrin and fructose. Bonus is that I get to make up my own flavors. I'm currently using tea and a bit of lemon and ginger.
I really love those Clif Bloks (east to digest, stay pretty soft in the cold) but they're getting harder to find in Vancouver. You used to be able to get them at the grocery stores but not in the last few years.
I am moving up to the 200 mile distance, which makes eating (and sleeping) a different challenge compared to shorter races. You covering the long multi day races was useful.
Really helpfull vídeo, im about to Run my first 100k Race and im still not sure about my nutrition Race plan because i been using Tailwind for shorter races but what you Said about Tailwind was really important.. Thanks
Wow!! Absolutely awesome 👍 video and it's hard to believe that you've learned all these from training, races and self motivated studies/researches.👍😊 What an amazing passion!!!! For my 3 hr+ runs/cycling, I enjoy having savory rice cakes that I make from home. Brown/white rice, cheese, walnuts, pecan, dry fruits and pack (bite size) in aluminum foil. Take care Jeff and again big thanks 👍 for your inspiration! From Italy, Paul Kim
I have a Nathan run pack and I began using tailwind recently alongside my pack in a hard flask that I bought from amphipod ( don’t ask how it works it just does ) and I usually use 1/2 a scoop to 3/4 which gives me about 80+ bonus calories in a bottle. Provided you make sure you’re drinking from the liter bag you’ll be good!
Watching this after my first mountain marathon. I got extremely nauseous 15-16 miles in. Ended up eating salt tablets and water for the last 10 miles. Did not workout too well.
@@JeffPelletier it was exposed and hotter than expected, but the climb to 4,200 meters is when I got sick. Many people are telling me it was a fueling issue. I’ve never had nausea like that before though, so I’m trying to understand it.
Great video. I like my own mixture of cold tee, a lot of honey, fresh Lemon juice, little salt, water. I drink this 15 minutes before a race and after training. I made very good experiences with it.
Another great video! My stomach is extremely sensitive, so I have to be very careful about what I eat. I can't do Tailwind, it gives me the worst digestive problems. I do like Nuun a lot, esp in hot weather because the bubbles really sooth my tummy. I do like to eat real food, even on shorter runs. Real food doesn't give me the digestive problems as gels and other things do. I'll stuff dates with peanut butter - you should try it, they're really good!!! I take those, along with pretzels and fig bars for my runs.
I have watched a lot of videos on nutrition in preparation for my first ultra in a few weeks. This was the most comprehensive by far. Thanks for the advice 👍🏻
You can only fuel your body for 90 minutes of hard exercise so you should aim to eat once an hour. Pre run try porridge with bananas. This has a good spread of glycemic index and includes protein. 👍
@@JeffPelletier A quick question if you don't mind... There are some long ridges I'll be running that have no access to water for a while. How do you carry extra water on dry sections?
Ridges without water can be a challenge! I’d probably carry a couple of spare soft flasks to fill on the way up and to keep in the rear of my pack. Alternatively, you could use a bladder of course.
This is just the info I needed. First Ultra in 2 weeks. Only 50k but super excited. Fueling has been my one worry and I feel this video has put me on the right path. Il let you all know how I did after the event. Thanks
Thank you for this video. Very very insightful as I am training for my 100 mile event. Great advice and what I call a few golden nuggets that I will definitely going to put in place as I am getting close to peak week of training.
Really valuable content. You have covered content for all distances, especially for 100miler and more where there is really less quality contents in RU-vid. Appreciate your effort to share the knowledge
Well presented! Will point friends towards this video if they have questions about trail/ultra running nutrition. (The combination of salt and caffeine tabs is my go-to when feeling down deep into a long run...)
Very helpful. Doing my first 54k trail run Chiggy Ultra in NS, so preparing all my strategies including food and liquid. The race provides Tailwind and I thought I would try it out. But based on your advice I think I will stick to my tried and trues. Cliff bars, nuun, werthers and potatoes. Maybe add some gels if i can find some I like.
I would consider using Tailwind as a supplement along with your usual nutrition, but only if you’ve tested it ahead of time. Many people find some drink mixes to sorta mess with their stomach. You may be able to buy a small amount at your local running store. If not, then probably best to stick with water. Have fun!
Another really informative video about nutrition! Thank you for this!! It was really easy to understand - especially when new to longer distance running!!! Sending a like, love and sub from Ireland 🇮🇪
Electrolytes were a game changer for me. I always thought that I was hitting the wall after a 3-4h effort (cycling) and was dragging myself to the end of my rides. Turns out that your body can always break down fat for energy, but can't recover sodium, except if you lick your arms
Sticky rice balls are the best! I had those at an aid station once with a friend that I was pacing who was having stomach problems and they really helped him.
Good video. I’ve done 4 ultras to date, max at 65km. All with gels. I usually try to alternate between the caffeinated and uncaffeinated ones. I never crave actual foods. I also use salt pills. Caffeine really does the trick for me. Nuun tablets make sense as they can easily be dissolved in a soft flask. I’ve seen too many people struggle with the powders. Hope to race soon again in Canada. Cheers!
Great video cheers. Have you tried sushi rice since? That’s stickier so you can form it even balls (or even sushi if you fancy) and might be easier than regular rice.
Hi Jeff... so cool to watch this. I just did my first 50km fast track. I had an idé of a run here in Gothenburg, Sweden. And I run between 20-30 km in a normal week. I also have quite some experience in offshore (yacht) racing. Wich can be over 24h to multiple days. And in this one of the most important things is to get nutrition into your body, even a regatta over a day just to make the correct decision. Now when I ran my 50km fast track I did quite some mistakes. Your video would have been so valuable to me. But then again you learn and just get on with it for the next time. Interesting with the calories (150cal ish) and the gels I the end of a race. Also, I'm reluctant to put any powder or electrolytes into my flask (it gets hard to clean afterward). I relied on gels for electrolytes my first mistake I guess now. How do you do, electrolytes mixed tables (Noon) in your flask or how do you take them? Thanks for a super informative video.
Thanks David! I personally don’t use Nuun tablets in my flasks - the only time I take those is after my run. The salt tablets are easier because you just swallow them like a pill.
This is super helpful. I had a rough go on a race this past weekend in heat and humidity and couldn’t keep anything down. For my goal 100k I definitely plan to just do water and calories separately and start fueling much earlier. I had not previously experienced this in races, but I must have gotten behind on hydration early and though I took time at an aid station to rehydrate that only helped temporarily and I was back to puking. Do you think this was more of an electrolyte problem or not enough calories? I was super light headed, but the thought of a gel turned my stomach
It’s hard to say, you may have just been having a bad day. But I suspect it had something to do with your balance of water and electrolytes, maybe too much of one and not enough of the other. Could have just been that your body temperature was too high and couldn’t handle eating.
