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Fueling right before and/or during long high intensity workouts

  • Creator
    Topic
  • December 17, 2021 at 8:38 am #60905
    franmorper
    Participant

    Hi there,

    What’s the general advice for fueling right before (<1h) and/or during long high intensity workouts? Specially for those workouts that are longer than 1h. See below workout as an example, total time is 1h40min. The goal would be going as hard as possible while staying in zone, feeling in control and not ending the workout totally destroyed, and achieve the proper stimuli.

    Workout example:
    20min warm up
    4x12min (high Z3, close to LT) with 4min recovery
    20min cool down

    My understanding is that I could deplete my glycogen stores by the 3rd or 4th interval, correct? Which would make me slow down (or make me push more than I should) and not getting the stimuli I has hoping for.

    What’s the best strategy?
    May drinking a carbs sport drink right before the workout have a positive or negative impact? What about during the workout? If positive, when? After the warm up? In between intervals?

    Thanks for your help!
    Fran

  • Creator
    Topic

Posted In: Nutrition

  • Participant
    brianbauer on December 19, 2021 at 8:10 am #60962

    I can tell you what I do, not scientific, but works for me. for durations of 4hrs+, I train the way I race, i.e take in nutrition before and during efforts. for training efforts 2hrs or less, I do not take extra nutrition before or during, but I always eat some protein within 45 mins of completing the effort. if I am racing 2hrs, I will drink a Maurten or Beta Fuel drink before the race.

    all of that said, I definitely get a positive energy bump if I take a carb drink 30 mins before 2hr training efforts…I just generally don’t do it.

    Moderator
    MarkPostle on December 19, 2021 at 5:58 pm #60974

    Fran- For work of that intensity that is right at the top of Z3 or lower Z4 I definitely use some carbs for fueling. I will generally have a light snack 30 min before and use carb sports drink of choice about every 20 min during activity. If doing intervals I’ll drink a couple of ounces between each effort. Whether its helping directly or just brain signaling from the gut either way I can definitely push harder on those last intervals. I save the fasted training for strictly low intensity days. Hope that helps.

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