Cape Epic fueling

[mtbrider]

Hi Fellow Hubbers

I am not sure if this has been covered but help will be appreciated. 

I have been trying different options supplements for the cape epic this year and I know that time is running out to test as I need to get used to my choice?

I was on USN Epic Pro the last few months but bonked twice and really hard (my liggies was uit dat ek hoendervleise kry).

I am thinking Cadence Marathon for the start and second bottle and then Cadence Carbo Fuel

What are you using that works for you?

[Titleist]

The question is, what do you eat before and after a ride? 

 

The past weekend I survived the Attakwas on 3 gels per hour for the last 3 hours and I started with 2 litres of Epic Pro mixed according to instructions. I did eat other stuff at the waterpoints as well, but not nearly enough to cover the carb requirements my body needs.

 

You need to budget for at least 80g of carbs per hour. It doesn't matter where the carbs come from, but it must be available immediately for your body to burn it. You also need to eat something with fat during a long ride.

Edited January 24 by Titleist

[dave303e]

Ya I would look a lot further than just a carb drink...
Breakfast is key, being able to wake up and wolf down food is a good skill to build, it took me months of force feeding but now I wake up hungry.

Between wake up and start getting in a bottle of rehydrate will be a good idea.

Startline snack or 2 is the start of your race eating, nerves are up and hr will already be up.

Then your personal goal for carb intake per hour during the ride. You will hear numbers from 20-140grams an hour. Do some testing at see what point your stomach reacts. Then don't go near that in the race. I would start off with more solid items and as you tire out move to relying more on gels and drinks. The chewable jelly's from Gu, biogen and 32gi are also easy to get down in the transition from solid foods to gels etc.

I would always have a sachet of maurten in a pocket just incase of a bonk. 60grams in 500ml will get you functioning again and then you need to back off the pace a bit and follow it up with other food.

You also need to gauge the effort to input ratio and understand how on the last few days the effort may be less but you will need more.

Post race is also key, getting the right food and fluid in right away and following it up through to the next day. I am a fan of a last minute before bed protein bar.

You have spent a shedload on a race, there are good sports dieticians around who are not badly priced and will put together a good plan with what you need to get in during the race. It is a good start. A lot of them do a lot of educating you on concepts/ratios and timing as opposed to telling you exactly what to eat. I have a really good grid to work with for race day, it has changed the way I race.

[Dappere]

Loads of good tips around here already, but one golden nugget I've picked up is to suss out the snacks and drinks at the water stops ahead of time and make sure your stomach's on board with them too. This way, when you're grabbing a quick bite or drink during the race, you're less likely to upset your stomach.

Pre-Race: At least an hour before the race, I consume a bottle of my carb drink along with a hearty breakfast. My go-to is a bowl of oats mixed with yoghurt, almond butter, honey, and a dash of milk.

When it comes to fuelling up during the race, I aim for about 90g of carbs every hour, mixing it up with gels, bars, and throwing in a couple of bananas for something a bit more solid. The carb drink I use gets me about 40g of those carbs, and the rest I make up with the gels, bars, and bananas. Basically, I finish a bottle of carb drink every hour and munch on something every 20 minutes or so. It's important to train with the amount of carbs you're planning to consume per hour; not doing so could upset your stomach. This practice ensures my digestive system is as prepared for race day.

I can't lug around too many bananas, usually just a pair, and I save them for a bit later in the race. But if there are bananas on offer at the water stops, I'll adjust my game plan based on how many I can snag along the way.

Post-Race: After the race, I prioritize high-protein intake. If pressed for time, I'll grab a protein shake, but I always aim for a substantial meal soon after. Alongside, I replenish with a dedicated electrolyte drink, ensuring better hydration.

Products I use: 

• 32gi: Endure Sports Drink - Sustained Energy
• 32gi: Sports Gel - Quick Releasing Energy
• 32gi: G-Shot - Guarana Caffeine Shot
• 32gi: Race Pro 300 Gel - Super Carb / Protein
• 32gi: Race Pro Energy Bar - Boutique Nougat
• Cramp Assalt - Anti-Cramp & Electrolyte Gel (for emergencies) 😅

Edited January 24 by Dappere
Added: Products I use

[DieselnDust]

Joh lots of high carb intakes here. Is this based on body mass of calories burned per hour during training?

[Pandatron]

Good information here, also check out https://www.mysportscience.com by Asker Jeukendrup for some extra ideas

[Dappere]

10 minutes ago, DieselnDust said:

Joh lots of high carb intakes here. Is this based on body mass of calories burned per hour during training?

Absolutely, the high carb intake does seem notable! For me personally, it's been a journey to find the right balance. I've had the guidance of a coach to navigate through this process, using a mix of trial and error to land on the strategy I shared. While the aim is around 90g of carbs per hour, it's not a rigid target. I sometimes fall short. The key was gradually building up to this level to ensure my system could handle it without any gut issues. It's very much tailored to my training intensity, recovery needs, and yes, factors like energy expenditure come into play. But it's important to remember that what works for one might not work for all. 

[Bikalot]

Couple of posts on the Cadence site which may be of interest: https://www.cadencenutrition.com/blogs/news

 

*disclaimer we distribute the brand

 

Keep it simple, the right carbs are your friend and you need to train your gut to be able to tolerate higher amounts of carb.

[eala]

I used Cadence for my first event and Sponser for the second .Two bottles per stage .Then the water table food was enough .Bananas and berries and those date cakes  . I took some Game  with , could not stand powerade anymore . Ate and drank as i felt , and kept hydrated . People make it a lot more complicated than it should be . Eat real food ,carbs and protein for breakfast and dinner .Dinner was either pasta , pizza with beer or red wine . No massages or fisio either .Rest and stretching got me through it  .Anti cramp tablets work only if you take plenty , like six at a time .

Edited January 25 by eala

[lukelockie]

My two cents (highly unqualified to comment on nutrition, so keep that in mind) is that you will have access to USN products at every water point during each stage of Epic, so why not keep trialing USN products in the build-up to the event so you can figure out what does and does not work with your system?

That way you know how your body reacts to the different products in the range; otherwise you're going to carry your mix/gels/bars with you and then be faced with the concern of trying something new midway through a stage when you stop at a water point.

Good luck with the training and prep!

 

 

[Jewbacca]

8 hours ago, eala said:

I used Cadence for my first event and Sponser for the second .Two bottles per stage .Then the water table food was enough .Bananas and berries and those date cakes  . I took some Game  with , could not stand power aid anymore . Ate and drank as i felt , and kept hydrated . People make it a lot more complicated than it should be . Eat real food ,carbs and protein for breakfast and dinner .Dinner was either pasta , pizza with beer or red wine . No massages or fisio either .Rest and stretching got me through it  .Anti cramp tablets work only if you take plenty , like six at a time .

Pizza with beer or red wine is definitely the ticket!

From experience, there are definitely levels to this nutrition thing. I used to be all 'just eat enough before the race and whatever' until I bonked harder than Borris Becker in the cupboard at a longer than normal bike race.

Intensity of effort is what starts to separate the Pizza and beer guys from the 80g per hour guys. 

The body behaves very differently and has quite different needs and reactions when running at higher revs with more output.

I'm not rubbishing your claims, just suggesting that as you get closer to the pointier end of a high intensity field over more than 3 or 4 hours, you DO need a plan, some gut compliance and practice.

I have some  experience in slow burn, low intensity, long, drawn out races where I can eat boerewors rolls and lasagne and soup and cheese and have jaeger shots at a particularly festive aid station at 2 am on the second night with absolutely no issue, but that doesn't cut it on a 6 hour flat out full gas burn.

[lechatnoir]

3 minutes ago, Jewbacca said:

Pizza with beer or red wine is definitely the ticket!

From experience, there are definitely levels to this nutrition thing. I used to be all 'just eat enough before the race and whatever' until I bonked harder than Borris Becker in the cupboard at a longer than normal bike race.

Intensity of effort is what starts to separate the Pizza and beer guys from the 80g per hour guys. 

The body behaves very differently and has quite different needs and reactions when running at higher revs with more output.

I'm not rubbishing your claims, just suggesting that as you get closer to the pointier end of a high intensity field over more than 3 or 4 hours, you DO need a plan, some gut compliance and practice.

I have some  experience in slow burn, low intensity, long, drawn out races where I can eat boerewors rolls and lasagne and soup and cheese and have jaeger shots at a particularly festive aid station at 2 am on the second night with absolutely no issue, but that doesn't cut it on a 6 hour flat out full gas burn.

added to that, everyone is different and each person has to figure it out for themselves. Ultimately, it's a worthwhile endeavour.

Any specific advice here will be anecdotal. And seeing as it's end Jan now, so, best start figuring out the nutrition.... for Epic 2025

[Shebeen]

check what cuddles has for breakfast

 

 

[Dappere]

 

1 hour ago, Jewbacca said:

Pizza with beer or red wine is definitely the ticket!

From experience, there are definitely levels to this nutrition thing. I used to be all 'just eat enough before the race and whatever' until I bonked harder than Borris Becker in the cupboard at a longer than normal bike race.

Intensity of effort is what starts to separate the Pizza and beer guys from the 80g per hour guys. 

The body behaves very differently and has quite different needs and reactions when running at higher revs with more output.

I'm not rubbishing your claims, just suggesting that as you get closer to the pointier end of a high intensity field over more than 3 or 4 hours, you DO need a plan, some gut compliance and practice.

I have some  experience in slow burn, low intensity, long, drawn out races where I can eat boerewors rolls and lasagne and soup and cheese and have jaeger shots at a particularly festive aid station at 2 am on the second night with absolutely no issue, but that doesn't cut it on a 6 hour flat out full gas burn.

Well articulated!

I've previously shared insights into my approach to fueling earlier in this discussion, noting that it was honed through a process of trial and error to suit my individual needs. In single-stage races, the consequences of less-than-ideal fueling are somewhat mitigated by the opportunity to rest and replenish energy stores in the following days.

However, multi-day stage races present a wholly different challenge, particularly events like the Epic, which extend over a week and feature demanding routes day after day. Effective fueling is crucial for two main reasons: firstly, it ensures you have sufficient energy to complete each stage without succumbing to fatigue or muscle cramps, and secondly, it plays a vital role in recovery, preparing you for the rigours of the subsequent stages.

[ChrisF]

4 hours ago, lechatnoir said:

.... best start figuring out the nutrition.... for Epic 2025

 

Very well said.

 

I realised that my "one day" strategy was not going to work a three day stage race.

 

I opted to see a dietitian and get a proper plan, noting some health issues making a generic google download less than optimal.

 

I worked at the feeding plan and got it working nicely during practice rides.  I was very optimistic about this when I entered my first one day race a few months later .... I got so caught up in the racing I totally forgot to eat and drink !!  The worst bonk I ever had.

 

Thanks to some Hubber feedback I now have both drink and eat alerts on my Garmin. 

 

Almost a year later I had the best time at my three day stage race.

 

 

Getting a working formula is hardly an 8 weeks exercise ... (now till the next Epic)

 

 

 

As so many has said already - the eating plan starts at breakfast.  It includes water, juice and eats during the ride.  And very importantly, the recovery meal to make sure you are ready for tomorrow !!

[manbearpig]

Overnight oats in the morning with a banana. 45min into each day another banana. then pretty much smashing a couple of gels and banana at each water point (up to 6 gels a stage). Take the ones at the water tables. Might not work for you but got me through 4 epics and never bonked.  And never had tummy issues. IMHO feeding your fat face on the bike is more important than any other aspect of Epic. Most of the time when you think you're tired you are just out of fuel. I could be wrong though....