WHITEFISH (Montana) — With the non-stop Race Across America (RAAM) bicycle race starting in Oceanside, Calif. on June 11th and finishing 3,043 miles away in Atlantic City, New Jersey, any of the Solo Traditional and Solo Enduro competitors who are not on the right nutritional program, and have not fully tested it, could be headed for the Emergency Room.

In 2004 48% of Solo category RAAM riders did not finish (DNF) and in 2005 51% were DNFs.

While not all of RAAM’s DNF results are nutrition-related, this is expected to be the single biggest factor causing DNF results.

So extreme is the effort of solo RAAM that minor imbalances in an athlete’s nutrition can have major consequences such as stomach distress, hyponatremia, and possible kidney damage.

RAAM athletes who get their nutrition wrong frequently end up in hospital for two or three days until their systems stabilize to a point where it is safe for them to leave.

Yet such trauma can usually be prevented by following correct nutritional guidelines, and conditioning the body to a nutritional routine well in advance of the race.

Steve Born, the senior technical advisor of E-Caps & Hammer Nutrition Ltd. - a company that produces supplements and fuels for endurance athletes - has been involved in ultra marathon cycling since 1987, with several ultra distance competitions - including three RAAM finishes – under his belt.

Over the years Steve has worked with several other RAAM competitors on their training/racing fuel programs, helping them to take the guesswork out of this critical component of success in RAAM.

“The knowledge we’ve amassed over the past decade-plus regarding what constitutes proper fueling in endurance athletics has been tremendous,” Born says. “There are many important strategies that we believe endurance athletes need to remember and apply in order to achieve success.” These include:

1.) Drinking appropriate amounts of fluids- Most athletes under most conditions will benefit from a fluid intake in the area of 20-28 ounces/hour. Cool weather exercise might require only a little over half of that. Big athlete, very hot and humid conditions—maybe up to 30 ounces or slightly over. The endurance athlete must remember that while maintaining hydration is vital the consumption of excess amounts of fluids can lead to severe performance and health consequences.

2.) Avoiding junk foods and products containing refined sugars and artificial ingredients – The wise athlete will keep the phrase “garbage in, garbage out” in mind when fueling their body, understanding that the quality of fuel they put in their body greatly determines the quality of energy they’ll get out of it. Using junk food to fuel the body or using fuels that contain refined sugars and artificial ingredients won’t benefit performance and will usually end up ruining it.

3.) Replenishing the body with appropriate amounts of calories – The human body is not equipped to replenish its losses in anywhere close to equal amounts so athletes who try to replace “calories out” with an equal amount of “calories in” usually suffer a variety of digestive maladies, which, of course, compromises performance. For most athletes, 240-300 cal/hr will do the job. For lighter athletes, 180-200 cal/hr may be just right, while larger athletes can consider hourly intakes of slightly over 300 cal/hr. Athletes need to remember that body fat stores will easily make up the difference between what the body burns and what it can accept in terms of caloric replenishment.

4.) Replenishing electrolytes during exercise – Consistently replenishing the body with an adequate supply of electrolytes is as important as consuming sufficient amounts of calories and fluids. Athletes who neglect this important component of fueling will impair their performance, and may incur painful and debilitating cramping.

5.) Not relying on salt tablets to fulfill electrolyte requirements – Salt (sodium chloride) is just one of several necessary electrolytes to replenish during exercise. Calcium, magnesium, and potassium also play key roles in fulfilling electrolyte requirements. Additionally, excess salt consumption impairs normal body mechanisms for handling electrolytes, and creates a variety of problems such as nausea and edema-like symptoms.

6.) Using liquid fuels as the main energy source, even during prolonged training and races – There’s nothing wrong with consuming some solid food on occasion during prolonged exercise as a pleasant diversion from the monotony of liquid fuel consumption. However, the athlete needs to keep in mind that solid food is harder to digest than liquid, requiring more time, water, and electrolytes. Relying too heavily on solid foods can leave the athlete feeling lethargic, bloated, and nauseated. Liquid fuels digest and absorb readily, which helps prevent those unwanted maladies.

7.) Not using any new supplement or fuel, or supplement/fueling protocol, in a race without having first tested it in training - This is a cardinal rule for all athletes, yet many still break it. Unless the athlete is absolutely desperate and willing to accept the consequences, it’s important to not try anything new in competition, be it equipment, fuel, or tactics. These all must be tested and refined in training.

8.) Being flexible with fuel consumption during a race – It’s important to have a fueling “game plan” in place, one that ‘s been tested and refined in training. However, what may work well in terms of fueling during training may not always be appropriate during the race; that game plan may need to be slightly altered on occasion.

There are, of course, other important strategies to consider but I believe the athlete who adopts these primary ones has the best chance for success in their training and racing. These strategies apply to all endurance athletes and I believe they’re crucial for success in a race as difficult as RAAM.”




About Hammer Nutrition and E-Caps

Hammer Nutrition and E-Caps exists to help all athletes reach their highest levels of performance and health. In 1987 Hammer Nutrition and E-Caps became the first manufacturer of a full range of nutritional and supplemental products for athletes before, during and after training and competition. Since then our formula of 100% natural products has proved ever more successful. Our products never have and never will contain added simple sugars, artificial colors, stimulants, hormones, steroids, or banned substances. All of our products are safe, legal and optimally healthy. Alongside superior product quality stands superior customer service. Call 1-800-336-1977 for free advice from our nutritional experts about how to best use our products, or browse our vast, authoritative nutritional resource center at www.e-caps.com