How To Effectively Fuel For An Ultra Marathon

The longer your event, the more important fuelling well becomes. But what should you eat & drink, & how much? In this video Mark and James go over the key nutrition you need to be consuming & when to have it. It's important to fuel your body correctly so you can perform your best!
0:00 - Intro
0:34 - Glycogen and fat for fuel
1:31 - Three things you need to do
2:34 - Pre Event
4:25 - Race day morning
5:06 - The event itself
7:20 - Hydration
9:19 - Caffeine
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#gtn #triathlon #swimbikerun #swim #bike #run #fuel #snacks #food #carbs #electrolytes #energy #ultra
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[@duggiefreshuk196]

I've got a 100mile ultra event coming up in September this year and also have a 50k fell run in 2 months I've run 5 ultras. (Runs being over 50k, one was 42.5 miles which was my longest) I'm aiming on doing 50miles within the next week and to keep building it up and as I'm doing this to learn about how to fuel myself. Very helpful video and great advice 👍

[@mitchatkins7402]

Great point about the caffeine build up in the last sentences, James.

[@mandylowther]

Running my first ultra in March in Dunedin, New Zealand. 55 km of beautiful trail running! I am yet to actually do a full marathon, but am hoping this is going to be a bit of fun. Thank you for the advice :)

[@halmclarry6259]

I've run a few ultras and until I watched your video I hadn't thought about the huge difference in the amount of calories I was expending vs the amount I was eating. I dnf'd at the Rocky raccoon 100 with an uncontrollable lean at about mile 94. I'm going to try again with more food and more electrolytes. Thanks for posting this. I've seen countless videos and calories in vs calories out never clicked until now. Thanks!

[@alharris8861]

Thanks squad. Starting to ramp up for my first 50 miler in June.

[@jannikheidrich2035]

I set myself up to cycle home for a weekend from the city that I study at, ca. 850km, 5000m of altidude and 3 Days on my trusty Cargo Bike to do it. Thank you for elaborating a little, I will take you suggestions into consideration, not only for the effort, but for my training aswell, and that I didn't consider before. Thank you a lot!

[@realrichloen]

Great video guys, always a joy to watch as it’s very informative and professional without any product endorsements. Well done 👏👏👏

[@gtn]

Much appreciated!

[@bucketlistworld7436]

Carb loading is the only reason I run I’m not missing out on that 😂

[@racheler7926]

I’m running the Crater Rim Ultra in Christchurch, NZ in mid October

[@peterseager6970]

Running the OCC (55k) at the end of August. My craving on my last 50k was ginger beer. Drank buckets of it at he aid stations. Didn’t eat much in the way of solid food, but nibbled on energy bars and had regular gels. Plus watermelon and oranges at the aid stations (Tarawera Ultra in NZ. Famous for its aid stations🙂)

[@robohippy]

I do like to do one distance swim per week, and for now, that is a 3 mile swim. For carb replacement, the chews and bars don't work, I I use the PHF powder. Last 3 mile swim was 7 or 8 bottles, 16 oz. with one of the 1500 tabs and a scoop of the carb powder. I am in the very high sweat category..... Using the carb powders is totally new to me, and still figuring out what I need. I did notice that I burn more calories in the pool than I do on the bike, but don't bike as much any more. Oh, last time for the 3 mile swim was 2:15, and should be able to get that under 2.... Also, I am 72 years old. I may need to try my 3 mile swim with no carbs some time, just to see what happens.... Oh, I remember a while back you asked people what their race day breakfast was. I was surprised how many said porridge, which to me is oatmeal. That is my main breakfast....

[@3WalkingPoles]

Just an observation: it's amazing how well James acclimatised to British weather - just light jumper in contrast to Mark in cosy dawn jacket and a hat. Or is he getting ready for Norseman/Celtman?

[@Kelly_Ben]

One of the things I factor in when choosing ultras is how awesome their aid stations are. Home made Mac n cheese, soup, quesadillas, grilled cheese, bacon... I'm thankful my stomach is solid and my intensity low enough to digest it on the run. It also frees up scheduling... no more calculating when to eat/ run for training. I make it a point to head out the door for an easy run immediately after lunch or dinner numerous times in training, to be prepared for a 12 hour race. The only time I've had stomach issues during a race is when I took a gel every 45 minutes for a 6 hour race in addition to snacks. 🤢

[@codenameconovers3398]

Thank you so much , running my first marathon very soon ! This is great advice !!! 🏃‍♂️

[@gtn]

Glad you found this video helpful! We have a video on how to prepare for your first marathon if you'd like to check it out 👉 kzbin.info/www/bejne/qautnWaFpbyLotk Let us know how it goes! 🙌

[@michaela2197]

I am also running my first marathon next month so I just wanted to throw some positive vibrations your way and wish you the best!

[@good____soul]

Дуже корисне відео. Дякую вам за вашу роботу

[@gtn]

What's your favourite snack to bring on a run? Let us know in the comment section below! 🍌🍫🍬

[@codenameconovers3398]

Kind energy bars , hopefully they sponsor me now 🏃‍♂️ 😂

[@lildeb2620]

Sweet potato. MMMmmmMMM

[@rustyheyman214]

Are usually go with Cliff bars or Frooze Balls But for the long rides stopping off at a convenience store, and getting peanut M&Ms is always a nice treat

[@Rich_1]

Im doing the 50K Tarawera Ultra here in NZ next weekend. I’m going to try not carb load and just keep eating my normal healthy diet, We will see how it goes 😅

[@timvanmonero2720]

i always eat pizza. because easier to eat cold than burgers.

[@gtn]

What's your go-to pizza topping? 👀

[@timvanmonero2720]

@@gtn veggies. so i can pretend i eat enough greens 🌱🌱

[@_Zabamund_]

Running my first marathon this May in Leeds so thanks for this advice! Btw this is the Rob Burrow marathon aiming to raise money to fight MND. I won't link to my fundraising page but if you want to help just look up the marathon and give what you can or come and run it with us!

[@gtn]

That's great to hear! Be sure to let us know how it goes! 🙌 We have a video on doing your first marathon 👉 kzbin.info/www/bejne/qautnWaFpbyLotk if you want to check it out! 👀

[@blindstrom14]

Running my first Ultra in Grayton Beach State Park, Florida later this month. 50 K Trail run, I'm looking forward to it. Y'all have been instrumental in my triathlon self-training (doing my first full Iron in Chattanooga this coming September), I'm thrilled to see this video pop up as I'm entering the final stages of training for my Ultra. Good job y'all, keep it up!

[@pogpoggle]

‘Running’ Chester Ultra in 4 weeks ! At 50 miles it will be longest event, previous longest was 53km. When I ran that I consumed about 1 litre of water and 1.5 litres of Voom , two Voom bars and an apple.... not much for 6.5 hours running. That said I didn’t bonk, and felt pretty good at the end. I did eat for 3 people for about 48 hours afterwards though!!

[@timdouglas4591]

I am going for my first 50+ miles on 4/1/23. My main goal was to get 50 miles however it is now if at 50 miles I am still in a place to keep moving forward, I will continue pushing forward to see how many miles I can log. This is a 48-hour event making 5K loops. I am ready for the grid and trust the training and nutrition I have in place.

[@gtn]

Good luck!

[@user-vx6fb1hj3d]

I'm doing Wings for Life and going for top 30 in the world!

[@jannikheidrich2035]

how did race day go for you?

[@douglasbooth6836]

That 90 min totally depends on your race zone and your fitness. Carb loading does work but very difficult to get right. Slow carbs, nothing that spikes your your glucose level.

[@markschoeman9194]

Challenge Roth - first ever long distance. Sttill trying to figure out the nutrition discipline.

[@EtienneLouw]

Running comrades ultra marathon in June, 90km/56miles and I have always struggled with nutrition so great timing for this video. I am trying a whole bunch of new bars and gels in the long runs, and going to look at the carbs on it. With regards to dried meat (biltong/beef jerky) would this be something you would recommend or not during the event, heard people talking about the protein and salt are good while running?

[@jeffw654]

It depends on how fat adapted you are, but if you are running at a reasonably hard and sustained effort you will mostly be using glycogen and carbohydrates as fuel, so you will need to keep that energy topped up (and mostly save the fats and protein for after). Salt and other electrolytes are lost mostly in sweat. Some can get away with the amount of salt in gels and food, or within the sports drinks, while others are better off with electrolyte tablets e.g. salty sweaters.

[@heatherfell_oly]

They have great salted potatoes too, I fuelled a lot on them and oranges when I ran that race!

[@RichRuns909]

With my second Ultra, I felt like my fueling was much better then my first. Besides my Clif Blocks, I had Sour Patch Kids, Pretzels, Peanut Butter sandwiches....I never felt like I hit the wall, though I was getting slower.

[@saytani]

Running first 100+km event. Tarawera Ultra Marathon (TUM102) in 10 days or so.

[@orbifold4387]

I'm not carb phobic, I just can't seem to tolerate a lot of them during a long run or ride so I keep them at a minimum, mainly for hydration. Knowing that coconut oil or MCT oil are still good sources of fuel has been life changing for me. And no more tooth decay or constipation.

[@dbranc0]

Carb loading is always NECESSARY before and after, with meat balls pls :)))))))))))))))

[@rustyheyman214]

Thanks for the video guys. I will disagree about one thing in the video. You should take caffeine before the event and continue to take up until towards the end. The reason is it takes a while for the caffeine to take affect and for your body to process it. You want to start the event with caffeine in the system, and then not take any at the end to give your body a chance to shed it and be able to hopefully go to sleep at night.

[@alanshrimpton6787]

50k in 8 days 🤔 UTMB Tarawera Rotorua NZ. My longest run like ever.

[@inakilrg]

For stomach problems beyond 3h try Coke, it works wonders for my stomach when it doesn’t accept food any longer…

[@jannikheidrich2035]

My nose starts bleeding with this strat, wouldn't recommend

[@OakLeafs30]

I got my trusty maple syrup with some salt for my long runs

[@jimmyhercule6037]

That’s smart I was thinking about bringing honey and salt on my next long run

[@suziel5817]

​@jimmyhercule6037 I use a mix of honey, molasses and salt for my long runs - molasses has potassium in it.

[@Dinckelburg]

I'm doing green man 45mile in march and I'll be making my peanut, oat and chocolate bombs to munch on the way round. They've never let me down.

[@gtn]

Sounds yummy 😋 Be sure to let us know how the run goes! 🙌

[@murshizimahadzir8459]

I run before my snacks

[@playerzero2236]

Caffeine will deplete your sodium quickly so just be aware of that. I'm a big fan of espresso so I consume extra salt to offset it

[@karvn1148]

Carb load daily, not just for races

[@savagepro9060]

0:30 Come on GTN, you guys had the BALLS prove Balls Out effort needs Balls Out nutrition . . . I guess!

[@paradoxicalundressing]

Heavy Sweater would be a great name for an indie band.

[@Dinckelburg]

Look them up on Spotify .

[@Pistolsmoke24]

Nice accent you got there. New Jersey?

[@TamaEnergy]

Never bonked when running until I ran 35km. At 30km I suddenly started crying for no reason and literally had to walk it was so so werid. Took on some sugar - 5mins later was finishing the last 14km at a good pace! Werid!

[@leslie7922]

That curry looked like water lmao. Pizza is good cause it cleans you out the next day but can make mouth dry. Pasta or rice is more risk adverse.

[@chrisstrider]

Hawaiian Pizza or Salad Nicoise ?……..maybe alternate

[@savagepro9060]

0:30 I was too embarrassed to even admit it. But now, it's too much. I have been looking for my balls

[@yodaddamilkman8422]

You’re telling me you burn through 100,000 calories worth of fat? I call bs.

[@oranj.h]

Disappointing lack of Kendal mint cake, pretzels and/or pork pies in this ultra food round up. Sometimes your practical choice is REAL FOOD or SCIENCE.

[@TehLiquid]

Better to fuel on fat.

[@alisonwilks302]

Yodel you jodel me ??? I want to see Jodie swim ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️

[@Richard_Johnson69]

She is beautiful ♥️🤩🤩

[@richardmiddleton7770]

Wrong, the longer the event, providing you have trained specifically for it, the less important fueling is. This is because the intensity is so low you are predominantly using your fat stores for fuel. Again, this has to be trained, otherwise you won't be able to consume enough fuel during to keep you going. Well you will, if you want to shit yourself!

[@ictogon]

Wrong

[@SotaMaehara]

I'm doing Wings for Life and going for top 30 in the world!