Do we Overthink Nutrition at Long Distance?

I always thought so (people overthink).  I'm a "simpler is better" guy - MAYBE to the point I under nurish.  I simply try to get 300-400 calories an hour in, mostly through sports drinks easily available on the course (both run and bike).  I throw a "treat" (candy bar) in my SN bag for the bike.

As for the run, I still focus on getting 300-400, but mostly graze and eat what sounds good at the moment.  Most of the time, a couple cookies or chips hit the spot - some coke and broth perhaps.

Other than drinking enough and hitting that 300-400 calorie mark, I really don't have a plan.  Just me.

ETA:  Let me add, I probably spend way more effort in the nutrition I get the week(s) BEFORE an IM, than the race day itself.

I wonder if we do. I too am a KISS type of athlete, though a teeny part of me is always thinking, "if I paid more attention to my nutrition, would I perform better?'" 

One fellow I know literally takes the calculation of his estimated calorie burn on a ride, divides that into the calorie count of a bojangles chicken biscuit, and carries that many biscuits on a ride (and also used a foot-long Subway for his marathon fuel of choice.  Another cyclist I know takes close to 23 different pills during a mtb endurance race as he's a Hammer convert. 

I think the average athlete might indeed over think nutrition, but I think you answered your own question by saying it's largely "under tested in training". Sometimes good, old-fashioned trial-and-error is the way to go. That said, those with special needs (i.e. Type 1 diabetics, hypoglycemics, etc.) probably should over think nutrition. 

"Regarding nutrition, I suspect the marketing push by makers of nutritional products contribute to this."

Guilty as charged.

I'm one of those guys.

In my own feeble defense I will say I find things that do help my performance. I also find a lot of things that don't really seem to make any difference or, worse yet, I don't like or don't want to take the  time to like.

Ultimately I want race and training nutrition to be simple and effective. If I can do a long training ride on Little Debbies and water then I'm good. If I find a sports nutrition product that makes me feel better I'll try that also, but I still want to keep it relatively simple.

Yes.

If I could ask one question: To what degree are you going to train your digestive system for racing?

N=1.  I agree with the two quotes.  My nutrition is based on two things:

- the average athlete can absorb approx 240 calories per hour during excercise(YMMV)

- studies have shown "that consistent exercise training in the fasted state markedly stimulates the contribution of IMCL to energy provision during fasting endurance exercise. Fasting training also increases muscular oxidative capacity more than a similar intensity and duration of exercise with ample exogenous carbohydrate supply"  http://jap.physiology.org/content/110/1/236.full

I do most of my training in the morning prior to eating and take in no nutrition (water only) on rides under 2:30 or runs under 2:00.  My body has adapted fine, with no signs of bonking.  When going longer, I begin taking in nutrition @ 240/hr after 2hrs/bike and 1.5 hr/run.  Nutrition is strictly gels and water.

YES absolutely.  You need fluid and carbs.  It doens' tneed ot be packaged as sports food.  THere is some debate as to how much electrolyte you need and most of the research is going towards much less and training yourself to do better on less.  Will let you know what I learn at ACSM next week. 

"Will let you know what I learn at ACSM next week."

I'm looking forward to that- those will be good insights.

"Indeed, I have weened myself off all sport drink. Wasn't hard. Gels present the most effective and efficient and convenient delivery system for the basics of what you need."

Bam. Spot on. Absolutely agreed.

 Gels present the most effective and efficient and convenient delivery system for the basics of what you need.

I also agree.  I'm currently playing with how to carry gels.  To date, I've found that re-using 2 old EFS flasks filled with Hammer gu and putting them in the pocket of my tri jersey works the best.  Squeeze out a little everytime I take a drink (every 10 minutes) and chase with water.

Any better ideas?

Starting last year I noticed I did better on less, it depended more on my fitness and rest. A real eye opener was a long ride early in the fall. I had a simple breakfast (forget specifics), couple hours getting ready and then the drive out to the start. Granola bar there. Set out and 30 min in, I realized I forgot all my food back in the car. All of it. Figured I had money and would stop if needed. I never needed to. It took 5:40 to get all the way around. I had all the water I needed in the camelbak. This was not an easy ride either. It had ~7,800 ft of climbing and included 13 Cat 4/5 hills, so there were lots of efforts to get over those things. Turned out to be one of my best rides. Highest power average of any long ride to that date. By a noticeable margin.

All this is of interest to me as well b/c I will be doing the Boise 70.3 also. I've been squeezing 3-4 gels in a Hammer flask and putting it in my jersey and just putting water in my Speedfil (genrerally for a ~50mile ride) To be honest I guess I do get really hungry halfway thru and then eat half a bar of something but seems like I should be able to go 3-4 hours on this. Some people I've been talking to say to put electrolyte in the water bottle but as stated above I thought that came with the gels already so seems like overkill...unless it's a particularly hot day I guess. Ug this whole nutrition thing is a pain in the butt urrrr!

Patsy

I have bonked twice during long rides and once during a marathon due to too few calories.

I'll continue to see how many calories MY body can take in per hour, and keep my intake JUST under that number during races.

Found this chart in a sports journal but don't recall where