Every endurance (and ultra distance) athlete wants to show up to an event/race feeling physically prepared. But what about being nutritionally prepared?
A long distance event places a lot of stress on the human body. Extreme environmental conditions further exacerbate the physiological (and mental) demands during physical activity. While physical preparation can improve the chance of completing the event or setting a personal best time, gastrointestinal issues are likely to cause the body to underperform. Or even worse, you may not be able to complete the event due to a nutritional complication.
Research states that around 30-70% of endurance and ultra endurance athletes experiences GI issues on race day. In other words, at an Ironman triathlon of 1500 athletes, around 1050 athletes will experience some type of GI issue. This is a very alarming statistic considering how money, time and effort go into preparing for an endurance event.
I've worked with many athletes who have come to me after struggling with nutrition issues on race day. While I can feel the frustration and sadness coming from the athlete (after the race that they prepared so much for, didn't go as planned), I typically see several common trends of what the athlete did before/during the race that contributed to the uncomfortable and performance compromising GI issues.
With so many endurance and ultra distance events happening throughout the year, here are a few reasons why GI issues occur and how you can reduce your risk on race day.
