10 WODs in one day - What to eat??

[Shane Skowron]

Originally Posted by Geoff Archibald

Your body has more than enough energy in the form of fat so carbs during the day are not that important

This is not correct. The body has plenty of fuel in the form of fat, but fat oxidation can only be used for oxidative activities -- generally speaking, light aerobic activities. Max deadlifts at 275# does not fall into this category, and most high intensity exercise lasting more than a few seconds is primarily glycolytic in nature. This type of activity will require an extraordinary amount of carbohydrates to fuel.

[Katherine Derbyshire]

Originally Posted by Geoff Archibald

IMO you need to concentrate on hydration and glycogen replenishment. For that, I'm a big fan of gels with lots of water and some food. Based on what I've read from Mark Twight's mountaineering book, gels are formulated for maximizing gastric emptying which is the passing of water from the stomach to the gut for absorption. The stomach does this most efficiently with a certain amount of sugar present, the amount in a gel serving, which is good for about 750-1000L per hour. The sugar also helps in keeping the glycogen system going. You'll also need some electrolytes in there for water absoption or you'll just pass it all. Some protein helps with the insulin spikes.

If you don't like gels then eating foods high in sugar should accomplish something similar. I think that Paleo for Athletes gives a similar strategy for all day events but with a Paleo twist (obviously).

Your body has more than enough energy in the form of fat so carbs during the day are not that important and eating too much will cause more harm than good. You want to pack the high energy foods in at the end of the day.

This strategy worked well for me with 7 workouts in 2 days at the comp I was in 2 weeks ago and has worked well for big mountaineering and climbing days.

So what are you recommending? Gels and hydration over the course of the day, or just eat a big meal at the end? Your post seems self-contradictory.

FWIW, my own experience with all day events is that glycogen replenishment is critical, and carbs are the fastest and most effective way to accomplish that.

Katherine

[Brian Gregory]

So, I guess loading up on the carbs throughout the day is going to be the best way to stay fueled.
Would you worry about fat intake at all, besides prior to beginning and after the comp is done?
I appreciate everyone's input, as I don't have any experience with more than 4 wods in a day.

[Geoff Archibald]

All of my information is based on what I recalled from reading Mark Twight's Extreme Alpinism nutrition section (which could be dated at this point) although I recall thinking that the Paleo for Athletes book said something pretty similar. I just had a quick look at EA again through google books and I got some of it wrong in my previous post which has been pointed out. The approach is biased toward more a more endurance type day than the glycogen depleting effects of a crossfit workout but there can be elements of that in a big day of climbing if there are some particularly difficult pitches. Twight warns against depleting the glycogen early in the day since it is difficult to replenish while exercising.

His recommendation for performance nutrition is 2 GUs every hour supplemented with a litre of sports drink. The GUs have leucine and valine to aid in muscle repair and many of them have caffeine which aids in converting fat to energy. The sports drink should be maltodextrin and salts mixed to provide 100-200 cal per litre. The GUs and sports drink will give about 400 cal/hr which will provide the maximum energy the body can absorb in an hour and maximize gastric emptying.

He says eating any kind of fat or protein will slow you down and make you weaker so I would avoid the olive oil. You'll need to eat something during the day but try to get it early on in a big break.

If I was doing it I would carb load like crazy for the 2 days prior. I tend to not eat a big breakfast unless I have 2 or 3 hours before the activity but I'd probably have a coffee. I'd try to stick to the plan of a gel every 1/2hr with water and sports drink every 15 minutes to get the 400 cal/hr and 1L/hr of water. I'd bring something to eat that I know I can do a WOD within a 1/2 hr of eating. I'd through some raisins in there since they lower body PH and have lots of antioxidants. I'd eat something slightly more substantial in the big break but try not to put the body into sleepy mode. I tend to eat Cliff bars (there are probably better options) instead of gels when I start to get hungry to satiate the stomach a bit without overloading it. I would continue drinking as much water as possible and have a big meal or two at the end of the day to try and recover as best as possible.

Make sure you pay attention to your body. I start peeing frequently if the salts get out of whack in my body and if I'm having trouble focusing I'm usually dehydrated. If you're feeling funny try to interpret the signs and figure out if there's something you can eat to help. A lot of it is trial and error so it's hard to get right the first time. My approach may not work for everyone.

I like Carb Boom but GUs work fine for me as well. I haven't special ordered in the ones that the ultramarathoners like. I look for ones based on maltodextrin since that's what Twight recommends. I think there is more energy per molecule than glucose or fructose.

[Spencer James]

I agree that it doesn't sound like a great day to experiment, but two things that I love for mountaineering and long road bike/mountain bike rides are Clif Blocks (sort of a gelatin sweet fruit snack like thing...I think more glucose than fructose and you can get them with caffeine) and Clif Rocks (sort of nougaty little cookies that have a decent amount of protein). Obviously they aren't paleo, but they definitely worked for me on a few recent mountaineering trips/bike rides. I like the little caffeine kick, too.

[Andrew Bell]

Start eating carbs about 72 hours out. Day before eat like an ox. Eat anything and everything you can. Day of I would make sure to drink something like some Pedilite or something along those lines.....

[Kevin J. Fleming]

In addition to carbs and electrolytes (which other posters have covered), I would also consume some easily digestible protein, e.g. PeptoPro.

Everyone is different, but I would suggest the following: bananas, coconut water, PeptoPro, Biotest finibars (for the midday break), and Surge Workout Fuel.

[Lisa Smalheiser]

Originally Posted by Andrew Bell

Start eating carbs about 72 hours out. Day before eat like an ox. Eat anything and everything you can. Day of I would make sure to drink something like some Pedilite or something along those lines.....

+1 to this point!

[William A Cantrell]

Idk this is going to tax you anyway you look at it. This much back to back all out sprinting...(max reps for time) Is going to be rough on the nervous system to say the least...id go with what you know make sure you are hydrated will be the biggie I think and Id personally start upping the dietary fats a few days out...to make sure you have the energy save any gels or high carb stuff for that last workout you dont wanna crash.

[Andrew Bell]

Here's a GREAT article on eating before and the day of a tri, same principles that apply to your compitition.

Tri nutrition. (wfs)

I'll add that last weekend I had a half marathon and I followed this whole "72 hour prior eat a ton of carbs" thing, and I had SO MUCH energy pumping through me by Saturday night I didn't know how I would sleep that night, and Sunday (the morning of the marathon) I had a TON of energy and was ready to go.