Race Nutrition: Reliance on Liquids Only

Written By Scott Greenstone

As the final quarter of the 2024 racing season is upon us, I thought I'd share with you how I've implemented my course nutrition to be 100% liquid calories and why this change has worked for me. This post provides my research, planning and how I am organizing my thoughts for each race distance, from Sprint through full Ironman.

As I have been racing throughout the years I have always had a difficult time figuring out my nutrition. This aspect of racing is critical, and the importance of getting this dialed in increases as the race distance increases. This is why the nutritional aspect of racing has often been referred to as the fourth discipline of triathlon.

Conventional research suggests you should take in about 300 calories, 60 - 75 grams of carbs and 24 ounces of fluids per hour of activity. There are athletes that can ingest more, even up to 120 grams of carbs per hour, but that can really mess with your gut and cause a great deal of discomfort. As always, any nutrition you take should be tested in training well before race day.

Given the guidance and my own years of experience I have been successful with taking in 76 grams of carbs and 22-26 ounces of fluid. This season I have been doing this with a combination of Gu Gels and Gummies, Jambar Energy bars, and Fluid Nutrition Electrolytes and Performance powder. Because of my history of a heart attack and having Type 2 diabetes I have learned to rely 100% on myself for hydration and nutrition and not on course aid stations. It may be heavier, but greatly reduces my worry that something may happen on the course.

It is important to note that modifications must be made based on weather conditions. For example, if its going to be a hot and humid day, I may add some electrolyte powder to my carb/caloric bottles on both bike and run and if necessary I will grab water at bike and run aid stations.

As this season has progressed I have been moving more towards 100% liquid and although I have been successful so far with Fluid Nutrition, I have been exploring the possibility of 2 other brands: Skratch Labs and Tailwind. A quick comparison is below based on my Carb/Calorie needs. :

  • Fluid Nutrtion Performance:

    • Per Serving (27g): 100 Calories; 25g of Carbs; 8g of Sugars; 240mg of Sodium; cost based on 30 serving bag $0.93

    • Per Hour (3 servings): 300 calories; 75g of Carbs; 24g of Sugars; 720mg of Sodium; cost based on 30 serving bag $2.79

  • Skratch Labs Super High Carb (1 serving per hour):

    • Per Serving (105 g): 400 calories; 100g of Carbs; 8g of Sugars; 400g of Sodium; cost based on 8 serving bag $5.24

  • Tailwind Endurance Fuel:

    • Per Serving (27g): 100 calories; 25g of Carbs; 25g of Sugars; 310mg of Sodium; cost based on 50 serving bag $0.80

    • Per Hour (3 servings): 300 calories; 75g of Cars; 75g of Sugars; 930mg of Sodium; cost based on 50 serving bag $2.40

As you can see, each has its positives and negatives. Fluid and Skratch keep the sugars down. Skratch makes planning simple with just 1 serving of 7 scoops, but then making slight modifications becomes a bit more difficult but not impossible as one scoop is equal to 14g of carbs. Tailwind ends up being the cheapest per serving, however the high sugar content can be problematic for some.

Next I detail what my race nutrition looks like starting 2 days out through race day for Sprint through Ironman distances.

Please reach out if you have any questions, or want to share any feedback.

    • 2 days before at 72-100 ounces of water with at least 24 ounces including Fluid Nutrition electrolyte mix.

    • 1 day before at 72-100 ounces of water with at least 24 ounces including Fluid Nutrition electrolyte mix. High protein, high carb dinner consisting of (8-12g of carbs per kg of weight)

    • 1-2 hours before race start approximately 200 calories through instant oatmeal or a banana or a JamBar energy bar. 

    • 15 - 20 minutes prior to swim start one packet of caffeinated Gu Energy Gel

    • Transition 1: take a couple of swigs of a bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes 

    • Bike: 1x 24 ounce bottles of 200 calories/50 grams

    • Transition 2: take a couple of swigs of a bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes

    • Take water as needed on course

    • Post race finish the bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes in transition and throughout the remainder of the day drink and additional 24-36 ounces of fluid.

    • 2 days before at 72-100 ounces of water with at least 24 ounces including Fluid Nutrition electrolyte mix.

    • 1 day before at 72-100 ounces of water with at least 24 ounces including Fluid Nutrition electrolyte mix. High protein, high carb dinner consisting of (8-12g of carbs per kg of weight)

    • 1-2 hours before race start approximately 300 calories through a combination of 2 of the following:  instant oatmeal,  banana, JamBar energy bar. 

    • 15 - 20 minutes prior to swim start one packet of caffeinated Gu Energy Gel

    • Transition 1: take a couple of swigs of a bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes 

    • Bike: 2x 24 ounce bottles of 300 calories/75 grams

    • Transition 2: take a couple of swigs of a bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes

    • Take water as needed on course

    • Post race finish the bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes in transition and throughout the remainder of the day drink and additional 36-48 ounces of fluid.tion text goes here

    • 2 days before at 72-100 ounces of water with at least 24 ounces including Fluid Nutrition electrolyte mix. High protein, high carb dinner consisting of (8-12g of carbs per kg of weight)

    • 1 day before at 72-100 ounces of water with at least 24 ounces including Fluid Nutrition electrolyte mix. High protein, high carb dinner consisting of (8-12g of carbs per kg of weight)

    • 2-3 hours before race start approximately 500 calories through instant oatmeal, banana, and JamBar energy bar. Drink 16-24 ounces of Fluid Nutrition ORS high electrolyte powder

    • 15 - 20 minutes prior to swim start one packet of caffeinated Gu Energy Gel

    • Transition 1: take a couple of swigs of a bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes 

    • Bike: 3x 24 ounce bottles of 300 calories/75 grams

    • Transition 2: take a couple of swigs of a bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes

    • Run: 4x 8 ounce fuel belt bottles each with 150 calories/37.5 grams of carbs

    • Post race finish the bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes in transition and throughout the remainder of the day drink and additional 36-48 ounces of fluid.

    • 2 days before at 72-100 ounces of water with at least 24 ounces including Fluid Nutrition electrolyte mix. High protein, high carb dinner consisting of (8-12g of carbs per kg of weight)

    • 1 day before at 72-100 ounces of water with at least 24 ounces including Fluid Nutrition electrolyte mix. High protein, high carb dinner consisting of (8-12g of carbs per kg of weight)

    • 2-3 hours before race start approximately 500 calories through instant oatmeal, banana, and JamBar energy bar. Drink 16-24 ounces of Fluid Nutrition ORS high electrolyte powder

    • 15 - 20 minutes prior to swim start one packet of caffeinated Gu Energy Gel

    • Transition 1: take a couple of swigs of a bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes 

    • Bike: 3x 24 ounce bottles of 300 calories/75 grams; have 3 more bottles at special needs with the same mixture and replace at that time

    • Transition 2: take a couple of swigs of a bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes

    • Run: 4x 8 ounce fuel belt bottles each with 150 calories/37.5 grams of carbs; have 4 more bottles at special needs with the same mixture and replace at that time

    • Post race finish the bottle of Fluid Nutrition electrolytes in transition and throughout the remainder of the day drink and additional 36-48 ounces of fluid.

Scott Greenstone