Ok well it’s been a while… and the OP really not selling IM to me again !
Low fibre a few days before.
Low fibre brekkie & coffee min 2hrs before the start (was usually cereal + bagel)
Swim
T1
Bike - couple of gels an hour & maybe half a bar. double or triple concentrate energy drink in one bottle sipped over first 3hrs, water in other. Some treats like jaffa cakes or other solids especially towards the end.
T2 - Usually some jaffa cakes on way out, found it helped absorb any remaining hydration on the bike.
Run - Gels, drinks, whatever goes down by that stage.
After bonking in my first IM with 8 miles of the run to go I swore that I would never do that again so I decided to try and calculate how many calories / carbs that I would need to complete an IM and then calculate how much I would need to consume to get to the finish line. There are a number of sites that allow you to calculate this. So I took three and surprisingly they give similar figures. I took the average and then added a little contingency so as to be careful.
It is then is a question of being fully carbo loaded at the start. I then worked out what I was going to eat and when on the bike (6 hours) and then the same on the run (3:30 hours) to ensure that I hit these calculations.
One rule that you have to observe is that you can’t put more than 90g / 360 cals per hour into your body.
The other thing that has changed for me over time is what I consume. As mentioned above Maurten is a bit of a game changer so I have moved from solids more to liquid and gels. At the last IM I had a special needs bag on the bike just so that I could get another bottle of Maurten.
If you want me to share my calcs then happy to do so
Ok, please bear in mind this is not an exact science; though I am trying to pass it off as one
So along with the bike and run times above I plugged in a swim time of 1:10. You also need to add your weight (can’t remember if height and age are also required) . So my average figure for an IM for me was 7650 cals. Now you have 2000 cals of direct energy to start with as you have carbo loaded/ had an appropriate breakfast. The other thing to consider is that you are not burning all of your energy from direct sources. Based on my intensity on the bike I worked on a figure of 63% direct and 37% indirect. If you are pushing harder on the bike, which I think most will be doing than me then you will have to adjust.
So 7650 x.63 gives 4820 or the amount of direct energy required. Add 200 on as contingency to give 5020. But we already have 2000 in our stomachs so I have to get 3020 cals or 760g of carbs into my body to get to the end.
Being slow on the bike helps and torque gels have 30g of carbs in them. I liked to have something every 20 mins (can’t break the 90g per hour rule). So on the bike I was approaching 530- 540g.
The run is more tricky but I tried to have a gel every 6k to 36k.
There is the carbohydrate in your bike/run drinks and as I had said I have gravitated more towards these. However if you look at my numbers you can see that it is very hard to get the required amount of energy into your body to operate effectively, so planning I think is required.
Others, please feel free to critique this. For me though this has worked
Get up an hour or so before and drink chocolate milk. Have a cup of tea. Maybe nibble a few mini cheddars. Sis gel 20mins before start.
(Reasoning: if it goes in it comes out quickly due to nerves and I end up dehydrated and depleted.)
Gel bottle on the bike. About 8 with a bit of fluid. Additional gels in Bento box. As many as will fit.
Electrolyte only until gel bottle (swig every half an hour or so) and gels have gone and then carb drink or electrolyte if I start to struggle with tolerance. I struggle to actually eat any thing on the move that requires chewing (choc brownies - vague success with them).
That said outlaw 2018 had next to nothing on that awful bike ride and ate 2 bags of mini cheddars in T2. One after another. Realised I could be in world of trouble and fed at every aid station a few Jaffas and some mini cheddars type of things and Coke. Little and often seems to work for me on the run.
I finished that late in Italy that there was no food and I went back to my hotel disappointed and frustrated and went to bed. After the other two LD I went to the food tent and at one had to be collected as I felt ill and at the Outlaw got wheelchaired off and seen by the medics mid meal. Lesson to self. Cross the line. Do not eat for a while.
A colleague passed out after London Marathon. Apparently eating straight after was the cause. The medical people may know exactly why but it’s to do with low blood pressure and then blood supply being routed to the stomach causing you to feel light headed or so he explained. I’ve never found much info on it though
Cheers @stenard
Giving the mystical seaweed another go.
I ordered a couple of the trial packs from KoM Fuel.
2 x 320 (80g CHO ea)
1 x 160 (40g CHO)
2 x CAF Gels (25g CHO ea)
Should be easily enough for a 6 hour ride, supplemented with your choice of solid food
I can also carry 1,500ml fluid easily, so will only need on course water
