Loading Up – Pre-Race Prep

To beat the heat this summer, preparation for your endurance event is the key to helping you stay hydrated, energised and ahead of the game. You will be best prepared to avoid dehydration and fatigue if you load up on electrolytes and carbohydrates in the days leading up to your race. The table below offers a useful guide to refer to in preparation for your event; to help maximise your carb stores and set you up to go power past your personal best.

Table One: Carbohydrate Loading and Pre-Race Fuelling Guide

	Dose of Carbs	Timing
Carb Loading*	Consume 7 g - 12 g carbs per kg of body weight per day	2 - 3 days before the race
Pre-Race Fuelling	Consume 1 g - 4 g of carbs per kg of body weight	Within 1 - 4 hours of the start of the race

Carbs are only part of the pre-race equation, with electrolytes forming another important piece of the preparation puzzle. Endura Rehydration Performance Fuel is your go-to fuel during the sweltering summers. Not only does it deliver 20 g of immediate impact and sustained-release carbs, Performance Fuel also provides a beneficial, gut friendly dose of electrolytes, including sodium, potassium, Meta Mag^® magnesium diglycinate and calcium.

Take one level scoop of Performance Fuel in 350 mL of water three times per day, for two to three days before your race to maximise your muscle magnesium and electrolyte levels. Remember to also have one to two doses (mixed at one level scoop with 350 mL of water) 30 minutes before you start your race. Utilise Endura Rehydration Performance Fuel to help perfect your preparations this summer season and stay ahead of the game.

Rehydration on the Run

Endurance sports in our sunburnt country can be particularly punishing during the summer months. Dehydration is a very real health challenge that every endurance athlete should avoid at all cost. Without maintaining hydration, you run the risk of becoming dehydrated when engaging in endurance sports as you are constantly losing water and electrolytes while you sweat. Dehydration can sap you of energy, strength and endurance capacity, making it crucial to maintain hydration when on the run.

Endura Rehydration Performance Fuel is designed for the serious endurance athlete, especially when subjected to hot, humid conditions, as it supplies the key electrolytes you lose through sweat. Performance Fuel also helps to top up your declining fuel levels by providing 20 g of carbohydrates per dose. When you are on the go, take one level scoop mixed with 350 mL of water every 20 minutes of exercise to help maintain hydration and optimise your performance.

Plan your Race Nutrition

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail, and this is especially true for endurance athletes. Due to the risk of dehydration that can accompany endurance sports, particularly during summer, planning your race-day nutrition is incredibly important. The Endura Race Guide and the Endura Training Guide are invaluable tools to help you identify what you need to take during the race and when. Along with these tools, ask yourself the following questions before the big day arrives:

1. Have you used the supplements you plan to use on race day before?  Make sure you train with your rehydration formulas to allow your body to get used to them and to make sure they work for you. The last thing you want is gastric upset while on the run; and
2. Do you know where on course will you refuel and rehydrate? Obtain a copy of the race course and mark out where the drink stations will be. Drink stations are ideal opportunities to refuel and rehydrate.

By preparing thoroughly for your endurance event, you won’t have to worry about performance-depleting dehydration. You will be able to focus instead on maintaining top technique and performing at your sporting best.

Keeping Cool – Master Your Race Mindset

Endurance racing is not for the faint-hearted or the hot headed, especially when the temperature is rising. Keeping your cool is an important aspect of the self-mastery required of endurance athletes. It makes a big difference if you can maintain a positive mental attitude throughout a race. In fact, one study found that providing positive feedback actually improved running efficiency and performance. It isn’t easy to maintain a positive mental attitude in the stifling heat, however here are two simple strategies that successful athletes use to improve performance and power to the end: 

• Positive self-talk – just as the little red engine succeeded by telling itself “I think I can”, you can improve your performance ability with short, precise and consistent positive self-talk. Try out phrases such as, “I got this”, “Let’s go”, or “Yes I can”;
• Visualisation and mental imagery – when you feel like you are suffocating in the heat or struggling up a hill, picturing yourself powering up the incline or breathing easy at the finish line can help you maintain a positive mental attitude and overcome the difficult parts of the race.

Use these strategies during training and in your next race to help you maintain a positive mental attitude, and maximise your performance with the fuelling and hydrating benefits of Endura Rehydration Performance Fuel to help keep you cool and focussed when the going gets hot.

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^{*Carb loading works best when preceded by one to two days of carb depleting where you completely avoid carbs in your diet.}