Most race organisers will give an outline of the basic nutritional supplies you will need to complete one of their ultramarathons. By using this as your template you can then try out different foods and nutritional aids throughout your running and pre-race training to fine-tune what works for you, and what you do and don’t like.
Take a look in our recent Nutrition Feature – we discussed there is food and drink that you can take at certain intervals in order to gain maximum performance. But there is no magic wand. What may work for the ultra runner standing next to you on the start line, may not work for you!
To give you a helping hand, two fantastic ultramarathoners have each given an example of their nutrition list over their multi-day events.
Charlotte Hurst
Ultra Runner
Marathon Des Sables
The temperatures got crazy high so I used everything. The food worked well for me. The recovery drink was about the only thing that I really looked forward to having. In the heat you just don’t want to eat and almost had to force myself.
All in all I was happy with what I took. The stove was originally on my list but because of the medication I had to carry I couldn’t take it. I didn’t miss it in the slightest and if I did the MDS again I definitely wouldn’t worry about leaving it at home again.
‘During the race, your minimum food intake is 2,000 calories a day but you may need more. With a diet composed of 15 % protein, 30 % fats and 55 % carbs (with at least half of those slow-burning carbohydrates), water consumption should be between 6 and 7 litres per day.’
Marathons Des Sables
They provide essential info for all participating runners HERE
An example of Charlotte’s daily MDS nutrition list is available to view below. It is a carefully detailed account – breakfast, snacks during run, post-run snacks, dinner and before bed, with individual and total weights (grams), alongside calories and carbohydrates.
| Day 1 – Sunday | Weight | Calories |
Carbohydrate |
|
| Breakfast | Small Chia Charge Bar with sea salt flakes | 30 | 142 | 17g |
| Snacks During Run | 1 pack GU Jellies | 62 | 180 | 44g |
| Fruit Pastilles 0.5 packet (7 sweets) | 26.25 | 76 | 22g | |
| Mango | 50 | 166 | 41g | |
| Chia Charge Bar Banana | 30 | 134 | 17.1g | |
| Gels 2 | 70 | 200 | 23g x2 | |
| Beef Bar | 22.5 | 65 | 4.7g | |
| Nuts | 49 | 294 | 15g | |
| Post Run | 60g Recovery Powder X4RI +500ml H20 | 60 | 242 | 29g |
| Dinner | 0.5 Radix Nutrition Mixed Berry 800 | 82 | 402.5 | 21.5g |
| Before Bed | Night Fuel Powder | 35 | 114.8 | 24.6 |
| TOTAL | 516.75 | 2016.3 |
Steven James
Ultra Runner and Running coach at PFM Coaching
South Wales Wildhorse 200
I am fortunate in that I am very tolerant of energy gels so I used mostly these for my in run nutrition. Now I usually use Torq energy gels but I packed for taking the entire cut off time and when I did my calculations that was a crazy amount of gels so I looked for some cheaper options… In the end I used 76 gels in the event.
Nutrition is very much something you need to trial in training.
Steven’s race kit blog is here
Steven’s nutrition list for the Wildhorse 200 comprised of:
Wiggle brand energy gels x 120 (used 76)
Active Root Energy drink in various flavours (pouches for in bag, tubs in drop bag).
John West Tuna Salad Pots x 3
Ambrosia Custard pots
Ambrosia Rice pudding pots
Wiggle energy bars (various flavours)
Peperami Jerky
Trail Mix
Wicked kitchen Chia & Cocoa Cashews
A selection of cup a soups
Mission Teas (Perform, hydrate & recovery)
A selection of pastries and flapjacks
High 5 Recovery Sachets
High 5 Zero electrolyte tabs