The body can only store around 1600Kcal of carbohydrates in the body and you re likely to burn over 2000Kcal during the marathon which means you will need to fuel during the race. But what are the best during race fuelling strategies. Your primary fuel source during the marathon will be carbohydrates. However, we only store a limited amount of carbohydrates even with a good carb-loading strategy. Therefore, you will need to fuel during the race. The current recommendation is any exercise longer than 90 minutes requires 90g of carbohydrates per hour of exercise. To give you perspective that’s roughly a bowl of pasta per hour of running. Which means the average marathon runner (assuming a time of 4.5 hours) would require around 400g of carbohydrates (the equivalent to about 1600Kcal). Consuming 1600Kcal during marathon would be a very difficult task and may not benefit you. So you need to make sure your body can get the most from each gram of carbohydrates you give it, so how do you do this? Training itself at both a low an high intensity overtime will improve your bodies glycogen sensitivity which means you will become better can absorbing and utilising carbohydrates. Which means keep consistent with training and your body will get better a using less carbohydrates for the same intensity. Further, the motion of running does not lend itself to fuelling without feeling discomfort. Which unfortunately means you are going to need to practice in training how to fuel/get used to the feeling. For example, one strategy is going for an immediately after eating a meal, although this should be done with caution, so start with smaller meals. When practicing your fuelling you also need to consider the type of fuel. Although we need to get carbohydrates in the body there are many different forms we can get this (gel, drink solid food etc.). Experiment with different fuel types to see what works for you. However, try and focus on gel or liquid form quick release carbohydrates. A big mistake runners often make is waiting till they feel dehydrated or in need of fuel during race. But by that point it’s too late, you should be feeling little and often throughout the race to prevent this feeling. So definitively how much should you eat? Although it will vary from person to person but roughly aim for 7g/kg of body weight. So for example if you are 63kg you will need 441Kcal of carbohydrates which is a total of 110g of carbohydrates or 28g per 10km of running. Need further help? Drop us an email below. BCA email: info@breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com See are other marathon articles below: https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/post/marathon-guide

This is the BCA marathon guide with a collection of all the help centre articles in one place to help you find the information you need. Follow the articles from top to bottom to gain a complete understanding of how you need to prepare for the marathon and what you should do once you have finished the race Find out how to fuel for a marathon both before and during the race. Marathon Pre-Fuelling In the lead up to your marathon you should beginning think about how you are going fuel yourself for the race. Most of us will be burning in excess of 2000 Kcal during the race nearly all of which will come from carbohydrates. So how do we ensure you have enough carbohydrates to get us through the race. https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/post/marathon-pre-fuelling Marathon During-Fuelling The body can only store around 1600Kcal of carbohydrates in the body and you re likely to burn over 2000Kcal during the marathon which means you will need to fuel during the race. But what are the best during race fuelling strategies. https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/post/marathon-during-fuelling So now you understand how to fuel for your marathon, but what about the pacing, or finding the right pace. How to Pace a Marathon Marathon pacing can account for 14% of your perfomance (marathon time) on the day of theevent, so it imporant to get right. But, what is the optimal pacing method? https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/post/how-to-pace-a-marathon Marathon Race Pace Your marathon race pace will vary depending on your ability. You will learn your marathon pace over time and get a better feel for what it is like to sustain the effort. During training you should have a marathon pace session once a week to help you with this. https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/post/marathon-race-pace Now you have finished the marathon you are likey feeling fatgiue and wondering what is best (or safe) for you to do exercise/training wise. Post Marathon Recovery The marathon will induce a lot of fatigue that can take time to recover from. So once you have finished the marathon what should you be doing to back to normal again. https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/post/post-marathon-recovery Best of luck at your marathon if you do have any questions, please email BCA. Or you can add us to your TrainingPeaks account so we can see your progress. Email: info@breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com Add to TrainingPeaks acount link: https://home.trainingpeaks.com/attachtocoach?sharedKey=QTNQSOVO6T5GK

The marathon will induce a lot of fatigue that can take time to recover from. So once you have finished the marathon what should you be doing to back to normal again. The fatigue you will experience after a marathon is mainly central fatigue. Central fatigue refers to the brain and nervous system so you may feel changes in mood, brain fog or sleep disruption for example. Further, when looking at biomarkers such as creatine kinase (which is released into the muscle when damage occurs during exercise) or blood lactate levels the rate of recovery can vary amongst individuals. Typically you can expect your biomarkers to return to baseline (before the marathon) after 6-8 days. During this period should you do any exercise? Using exercise as a recovery methods is referred to as active recovery and is frequently used. However, after an event such as the marathon it may have the opposite effect and worsen your recovery. Methods such as cold water immersion, massage or passive recovery will help you recovery faster. So put your feet up and rest. However, the recovery time may vary depending on your marathon time. Faster runners should avoid proper training for longer. Whereas slower runners may be able to start running sooner. Once you have recovered you may start thinking about your next goal or next season. Check out the article below to start planning. https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/post/planning-for-next-season If you have any questions or need further guidance drop BCA an email. BCA email: info@breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com WANT A PERSONALISED TRAINING PLAN? Click the link below. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdmNOtHARJJnUDAasr8o6w-EzRmjc6G1J6tMTiCsAZ8jicKgQ/viewform

When making progress with endurance sports you will have periods of ups and downs (but hopefully on average if you have been training properly mainly ups). A part of these down are periods of illness, so what is the best way to return to training and begin making progress again? Key points: Avoid high intensity training when returning for 2-3 days. First workouts back should be short and low intensity. Allow the body to mostly recovery before training. Take training day-by-day till you feel recovered. Physical active in general will improve your immune system, however, there is a small window of immune suppression after training (particularly after high intensity workouts). Often these are the causes of illness resulting in athletes temporally pausing their training. But what about getting back to training. Well the thing you should know is you are unlikely to lose all your fitness. The body is able to store your condition, so the fitter you are the quicker you can get back, meaning you will not need to start from scratch. Of course, it depends on the severity of the illness, but in general you should restart training from the previous couple weeks, and make sure your first couple workouts are short and low intensity. For example if I am on week 5 of a ten week program I and I got ill, I would start again on week 4 or 3 depending on how I was feeling. I would then avoid intervals for the first 2-3 days. However, what if you are mostly recovered but still have some symptoms of illness? This is something that must be judged on a case by case basis, but the best practice is taking your training day by day. For example with BCA athletes, if they were ill by feel mostly recovered we will take the training day by day till they (and myself) feel comfortable we can resume as normal. The biggest mistake you can make however, is restring to early with training that is to hard. Although it may be frustrating, making this mistake can lead you long term health issues. So be patient and remember as frustrating as it is, getting ill is an inevitable part of the process. BCA Training plan: https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/training-plans Contact: info@breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com

Naturally, given the name, a sprint triathlon, these are short events that require a lot of power to get round in the fastest time. So what is the best way to pace one of these efforts without blowing up? Key points: Aim for a positive split race. Predict the right time. Practice your race pace in training. Typically, with any endurance event you want to aim for even pacing (meaning your pace should be consistent throughout the effort). You therefore need your time prediction to be very good (in other words, if you predict too fast a time, you will over pace by default, resulting in a slower time). However, in the case of a sprint triathlon a positive split race is considered optimal. Meaning you are faster at the beginning of the event (or leg e.g. run leg) and gradually slow as you progress. As the sprint triathlon is a short event, you will likely be working above your threshold. Meaning your energy will come from a large percent of anaerobic pathways (carbohydrates). When working at these intensities it is inevitable your pace decline, as you only have a finite amount go energy available. Your training shoould reflect this by working on intervals above your threshold. This will help teach the body to cope with the fatigue that develops at this intensity (fatigue in this instant’s comes from lactic acid, inons and inorganic phosphates) and reduce the amount your pace declines when exercising at these intensities. As a rough guide your race pace is going to be between 95-110% of your threshold depending on your ability. After the transition you may find your quick out the transition zones. Use this initial burst to keep a high pace or power, then (assume the power is not extremely high) try and maintain the pace/power. Remember, you will need to handle a large amount of pain, but only for a short amount of time. BCA Triathlon plans here. https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/triathlon Contact: info@breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com

You may have a lot of questions about getting a training plan so BCA has done its best to answer your questions below. What if the plan does not fit within my schedule/calendar? One size shoes that fits all is not a saying that works a BCA. Everyone is different and has a different schedule. Which is why BCA can make some adjustments to your training plan once you have uploaded to your TrainingPeaks calendar. So if you need a particular day off we can accommodate that. Alternatively, if you would prefer a more personalised approach to your training plan then you can check out the link below, to the personalised pre-built training programme service. BCA - Personalised Pre-Built Plan: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdmNOtHARJJnUDAasr8o6w-EzRmjc6G1J6tMTiCsAZ8jicKgQ/viewform What if I have no time for family? This will not be the case with BCA training plans. The aim is to keep you improving while ensuring you have time for family/friends and a good work like balance. You may find yourself in a position were your an advanced athlete, but now don't have the time to keep up with the advanced plan. BCA works around this by offering the elite plan then you can take out some of the workouts so you have time, but still have workouts challenging enough to cause adaption. I am afraid I will get the wrong plan, can I swap? Yes, don't worry about getting the wrong plan, within 14 days off purchasing the plan you can swap your plan for free (assuming same value). To make life easier, you can answer a few questions to give BCA the necessary information for us to choose the right plan for you (this should take about 5 minutes). Click the link below to do this. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScuGin-4FAkMU5sex_RN_ftievhDXg9nYi99B6nFDuwRcYpjg/viewform I don't know anything about training would this still be suitable for me? Yes, BCA plans as designed for everyone from complete beginner to experienced. We provide lots of additional free training guides and information to help you learn more about training and preparing for an event. If you have anymore questions then please let us know. Email: info@breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com

Your half marathon race pace will vary depending on your ability. You will learn your half marathon pace over time and get a better feel for what it is like to sustain the effort. During training you will tempo and threshold intervals to help develop your ability to tolerate intensity expected during a half marathon. Your half marathon pace will vary depending on your ability. The below table provides you with a rough guide to help you navigate how to pace the effort. Half Marathon Pace: As you will be running in a group and you may feel nervous you heart rate may be a little higher compared to the corresponding pace. You can use data to help you find which pace is best. For example take a look at your peak pace graph in training peaks under dashboard along the top. You can then see what your best pace is for your target time. If you have any further questions or need any help please let BCA know. Email: info@breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bca_endurance/

As the season comes to an end it is time for two things, the first is take your end of season rest and the second is to think about what you want to do next season. This article covers how to plan next year and review your past season. Season Review: When conducting a season review you need to make a comparison between what you set out to achieve and what you did achieve. This is why you need to be as clear as possible when setting your goals as it is then easier to make meaningful comparisons. For example if you aim was to increase your FTP by 20 watts in three months and you only increased your FTP by 10 watts, it is much easier to see whether you achieved what you wanted. Although the harder part if trying to understand why you did or didn't hit your targets. Which is why BCA has laid out a series of questions below to help you analyse your season. - At what point during your training did you feel you were making the most progress? - At what point during your training did you feel you were making the least progress? - Which training workouts did you feel worked most and least? - What were the strength in your ability that helped you hit your goals? - What were the weakness in your ability that prevented you from hitting your goals? - Do you feel you put in enough time into your weakness? - Was there anything that felt lacking in your training (including nutrition etc.)? - Did you feel tired or as if you were not working hard enough and when? Have a go at answering the questions and see if you can find where it was going well and were it went wrong (if at all). It is also very helpful for yourself when reviewing your season to read your post workout comments, this can give you very good insight as to how you were feeling at that present moment. If you don't add post workout comments it is strongly recommended, all you have to do it write a couple of sentences summing up how you felt and the reasons why. Plan Ahead: Now you have a good idea of what happened last season, so you can now make a better plan going forward. There are different types of goals you can plan for yourself which are laid out below to help you think about what to do next. Improve upon last year. - Perhaps you achieve what you wanted last year but now want to progress even further. Try something different altogether. Maybe last season you completed a long duathlon now you want to pursue an IRONMAN. Retry what you couldn't do last year. Possibly you didn't hit your goals last year now you want try again. The most common goal is the first one, for example, maybe your goal last year was to reach Cat 2 now next season you want to hit Cat 1. Cat 1 races can be longer and the intensity can be higher, so you may need to increase your overall training volume and increase the time you can ride above your FTP to reach this goal. To do this you could move from an intermediate BCA race plan to an advanced BCA race plan. Have a go at defining your goals, feel free asking BCA for help and guidance. Email: info@breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com BCA Training Plans https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/training-plans Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bca_endurance/

If you have a triathlon or swimming plan you would have noticed there are a lot of two letter acronyms within the swim workouts, this article explains all of them. Swimming Drills: CH = Closed Hands (fists) To complete this drill swim freestyle, but with your hands in a fist. PU = Pull (buoy between legs) Your legs will not be in use, but your arms should follow front crawl. KB = Kickboard (only legs) Arms out in front holding a kickboard, legs kicking as normal (freestyle). SA = Single arm (freestyle) Complete freestyle, but only using one arm. Other arm should be out in front. Change arm every length. SC = Sculling Legs kick as normal, however, you move the water in front of you by pushing your arms laterally (in and out). HU = Head-up front crawl Breath every two strokes, however, before putting your head in the water look out in front to see your direction. This will help with open water swimming. CO = Choice This means you are free to choose which drill or stroke. HP = Hand Paddles Complete freestyle but use hand paddles to increase the weight your arms carry. PO = Polo Stroke Complete freestyle as normal, however, keep your head above the water so you can see out in front. The aim is to improve your navigation when it comes to open water. Swim Strokes FS - Freestyle BS - Breaststroke BC - Back Crawl BU - Butterfly

The BCA training plans come in power and pace by default however, some of you may train in heart rate, which is why this article covers how to change the units in your workouts. Once the training plan has been loaded to your TrainingPeaks calendar click on the workout you want to change form power or pace to heart rate. Then click on the workout structure (the blue section which shows the workout). Once you have click this you will see along the top of the workout is a section called units. Click on the drop down menu to change to the units you want to use. You can see in the screen shot below an example of were the units drop down menu is. In some cases when you change the units from power or pace to heart rate you may need to change the range of the intensity for the workout. It is best you take a look at the heart rate training zones in the link below to see if anything need changing. Bike Training Zones https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/post/setting-your-bike-training-zones Run Training Zones: https://www.breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com/post/setting-your-run-training-zones If you need any help please get in touch with BCA. Email: info@breakawaycoachingandanalytics.com