Pre-Run and Day before race

AVOID

· High fibre foods – brown rice, grainy bread, wheat cereals

· Overly heavy fatty meals

· Spicy foods

· Simple sugars ie lollies, soft drink – this will spike your blood sugars and leave you feeling hungry soon after

DO HAVE

· Milk drinks, Up & Go Energize

· Potatoes

· Go for white breads, white rice, pasta etc

· Porridge

· Toast/bagel with honey and peanut butter

· Crumpet and jam

· Sports drinks

During Run

· A mix of tried and tested carbohydrates (CHO)

· You want around 60-90g CHO per hour if you can stomach it. This will come from both food and liquids and recommend gut training during the months prior to be able to tolerate this amount and also the type of foods used.

· Real food and sports formulated supplements such as gels and chews

· Hydration that contains both electrolytes and carbs.

· Slow CHO release foods – potatoes, rice, wraps, sandwiches, banana, 2min noodles

· Fast CHO release foods – gels, chews, lollies

· Caffeine – use in later stages of the race – takes around 30mins to kick in and peaks at 60-90mins (short life) so plan it at the right time. In ultras that go overnight its good to take around the 2am 4am period when sleep is knocking at the door then again at sunrise. Can be in the form of No Doze tablets or in your gels.

· Water –don’t have plain water at the cost of carbs and electrolytes – make sure your intake of both is enough. Too much water and not enough salt just flushes out the

salts in your body and depletes you further and puts you at risk of hyponatraemia. That said – if you are eating a lot and taking in a lot of liquid carbs such as Tailwind, make sure you are also having plain water so that your gut can digest the sugars. If drinking off aid stations then a cup of electrolyte AND a cup of water is ideal.

· Protein – if you run is over 3 hours it pays to have some protein to aid in muscle deterioration. Some bars contain protein and carbs, chocolate milk/Up & Go’s work, A chicken or ham sandwich (ham also has salt).

· Fats are good too – so add avocado to wraps, nuts or trail mix (not too much dried fruit though) nut bars, salted cashews

· Salty foods – Chips, pretzels, Pringles, chocolate pretzels, vegemite sandwich. Also helps with flavour fatigue after a lot of sweet foods

Post Run

AVOID

· Simple sugars – soft drinks, lollies – you have had enough of these and probably won’t feel like them anyway!

DO HAVE

· Protein – within 30-60mins of finishing is ideal. You want around 25-40g protein

· Carbs – within 30-60mins of finishing – around 50-100g (depends on length of race)

NB Above best consumed as a liquid immediately after your run, so protein powder mixed in 300mls of milk is a good start – (300mls skim/lite milk on its own has 15g carbs and 10g protein) Add protein powder, a banana, ice cream or yoghurt to make a smoothie and boost protein and CHO content that is easily digestible.

An hour or two later have a full meal containing PRO & CHO. If no access to these then have a protein bar handy, fruit, bread roll or fruit bun, salty chips etc 

· Electrolyte replacement – Sugar Free Gatorade/Powerade, Hi 5 sugar free Fizz tabs, salted foods, vegemite toast, salty chips.

BE PREPARED THE NIGHT BEFORE YOUR RUNS. THIS STUFF IS IMPORTANT!

Updated March 2026 – Energy Fitness