Complete Nutrition for Competitive Triathlon

Explore energy availability using fat-free mass to align calories with training. Target 30–45 calories per kilogram of fat-free mass and learn macros plus calcium, iron, and vitamin D.

Discover how to fuel triathlon training with 3–4 daily 25 g protein servings, 1.6 g/kg/day, leucine threshold, and choosing whey or other sources with healthy fats.

carbohydrates influence energy production across daily life and training, with fat contributing at rest and carbs fueling higher-intensity efforts. understanding this balance informs daily fueling, training, and racing strategies.

Explore how meal timing and circadian rhythm influence nutrition for triathletes, focusing on three evenly spaced meals, optional snacks, and snacks during two daily training sessions.

Explore iron's role in endurance, absorption boosters like vitamin C and sprouted legumes, and inhibitors such as coffee and calcium; connect calcium and vitamin D to energy availability.

Carbohydrates improve cycling performance versus placebo, with larger gains as total exercise time increases. The lecture compares single source and multi-source carbohydrates.

Identify carbohydrate types—glucose, fructose, sucrose, starch, and dextrin—and show how separate transporters support fueling, with a 60 g/hour limit and multiple transportable carbs reducing GI issues.

Compare glucose alone to glucose–fructose blends for cycling performance and explain how transportable carbohydrates affect energy delivery; adjust hourly intake by session duration.

Compare Osmo, Scratch, and Hammer gel with pure pack drinks, noting carbohydrate types, sugar content, sodium, and mixing to reach about 60 g glucose and 30 g fructose per hour.

Explains low-carb fueling within endurance training, contrasts calories per gram for fat and carbs, and shows how carbs improve oxygen efficiency and marathon pace.

Explore how low carb strategies influence running economy by shifting substrate use toward fat versus carbohydrate, and how VO2 max and lactate threshold define performance.

Enter fluids, calories, carbohydrates, and sodium in the fueling plan for your workout duration, then compare to goals and adjust carbohydrate targets; download and log gels, bars, drinks, and water.

Explain how sweating enables long-duration exercise, compare human sweating to panting in dogs, and outline typical sweat and absorption rates and their impact on heart rate and digestion.

Dehydration raises heart rate and body temperature during exercise, with loss linked to higher heart rate. Limit loss to 2 percent, consider the environment, and avoid weight gain during exercise.

Use a sweat rate test to track starting and ending weights, exercise duration, and fluid intake, then apply an advanced calculator to estimate true dehydration beyond body weight loss.

Understand how sodium dominates sweat electrolyte losses, about 93 percent, with potassium around 7 percent, and how sweat rate and sodium concentration affect hydration and performance.

Compare coconut water with Gatorade and Scratch, noting sodium and potassium for pre-race hydration; use the red stuff pre-race, and reserve coconut water for non-exercise use.

Increase fluid and sodium intake on humid days as evaporation cooling becomes less effective. Understand that concentration gradient and similar water vapor in air and skin reduce sweat evaporation.

Download the sweat rate calculator, record your body weight before exercise to determine percent body mass loss, and compare simple versus advanced calculators to adjust for long workouts.

Create a cohesive race day plan by translating fueling goals into a practical strategy, supported by case studies and a packing checklist for bottles and carbs.

Avoid drinking all calories in one bottle. Use a low-concentration hydration at 4% carbs with sodium, add foods, and limit fat, fiber, and protein during racing to reduce GI distress.

Lower sodium five to six days before race week, then ramp up carbs and sodium while tapering fiber to optimize hydration and liver glycogen for race morning.

Add a fluid goal to the carbohydrate-based fuel plan. Create workouts for your session or race, including brick sessions for bike and run, and plan water access on race day.

Fuel for the work required ties carbohydrate intake to workout intensity, with glycogen acting as the gas tank and higher effort fueling performance while adaptation varies.

Discover how glycogen levels drive adaptation, comparing low versus high fuel strategies for long rides and zone 2 training with a fueling plan using gels and sports drinks.

Explore carb availability methods for triathlon, including high-carb fueling during workouts, fasted morning sessions, sleep-low cycles, and targeted low-carb periods to drive adaptations.

Focus on post-workout recovery using the five Rs. Rehydrate with fluids and electrolytes, replenish glycogen with carbs, rebuild muscle with protein, and sleep to restore brain and hormones.

Plan your bricks with precise nutrition and gear: pack hydration, ice, and recovery drinks, including physio fix and whey protein, to stay fueled during and after workouts.

Experiment with varying carbohydrate availability during training, and assess how you feel as you try it. If new, progress gradually and determine whether it fits your routine.

Discover how temperature, humidity, altitude, and heat exposure influence sweat rate, sodium concentration, hydration, electrolyte needs, and carbohydrate use during endurance training and racing.

Develop heat acclimation through practical, coach-guided protocols to boost performance in hot and cool conditions, using heat exposure, interval work, and post-exercise immersion, with proper hydration.

Understand why triathletes use supplements to address inadequate intake and high training demands, including magnesium, probiotics, electrolytes, iron, protein, tart cherry, and safety concerns like cross-contamination and doping test risk.

Navigate supplement safety with NSF certified for sport and informed sport resources to verify labels, access prohibited substance lists, and check drug-compliant status across governing bodies.

Caffeine boosts performance with 150–300 mg before exercise and 1 mg/kg after, depending on tolerance. Beet juice raises nitric oxide, improves blood flow, and lengthens time to exhaustion.

Explore how bicarbonate buffering and other supplements like sodium phosphate and beta-alanine can boost race performance, with dosing strategies, potential GI distress, and loading protocols.

Explore future supplements for triathlon training, including topical bicarbonate and carnosine, beta-alanine, PQQ, cherry powder, HMB, and ketone esters; assess their potential benefits for short and ultra distances.

Discover how female physiology shapes nutrition for triathlon training, covering energy intake, iron, calcium, vitamin d, cycle-based fueling, carbohydrate as main fuel, protein needs, hydration, and the female athlete triad.

Understand how estrogen and progesterone fluctuate across the menstrual cycle and influence exercise performance, fueling needs, and hydration, with emphasis on follicular versus luteal phases.

Structure resistance training to emphasize the follicular phase for higher intensity work, with a recovery focus in the luteal phase, and use carbohydrate timing to offset cycle effects on performance.

Discover how recovery shifts in the mid luteal phase, with post-workout protein like chocolate milk, larger protein intake, PCA supplements, and cooling strategies such as cold water and ice baths.

Cycle-aware dieting shifts carbs in the follicular phase and fats and protein in the luteal phase, improving weight loss and waist reduction versus a macronutrient plan.

Understand how menstrual dysfunction affects female athletes, including amenorrhea, energy balance, and cycle variations, and review management with nutrition, oral contraceptives, and hydration strategies across the follicular and luteal phases.

Explore the female athlete triad, or relative energy deficiency in sport, and how energy availability, disordered eating, amenorrhea, and low bone density affect injury risk.

Explore how female physiology and menstrual cycle affect triathlon fueling, with phase-specific macronutrient strategies, hydration needs, and practice meal plans for follicular and luteal phases.

Master carbohydrate-periodization, post-workout recovery with protein and carbs, and race-day planning. Adapt fueling to climate and ensure safe, third-party tested supplements.