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Gu By Itself? (Read 1009 times)

    Normally on long runs I drink strictly water and take a Gu every 45 minutes or so.  I ran my first marathon last October and I took someone's advice that I should be alternating between water and sports drinks  (I know.....don't try anything new when you are racing).  The results were an upset stomach.

     

    My question is:

     

    If you are using Gu should you avoid Sports drinks completely?  I understand that you shouldn't drink a sports drink at the same time as Gu....but what about alternating as described above (ie water and Gu at one station followed by Sports drinks at the next)?

        I understand that you shouldn't drink a sports drink at the same time as Gu....but what about alternating as described above (ie water and Gu at one station followed by Sports drinks at the next)?

       

      Above is the way I normally handle nutrition/hydration in a marathon.  It usually doesn't cause me any issues.

       

      Also, not all sports drinks are the same.  Find out what they are using in your next marathon and practice with it.

      Scout7


        Alternating is generally fine.  But, the absolute best way to tell is to try it out and see what happens.  Everyone handles this sort of thing differently.


        Feeling the growl again

          It's going to be a bit personal as to what your stomach will handle.  Some people are very sensitive to not having enough water to deal with the amount of sugars in the stomach, others are not so sensitive.  It will also depend on the amount of time in between stations.

           

          Best advice it to try it out before doing it in a race and see.  For me, I need to be careful what I drink at marathon pace or faster, but when running at ultra pace I can take down about anything in liquid form with Gu.

          "If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does.  There's your pep talk for today.  Go Run." -- Slo_Hand

           

          I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills

           

          Slo


            I can't tell you what you should do.

             

            Some people do have issues taking both GU and a sports drink. It's not uncommon to find recommendations that one should avoid mixing the two.

             

            I haven't had any problems but I don't consume much of either during a marathon. My last marathon (road) I only used 2 GU's and did both water and sports drink.

             

            I've trained with a few different people that eat gu's every 30 - 45mins. I know both of these people have had intestinal issues and I suspect it was because they were taking in too much.

             

            My long run training follows the theory of using little to no calorie supplement. Only if I'm approaching 3 hours do I start to think about taking a GU or Cliff block etc.

             

            As far as alternating between stations...2 miles isn't enough to clear the GU out of your system so your still mixing the two.

              sports drink = sugar + salt + water

              gel = sugar + salt (water added separately)

               

              They're essentially the same thing, which is why you don't normally use both at the same time.  Ultimately, however, its all a matter of dosage -- how much sugar and how much salt (and how much water) to consume to help with performance but without causing stomach distress.  In other words (as posted above) you'll need to experiment to figure out what works best for you.

              How To Run a Marathon: Step 1 - start running. There is no Step 2.


              Kalsarikännit

                 ultra pace

                 

                Last I checked, ultras are anything from flat, road 50k's to mountainous 100 milers on rocky technical trail.  There is no such thing as "ultra pace".

                I want to do it because I want to do it.  -Amelia Earhart

                 


                Feeling the growl again

                  Last I checked, ultras are anything from flat, road 50k's to mountainous 100 milers on rocky technical trail.  There is no such thing as "ultra pace".

                   

                  There is when you have only done one.  Wink

                   

                  (and they are all slower than MP)

                  "If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does.  There's your pep talk for today.  Go Run." -- Slo_Hand

                   

                  I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills

                   


                  ultramarathon/triathlete

                    I'm sure it really does all vary from one person to another.  

                     

                    For me:

                    I drink water or gatorade at all the aid stations (sometimes both, depending on how long the station + if I have time to grab, drink, grab, drink w/o stopping or slowing too much).  

                    Later in the race, it depends on what my stomach feels like at the moment, which is usually gatorade for the first dozen or so stations (assuming they are every mile) and then I start downing just water for the next few, and nothing for the last couple.  

                     

                    I eat a GU approximately every 45 minutes but in the last several marathons I've done (including last weekend), I started the first GU ten minutes in, and then GU'd every 40 or so minutes.  

                     

                    Also, I eat a GU or some type of chomp/burst/chew/bean/block thing 15 minutes before the start of any race (I've gotten some odd looks at the mile for this!)  Wink

                     

                    I've been told one should eat their GUs just before the water station, so you can swallow and then drink some kind of fluid as close to eating it as possible.  I've done this, and I've not done this, depending on the race, and there seems to be little difference for me.  I've also been told to eat them sooner (every 30 or 35 minutes) which does seem to work better, but makes me reach that "I can't eat another damn GU or I'll puke" point sooner. 

                     

                    On training runs, I carry one or two GUs (based on planned time) and try not to eat them at all unless I feel shaky.  I only train with water (unless long bike rides).   But I race so frequently this does not end up being a "nothing new on race day" kind of thing, and it works for me. 

                     

                    As for Ultra Pace, I agree with Spaniel, I think there is one (for me --and Spaniel, at least).  It's just an intentional :30 to a minute (or more) under marathon pace from the start, with the hopes of lasting longer overall.

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