Endure Eq 032 | My take on sustainable nutrition

Published about 2 years ago • 3 min read

Hello Reader,

Before we jump in I wanted you to know that I have finished the Sustainable Endurance Playbook. A complete foundational guide for training more sustainably for your next triathlon or running race. Grab your free copy here

Welcome to Vol. 032 of The Endure Eq.

Every week you'll get a deep dive into a topic related to endurance training, maximizing your potential or reaching peak performance. Read past editions.

Let’s jump in.

Sustainable nutrition from the perspective of a coach and athlete

Nutrition is one of the biggest building blocks when it comes to training, racing and recovery.

Food fuels everything that you do as a triathlete.

As a physio and coach though nutrition consulting is not my strong suit,

So instead I want to share my take on Sustainable Nutrition from 10+ years of training and racing across multiple sports.

Prefacing with the fact that if you are looking to dial in your nutrition then reach out to a dietician and see what they can do for you.

Eat enough food

Eating enough food was one of the biggest unlocks for my performance and training.

I went a long-period under-fuelling for my training.

When it came time for Ironman I found a sustainable amount of food to fuel that training.

And as a heads up it can be a lot of food.

Every athlete is going to need a different amount but some starting points I have found to benchmark things:

Protein

General training = 0.3 g/kg/d

Carbs

Light activity = 3-5 g/kg/d
Moderate activity (~1h/day) = 5-7 g/kg/d
High activity (~1-3h/day) = 6-10 g/kg/d
Very high activity (~1hr/day) = 8-12 g/kg/d

Calculate the ranges for yourself and use it as a rough benchmark. Are you in the ballpark or way outside the range?

Cover all the basic building blocks

This brings me to the next big point.

You need all the building blocks of nutrition.

These are:

Carbs
Protein
Fats

None are ‘bad’ for you and you need them all.

Aim to have some of each on your plate.

This graphic from USA is helpful to visualize what that looks like:

Get the timing right

Timing your meals is important when it comes to training for me.

I need to eat soon enough before and shortly after to feel good.

My time-lines before:

3 hours before: can eat pretty much anything (usually skew a little more carbs on big training days)
60-30 mins before: refuel with a little carbs prior to training

My timelines after:

Within 30-45min eat something with protein, fibre and carbs.
Within 60-2hrs have a full meal

This took practice to figure out what works for me.

You will need to do the same.

Adjust for the season

Heavy training blocks will require more fuel than lighter training blocks.

Remember our recovery guideline: balance your recovery to your training load.

Same applies for your training.

I have found that usually I need more carbs in the heavy block.

Most of the other blocks can remain in the same ranges but since we are burning so much extra while training you may need more carbs.

The same applies for the off-season.

Once you are done with your recovery block you can taper back the amount of food you are eating back into your sustainable routine.

Try lots of different foods

When it comes to training fuel try as many foods as possible.

And don’t be afraid to eat real food where possible.

Some of my fuelling choices from Ironman training:

Chews
Bars
Rice cakes
Pretzels
Chocolate bars
Candy
Chips
Maple syrup
Honey
Sandwiches

I try to eat as much “real” food as I can and not rely on supplements.

I also try not to burn yourself out with race foods (gels and bars). Mix things up for variety.

Don’t be so strict you can’t enjoy a meal out

Be flexible with the content and timing of your meals.

In an effort to be sustainable remember that it won’t be perfect.

Use the 80/20 rule as a guide.

80% of nutrition can be fuelling.
20% can be fun.

Sustainability is the goal.

See a dietician

Again.

See a dietician.

The cost of a consult with one will teach you more about nutrition than this.

I will never stop promoting seeing one.

Recap:

Sustainable training requires proper fuelling for training and recovery.
Big guidelines: eat enough, get the timing right, 80/20 your nutrition
See a dietician for more personalized advice.

Thank you for being here!

- Chandler

When you’re ready here are 3 ways that Excel Endurance by Chandler Scott can help you:

Join our free community: find more resources, ask questions, and share workout ideas. Join Community
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1-1 Coaching: Take your training to the next level with 1-1 access to Chandler. Coaching Request

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