# First Endurance Race and bad things happened



## yellowducman (Apr 18, 2010)

A little background. I've been racing with good results since May in our local summer series. I only would have to ride 7 to 9 miles so I'm kind of used to hammering all the way through. I raced in 100 degree weather with no problem. All the races started a 6:15. I would hydrate with water throughout the day (like I do every day), slimfast bar for breakfast, Grilled chicken salad for lunch, fruit like apples or something for snack at 3:00, gel chews or energy bar 30 minutes before the race. No problems.

I've been upping my distance by training to make sure I wouldn't have a problem.

The race this weekend was from 10:00 PM to 6:30 AM. I was racing duo. I had a omelet for breakfast, Vegetables for lunch and diner. Energy bar 30 minutes before the start of the race.

I went fist and everything was going good. about 8 miles in I got sick on my stomach and then lost a lot of energy in my legs. I finished my lap came in a rested for a hour and 15 or so. I really couldn't eat. I finally got some fig newtons down and went to the starting line to wait on my teammate. I got chills. When he came in and I got back on the bike I felt ok but didn't have a lot of power. I Cruised around and took it easy for the first six miles and just died. Sick on my stomach and just done. Ended up walking a lot of the course and when I got back to the pit I couldn't go any more. then a couple of hours later I got the chills again and then started to get cramps in my legs.

Did I screw up my nutrition or was I sick? All day yesterday I was feeling pretty bad. I really might be over training also as I ride 6 times a week and I noticed on my road ride Thursday that I was feeling week.


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## beanbag (Nov 20, 2005)

sounds like you did not have enough carbs on race day.
eating too soon before race also


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## Kristatos (Oct 15, 2007)

It's worth exploring the overtraining possibility for sure. If you increased training volume significantly and didn't bake in time off the bike(s) or very easy recovery rides then you probably were overtrained going 6 days a week. Feeling weak can be a sign of overtraining. It can start a vicious cycle where you notice that your slower up a hill, etc., then increase volume, perform worse, train more and so forth until you break down. 

If your post was accurate and you didn't eat anything between a snack at 3:00PM and race time at 10:00PM - except a sugar rush/crash gel shot - then you were way under-nourished for that race. You were probably empty and the gel got you through the 8 miles and then you bonked. The chills are a sign of bonk. Probably you would have been better off taking on some protein and carbs a couple times that evening - whole grain pasta, lean meats, veggies. It's hard to eat a lot during an event sometimes so fueling up before hand is key. My guess is with your training volume you have been running calorie deficits routinely and maybe needed a lot more to get through that event.


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