Fuel for thought
Feb1420094:24 p.m.
Ha, I am amused by how excited I get when I think about practicing my marathon fueling technique. The highlight is sure to be the jelly baby stage - think I am going to pick one of my half marathon races to do this - though feasibly I could just use one of my long slow training runs.
Today I turned a corner in my training.
Up until now I have been water-less. Hmmm yes I hear some gasps, as last week I ran (oh actually jogged slowly) for 13 miles and did not carry any water - not very clever. By the end I was pretty sure that next week (or this week) I would have to do something about it as I had spent most of my run thinking about water. This is probably not very surprising as I was running alongside the Thames, however from about midway onwards I started to daydream.... I wondered why no-one had spotted the obvious gap in the market (gcse business studies coming out) and set up a business to meet the needs of runners by setting up water stations! I also pondered at why the rowing clubs did not have (random) taps outside their boat houses, but then I'd have to stop and ask if it was drinking water; I even began to wish that I was rowing on the water rather than running - just so that I could be closer to it. Yes these were all signs that I had to do something!
So... I invested in a camelbak. Bizarrely felt a little OTT but as I headed out for my 14 miler today in Richmond park I discovered that 50% of people running in the opposite direction were using similar devices. So I am a convert and will never head out without water again. I didn't even drink very much but that odd sip managed to keep me going and stop the hallucinations :-)
So what next - as I stated I am going to try jelly babies; I may well also upgrade my water to Lucozade sport (orange flavour - as that is what will be provided at FLM); and perhaps try the Lucozade energy bars too (before going out for a run). The thing that I am pretty sure I am not going to try are gels. Am I wrong? Would anyone out there suggest that I am massively missing out? Any other suggestions definitely appreciated.
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Comments (5)
Clouseau 'I couldn't get on with a camelback; just too uncomfortable, so I switched to a belt with a couple of bottles and a pouch for bars/gels. I think you settle into something that works for you. I take Lucozade Sport in the bottles (the powdered version) and I do use the Lucozade Carb Gels. They do take a bit of getting used to by I actually find that they hit the spot quicker than anything else. I think on the day I will take a few gels but have a couple of bars as well just for variety. I'm told the crowd have endless supplies of jelly babies and boiled sweets!' added 14th Feb 2009
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Johnf 'Well done on the 14 miler. I personally can't stand the gels, but the science of them is sound and getting a couple down you as well as a sport drink on a regular basis will provide you with some extra carb energy. Get used to them now if you are going to use them. I find jelly babies have all disappeared before I start running!' added 14th Feb 2009
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stacyw 'i've been running with a bottle belt. it's got 4 small bottles. 4 being necessary only beause the two guys i run with don't run with water. i've also been using gels, which i ingest slowly over a five minutes, rather than all in one go.' added 14th Feb 2009
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JSIMMONDS 'I'm going for the jelly babies too. I don't like the thought of the camelbacks though - not sure why, so I just annoy myself by carrying a bottle of water shaped like my fist round with me. Will be interested to know how you get on with the camelback though. Good run.' added 16th Feb 2009
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seeannierun 'Good plan. Hallucinations = baaad! Jelly Babies = great! I have one a mile on long runs: something to look forward to - sad. Innit. "Go" Bars are great for energy - I used them instead of gels at last year's FLM. Keep at it! Annie x' added 17th Feb 2009
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