Fueling Endurance - Nutrition for Runners, Cyclists & Triathletes

The term 'gut training' is thrown around a lot these days, but what does this actually mean? This week Steph will take us through what we mean by gut training, why would runners, cyclists or triathletes want to do it, what is the evidence that it works, and how you go about gut training.

We're back after a week's break to answer a listener question around fibre. Steph runs us through what fibre is and the general recommendations; what happens if you have too much or not enough fibre, both for general health and specific to exercise; why athletes might inadvertently eat too much fibre and what to do about it, and the timing of fibre around exercise and the importance in terms of gut issues.

Paratriathlete Liam Twomey joins us to discuss his carbohydrate needs in training and on race day, and the recent changes he made to get more out of his training. Steph & Alan also go back to basics on carbs, the different types, where they come from, and how to plan your training and race nutrition to ensure you're getting the most from your sessions.

The man who did much of the research that lead to our current guidelines for carbs during exercise, Prof. Asker Jeukendrup joins us to discuss the nuances of carbs during exercise - recreational vs elite athletes, running vs cycling, shorter vs longer duration, and much, much more. As head of performance nutrition for the Jumbo Visma pro cycling team, the Red Bull Athlete Performance Centre and the Dutch Olympic Team, Asker also discusses the challenges & practical considerations for achieving your optimal carbohydrate intake on race day.

Two time Olympian in the 1500m & sports dietitian Linden Hall joins us to discuss the role of fruit & veggies in her diet, what happens when she doesn't get enough on the road, and her experience with the vast array of fruit & vegetable based supplements that are heavily marketed to athletes.

Researcher and sports dietitian Dr Andrea Braakhuis (University of Auckland) joins us to chat about her area of research on the components in fruit and vegetables and their impact on performance. We discuss whether we should just try to eat more fruit and veggies, some of the challenges in achieving that for runners, cyclists and triathletes, and whether there's evidence to support the use of supplemental forms like greens powders, New Zealand blackcurrant and tart cherry juice.

We're joined by Aussie pro cyclist Sarah Gigante, who shares her experience relocating to Europe and learning to adapt her on-bike nutrition in a much colder climate. From cozy gloves that stopped her accessing race food, to finding suitable alternatives to cereal bars in Europe, we hear stories of adapting to life riding in Europe, and the challenges eating and drinking in the cold, wind and rain of the Spring Classics in Belgium.

Beccy Hall is a sports dietitian with the Olympic Winter Institute of Australia and previously with the Canadian Sports Institute Pacific. She discusses if nutritional needs change when training through the winter, what does 'being cold' actually means, and some great practical tips and advice learnt from working with Winter Olympic athletes and others in temperatures both above and below freezing.

Elite ultra-runner & coach, mum of one and pregnant with the 2nd on the way, Kellie Emerson joins us to share her experiences with managing training (and racing) and nutrition whilst pregnant and breastfeeding. Plenty of great advice and practical suggestions for new mums or soon-to-be new mums.

Co-founder of Compeat Nutrition, sports dietitian for Australia's women's soccer team The Matildas & mum of three kids, Alicia joins us to discuss both the guidelines and the practical reality of nutrition during pregnancy & breastfeeding, and how your training nutrition needs change during this time. Plenty of practical tips for new mums or mums-to-be that are continuing to train during this time.

Cyclist Ben Hill joins us to share his experience managing food and nutrition whilst travelling, both domestically with the National Road Series, and internationally in Europe and Asia. We discuss what's worked, what's gone wrong, and what he always takes with him when travelling. We also chat about his experience with the Australian team in the UCI Cycling ESports World Championships, a former teammate who's now a multiple Tour de France winner, and his love of riding in the breakaway.

We're joined by Jess Rothwell, Nutrition Lead for Athletics Australia and Sports Dietitian at the Victorian Institute of Sport, working with their athletics program. We tap into Jess's experience travelling with teams to training camps, World Championships and Olympic Games, as well as her own experience as an athlete. This includes common nutrition issues and challenges for both domestic and international travel and tips for overcoming these, tips for choosing accommodation and what to take with you to be prepared for any situation, and how you as an athlete can be better prepared nutritionally when travelling for an event.

Our first returning athlete guest, triathlete and Tokyo Olympian Emma Jeffcoat's back on the podcast. We discuss her Olympic experience and plans for 2022, her personal experience with supplements, the products she's tried over the years, her thought process when deciding on whether to use a supplement or not, and her experience combining supplements with international travel.

We're joined by Greg Shaw, Nutrition Lead for Swimming Australia and Performance Manager for the open water program. As a former athlete and then sports dietitian, Greg has used supplements, researched supplement use, contibuted to the AIS Sports Supplement Framework and worked with numerous athletes to advise them on supplement use. We discuss how to define supplements, his process of determining if an individual would benefit from supplements, and how we would benefit by shifting from a "magic pills and potions" to a "nutrient optimisation" mindset.

Runner and sports science journalist Alex Hutchinson joins us to provide his experience of using a continuous glucose monitor, and his research and conversations with elite and professional athletes who have been using them. We discuss what it's like to wear the monitor, what data you get back, and what to do with it.
A columnist for Outside and formerly Runner's World, Alex is also the author of the New York Times best-seller Endure, where he examined the science of fatigue and the limits of human performance.

A hot topic in sports nutrition, discussed in our first ever double guest episode! Dr Dana Lis (Israel Premier-Tech) & Dr Dave Martin (formerly AIS, now in Silicon Valley) join us to discuss wearable tech in general, and continuous glucose monitors specifically for athletes. Are they accurate, what do they tell us, when are they useful, or is it pointless data capture?

Two time Olympian in the 1500m & now track and XC coach at the University of Victoria, Hilary Stellingwerff joins us to discuss her experience managing training and nutrition across the menstrual cycle, what she learnt from science and experience, how she works with the athletes she coaches, and what matters in the bigger picture.

Clare Minahan from Griffith University is a world expert in female athlete physiology, including influence of the menstrual cycle and contraceptive use. She joins us to discuss a topic with so many myths and misconceptions - should female athletes adjust their nutrition according to the phase of their menstrual cycle?

Triathlon coach Danielle Stefano from Elotik Pro Triathlon works with high school triathletes, elite juniors, and Olympic and Paralympic athletes. She discusses the similarities and differences between these groups, and how she sees the nutritional needs and concerns of younger athletes through the lens of a coach who works across the spectrum.

Prof. Ben Desbrow (Griffith University) joins us to discuss how the nutitional needs of younger athletes are different to adults, and the practical, social and ethical considerations with this age group. A must-listen for parents, coaches or support staff of young runners, cyclists & triathletes.

Cyclist, sports scientist, and cycling coach Dr Stephen Lane from HPTek joins us to discuss the use or misuse of training data to provide insights into nutrition practices, including what data to use and when, and when you can go by feel.

Dr Trent Stellingwerff (Director of Innovation & Research, Canadian Sport Institute Pacific) joins us to discuss the nuances of collecting and interpreting training data, how it could be used to inform your nutrition, and we finish with some practical examples.

Cyclist Neil van der Ploeg joins us to explain how he balanced training load & body fat loss in the lead up to key races. Neil's career included multiple National Road Series stage wins, the 2017 Grafton to Inverell Cycle Classic, a podium at the 2015 Road Nationals & several appearances on the UniSA National Team at the Tour Down Under. 

We're back for 2022, answering probably the most common question we've ever been asked. An in-house episode, Steph & Alan will describe how they tackle this conundrum & assist athletes to meet their body composition goals without compromising their health or training performance.

With Christmas upon us, we're releasing our final podcast for 2021 a few days early. Olympic marathoner Sinead Diver joins us to give a behind-the-scenes look at how the team prepared for the heat of Tokyo 2020, and her pesonal experiences trying out pre-race hyperhydration with glycerol and sodium, pre-cooling with slushies, and altering perception of temperature with menthol.

We're joined by Dr Meg Ross, a sports scientist who worked with the Australian Institute of Sport Nutrition team and Australian Catholic Univesity for over a decade, running research studies to prepare athletes for hot Olympic Games. We discuss her PhD work on pre-cooling with ice slushies prior to the 2008 Beijing Games, and more recent work on pre-exercise hyperhydration with sodium and glycerol, and the use of menthol to alter the perception of temperature in the lead-up to the Tokyo Games. We cover the practical aspects, and how these strategies could be implemented by runners, cyclists & triathletes of all levels.

A sports dietitian working with both professional and recreational cyclists and triathletes, Dr Gemma Sampson joins us to discuss the commercial and DIY alternatives to energy gels and bars. A passionate cook, Gemma spends a lot of time experimenting with DIY training snacks - she'll give us the run down on what makes a good choice for your next session.

It's the 1st birthday of the podcast, and to celebrate we're summarising all of the 24 previous topics in one jam-packed episode! From "Is low carb right for me?", to "Why do I get gut issues during exercise?", and "Can I have a beer after my hard training session?", we'll provide 2-3 minute summaries of each of them to bring you up to speed on any you've missed.

It's our 50th episode with a very special guest and a very special topic. Prof. Andy Jones (University of Exeter) joins us to discuss his role with the Nike Breaking2 Project back in 2017. We discuss Andy's role in athlete testing and selection, supporting Eliud Kipchoge, Lelisa Desisa and Zersenay Tadese, how he predicted their running times, the nutrition planning, and how it unfolded on the day.

A former cyclist in the National Road Series with Specialized Women's Racing, Sophie Mackay shares not only her experience of under-fuelling and the impacts on health & performance, but the remarkable turnaround which culminated in the highlight of her racing career.

A regular in Australia's National Road Series and now High Performance Manager for Knights x LMLY Racing, cyclist Kate Perry shares her journey with low energy availability and the consequences that can occur when under-fuelling for your training load.

We're joined by Margot, an Accredited Sports Dietitian who is just finishing up her PhD research with the University of Canberra & the Australian Institute of Sport, looking at the consequences of under-fuelling in elite athletes. We discuss how to define adequate fuelling for training, what happens if you under-fuel, how do you know if you're eating enough, and what to do about it if you're not.

Following her Olympic debut in the 5000m at Tokyo, Izzi Batt-Doyle joins us to discuss how she has managed the relationship between body composition and performance throughout her career and the challenges along the way, from domestic racing in Australia to the US Collegiate system, and now as an elite athlete.

We're joined by Associate Professor Gary Slater (University of the Sunshine Coast & National Performance Nutrition Network Lead, Australian Institute of Sport). Gary has significant expertise and research interest in body composition for athletes. We discuss whether leaner = faster running or riding, considerations for athletes of all levels and body compositions, as well as his experience organising and providing nutrition services for the Australian team village at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Olympian and Australian national record holder in the women's 800m, Catriona Bisset joins us to discuss her approach to aligning a vegan diet with her goals as an athlete. Full of personal experience, tips & tricks for anyone who is or wants to switch to predominately plant-based eating.

A/Prof at Bond University, Nutrition Lead for Triathlon Australia and vegetarian himself, Greg joins us to share his thoughts on plant-based and vegan diets for runners, cyclists & triathletes, whether they are adequate (or superior) for performance & recovery, and key considerations for those thinking of eliminating some or all animal-based foods.

Fresh off 2nd place at the CCC event at Ultra Trail Mont Blanc, ultrarunner and running coach Scotty Hawker joins us to discuss his past battles with gut issues, the role of FODMAPs in these, the careful elimination and reintroduction of FODMAP containing foods to find the source of the problem, and how he manages this today.

Steph takes the lead on this one given her expertise in FODMAPs, explaining what they are, why they're relevant to exercise, when and how to eat a low FODMAP diet, and who might benefit.

Alistair Donohoe joined us from his hotel in Izu as he prepared to race on the velodrome & the road at the Tokyo Paralympics. An avid coffee lover, Al discusses how he plans caffeine around training & competition, and his thoughts on withdrawal and re-introduction of caffeine on race day.

Dr Chris Irwin (Griffith University) joins us to answer a question that has many coffee lovers sweating on the answer. A sports dietitian and researcher who has studied caffeine withdrawal and re-introduction, Chris discusses whether there's a benefit from caffeine abstinence in the lead up to key races.

With the Paralympics kicking off this week we're joined by a member of the Aussie team, triathlete David Bryant, to discuss how he plans his protein across the day in training. A sports dietitian himself when he's not training & racing, Dave also shares the tips and tricks he uses with the athletes he works with.

We're joined by A/Prof. Dan Moore (University of Toronto), who's done many of the existing studies relating specifically to protein and endurance exercise. In this episode he'll discuss the unique features of endurance sports that might be relevant to having increased protein needs, where the science is at currently, and what he recommends runners, cyclists & triathletes need in terms of protein intake.

We're joined by Dr Alice McNamara, a trail and vertical runner, former elite rower, and also a medical doctor working at trail races across country Victoria. Alice shares her experiences with hyponatraemia as a race doctor, as well as other insights for athletes and race directors on all things medical support.

Alan shares his knowledge on exercise-associated hyponatraemia, the role of water vs sodium, is drinking to thirst all that's needed, and how else can we prevent this potentially dangerous condition?

We're joined by Dr Danielle McCartney, an Accredited Sports Dietitian & researcher at The Lambert Initiative for Cannabinoid Therapeutics. Danielle provides a fascinating overview of CBD use for sport. What are the potential uses? Is it safe, legal, how do you buy it, and is the hype justified?

We're joined by middle-distance runner, sports scientist & osteopathy student Cate Gifford. Cate gives us an insight into her recent injury & subsequent surgery, and how living with a sports dietitian has changed her approach to nutrition and injury rehab.

We chat to Dr Rebekah Alcock, an Accredited Sports Dietitian who completed her PhD in the area of nutrition support for tendon and ligament health. We discuss the key nutrition considerations for runners, cyclists and triathletes affected by injury, the recent hype around bone broth, gelatin and collagen to support rehab, and other factors that are often overlooked.

A sports scientist & nutritionist by training, but also a Marathon des Sables competitor in 2019, Jodie gives an insight into her own event preparation when it comes to nutrition, and tips and hints she picked up along the way.

In another in-house episode we cover the science and practical issues of carrying your own food for a multi-day event. We discuss the common debates around pack weight vs optimal fuelling, carbs vs fat vs protein, how to maximise the nutrition from the food you carry, and some practical tips learnt from athletes we've worked with over the years.

We're joined by adventurer, runner and business consultant Richard Bowles to share some of his adventures, how he fuelled when running a marathon a day for more than 5 months, and his preference for keeping it simple when it comes to nutrition and recovery.

Fresh from a PhD studying nutrition for recovery optimisation, Bella shares with us the recent expansion through her research from the 3R's to the 5R's of recovery, what that means for the average runner, cyclist and triathlete, and when some R's are more important than others.

We're joined by Leah Kirchmann, a pro cyclist racing with Team DSM in the Women's World Tour. We chat post-stage nutrient goals, logistical challenges, Leah's ride snacks, whether nutrition should be different for amateurs vs pros, and what can happen when you get it wrong.

James Moran works as a dietitian with INEOS Grenadiers and Uno-X Pro Cycling Teams. Just back from an altitude training camp in Tenerife, we chat to James about nutrition for stage racing, the differences from one-day events, how the INEOS Grenadiers team does it, and what we can learn for amateur level stage racing.

We're joined by Ironman triathlete Kevin Fergusson, a 4 time age group world champion who was also awarded Legend of the Sport by Triathlon Australia. Kev shares what he's learnt about nutrition for Ironman racing over the years, and his greatest achievement in the sport.

We're joined by Kate Penglase, a 2 time Australian champ and twice podium finisher at World Championships in 24 hr solo mountain biking. Kate gives an insight into her nutrition for 24hr racing, how she started out, and how and why her race plan has evolved over time. We also answer a listener question around dietary fibre for athletes.

A past winner of Ultra-Trail Australia and top 5 at Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc, Kellie shares her experience and tips for stepping up to ultra-distance running events, including what she did in her first ultra race, what she's learnt over the years, and what she sees in the athletes she coaches.

An in-house episode answering the question that gave rise to the entire podcast. If you're stepping up from marathon to ultras, 70.3 to Ironman, 6hr to 24hr MTB, or planning a bloody long bike ride, this episode is for you. When to prepare, how to prepare, do's and don'ts, and practical tips and suggestions galore.

Professional triathlete and coach Nathan Shearer joins us to discusses how beer fits into his Ironman training schedule, and how his prior sporting background exposed him to a lot more alcohol than the typical endurance athlete. We also wrap up the two episodes on beer and summarise its effect on post-exercise recovery, whether it's "a beer" or "getting on the beers".

A lecturer, researcher and sports dietitian, Ben has studied the effects of beer on post-exercise recovery. We discuss the R's of recovery (like a pirate!), including the all important (R)elaxation, and the effect beer may or may not have on these.

We're joined by ultra-runner Ben Duffus, recent winner of the Six Foot Track Marathon. Ben has faced some unusual challenges over the last few years, but used sweat sodium testing, in combination with a bunch of other measures, to complete the picture and figure out what was going wrong.

A lecturer & researcher at Monash University, practitioner with Triathlon Australia & in private practice. Alan investigated sweat testing and sodium needs of athletes during his PhD. What does sweat testing do, how accurate is it, and most importantly, how do you use the results of the test?

Fresh off the podium at the Australian XCO Championships, mountain biker Karen Hill joins us to discuss the recent changes she's made to her carb loading strategy. Imagine carb loading effectively with no gut upset, and still feeling hungry at the end of the day! An episode full of practical tips and tricks. 

An exercise physiologist, lecturer, researcher & cycling coach, José has travelled the world. Whilst working in Norway he completed a study summarising ~50 years of research on carbohydrate loading and the carb requirements of athletes into one comprehensive research paper. We discuss this research, the situations where carb loading may beneficial, and some of the practical considerations for doing it properly.

Ellie Pashley has represented Australia in the 10,000 m & half marathon at World Champs. She's also finished top 10 at the 2019 New York Marathon, and currently aiming to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic team in the marathon. Ellie discusses her battles with iron deficiency, her experiences with supplementation and iron infusions, and her approach to supplementation for altitude training.

Pete's both a researcher at the University of Western Australia and a physiologist at the Western Australian Institute of Sport (WAIS). We discuss recent advances in our understanding of iron deficiency in athletes, when to supplement, and the safest and most effective way to do so.

An incredible story from Spanish pro triathlete Eneko Llanos. After several years struggling to finish Ironman races, Eneko was finally able to determine the cause of his gut problems, put the appropriate strategies in place, and got back to the top of his game. We discuss this, how trial and error didn't work for him, and what's involved in assessing it properly.

A very common and frustrating issue, especially for runners and long-course triathletes. We're doing this one in-house given it's Steph's area of expertise. We unpack the actual causes of gut issues during exercise, why trial and error rarely works, how to figure out the cause, and what to do about it.

Our athlete perspective this week with Chris Ord who wears many hats - an outdoor/adventure journalist, founder & original publisher of Trail Run Magazine (Aus/NZ), race director, adventure running tour guide, and trail runner in his own right. We also finish with an easy guide for assessing the credibility of scientific information, to help your BS detection skills.

At the heart of many of our podcast topics/questions is confusion, misconceptions and misinformation. We chat to Dr Tim Crowe about why there are so many mixed messages in nutrition science, the role of the media and social media, and tips for developing a good BS detector. Tim's also a marathon runner, so we chatted about his own experience and what he learnt from experience that science couldn't teach him.

Our combined athlete perspective episode for the last two topics. Marathon runner and dual Olympian Jess Stenson joins us to discuss the evolution of her preparation for hot races, from the 2013 Moscow World Champs, to the 2016 Rio Olympics, the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games & the follow up Gold Coast marathon a few months later.

The 2nd half of our chat with Prof. Ollie Jay (University of Sydney). We cover myths, facts and sucessfully used cooling strategies from professional sport, whether you should drink or pour water over yourself, the difference between actual cooling & the perception of feeling cooler, and heat acclimation.

Is it genetics? Body fat? Or completely random? Prof. Ollie Jay (University of Sydney) joins us in a fascinating discussion about how our bodies figure out how much sweat to produce during exercise, why it varies so much between people, as well as from day-to-day within the same person. A bit technical in parts, with an easy-to-digest summary at the end.

Australian distance runner Julian Spence joins us to talk about his experience running the marathon at the World Athletics Championships in Doha in 2019, a hot race run in the middle of the night. We chat about his approach to hydration for the event, watching fellow competitors need medical assistance in the women's race a few nights prior, and what it's like training on a treadmill next door to a fish n chip shop!

Dr Lewis James (Loughborough University, UK) joins us to discuss what has often times been a highly controversial topic. Lewis is a senior lecturer at Loughborough and has conducted some of the world's only blinded hydration and performance studies. An awesome discussion about the controversies and difficulties in hydration research, why there hasn't been more studies in the area, and some practical considerations to get you thinking about how you hydrate for your next event.

In our athlete perspective episode, pro triathlete Emma Jeffcoat joins us to discuss her journey as it relates to matching her nutrition to her training demands. We also chat to Emma about her goals for next year's rescheduled Tokyo Olympics, and her love of Biscoff!

Dr Sam Impey (Mitchelton-Scott Pro Cycling Team) joins us to discuss this very common question. Sam's PhD research led to the now ubiquitous phrase "Fuel for the work required". We discuss the pros and cons of different fuelling strategies for long training sessions, and make practical recommendations based on the the type and purpose of the training session.

Olympic racewalker Evan Dunfee joins us to discuss his experience eating a low carb, high fat diet in the Supernova study, how it affected his training and race performances, what he sees other elite athletes eating, and his take on the postponement of Tokyo 2020.

Our first podcast for runners, cyclists & triathletes investigates one of the most controversial questions of recent years - is low carb right for me? We will hear from Prof. Louise Burke (Australian Catholic University, previously Australian Institute of Sport) who has done perhaps more research in this field than anyone.