Athletes preparing for endurance events are now equipped with insights on gut training, an essential strategy for optimising performance whilst minimising stomach issues – including beginning 11 weeks before race day.
Recent findings from Precision Fuel & Hydration (PF&H) reveal that elite endurance athletes are increasingly consuming higher amounts of carbohydrates during training and races, leading to significant performance enhancements.
Carbohydrates are the primary fuel source for high-intensity endurance exercise. However, ‘gut distress’ remains a leading cause of Did Not Finish (DNF) outcomes in endurance sports, with high-carb intakes often cited as a contributing factor.
To address these challenges, the PF&H team is sharing advice on ‘gut training’, a strategy that helps athletes tolerate increased carbohydrate levels during competitions.
This approach involves gradually introducing higher carbohydrate content and volume during training sessions, with the aim of minimising gut discomfort on race day. Over time, gut training improves carbohydrate absorption and glucose availability in the bloodstream, which can lead to enhanced performance.
Andy Blow, co-founder of Precision Fuel & Hydration and a former elite athlete, emphasises the importance of this practice, “Carbohydrate ingestion has been shown to have a ‘dose-response relationship’ with performance, so there’s much to be gained if you can tolerate greater carb intakes,” he said.
From the Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB) to the Leadville 100, once “unbeatable” records have fallen, with the fact that athletes are consuming more carbohydrates than ever likely to be a significant contributing factor. This trend has sparked interest in training the gut for endurance performance.
Blow now advises athletes to begin this process at least 10 to 11 weeks before their event, incorporating one to two longer, harder training sessions each week that mimic race conditions.
To effectively train the gut, the PF&H team also recommended that athletes progressively increase carbohydrate intake weekly, aiming to reach their target by race day.
Elite ultrarunner Lucie Hanes is just one athlete who is undergoing a transformation to embrace high carbohydrate fuelling having consumed just 52g/h during her Black Canyon 100km race last year despite the science recommending an intake of as much as 90g/h being optimal.
She is working with PF&H to find ways to increase her carbohydrate intake, who believe that by training her gut to tolerate more carbohydrate while working at a higher intensity, it will enable her to increase energy availability in future races having rated her energy levels as just a 5/10 at the Black Canyon.
Speaking about her experience of gut training so far, she said: “The gut needs time to get used to a higher intake before it can put that energy to good use.
“Gradually exposing your body to more and more fuel reduces the risk and intensity of GI distress, and it also gives the gut a chance to work through any growing pains well before the big race.
“It’s just as much a mental battle as a physical one, and it’s neither exciting nor easy in either context. What makes it a battle worth fighting is the opportunity to do more of what you love – only harder, better, faster, stronger.”
Another tactic PF&H has seen work in gut training is a “ramped approach,” which means increasing carbohydrate intake during training just beyond what you need on race day, so that your intake on race day feels easier.
Practicing with the same foods, drinks, and sports nutrition products intended for race day is also crucial, allowing athletes to simulate race conditions and fine-tune their nutrition strategies.
Blow added, “Your body is trainable and there is significant room for improvement if you are on the lower end of the range that the science says you should be aiming for.
“Start a few months out and incrementally build it up and go through that process of fuelling your sessions correctly and make sure to follow our recommendations to help the body adapt to processing more fuel, boosting confidence and performance on race day.”
“There isn’t one clear path to success when it comes to gut training, but following our advice aligns with the latest information and is a great starting point for your own trial and error.”
For more information on gut training and performance optimisation, please visit: https://www.precisionhydration.com/
To work out your ideal or target carbohydrate intake, use the Fuel & Hydration Planner, so you know what kind of number you’re aiming for in terms of grams of carbohydrates per hour.
