Mallorca is a spectacular island in the heart of the Mediterranean and this epic race allows athletes to explore the cycling paradise in a superb Cyclo-Sportive event. With a choice of 3 routes; 312, 225, or 167 km, there is an option available for every kind of rider. Back to it's traditional timing in April after 2021's October event the Mallorca 312 promises to be another truly spectacular day out.
Here’s the key information you need to know to prepare for, finish strong, and recover from a race like this:
Prime: Load up at the right time with the right stuff
You spend so many hours, weeks, and even months doing everything you can to prepare for race day. Don’t compromise all of this effort because of poor race-day preparation under some misguided belief that you should be low-carb and heading up the mountain without sufficient fuel stores. Load up so you can stay up.
Moreover, just because you had a pre-workout meal that worked for you during training does not mean it will be enough for you this weekend. Altitude, temperature, adrenaline, and more can impact your glucose levels and metabolic responses. Consider increasing your glucose intake 3-4 hours before the race to top off your glycogen stores and ensure your body has enough time to return to metabolic homeostasis before the start of the race.
For some quick tips to optimize your priming see this article.
Perform: Fuel to keep your glucose high enough
You get your glucose levels up through priming and properly warming up. But what about maintaining those high glucose levels so that you can sustain your desired power output? That’s exactly what real-time glucose visibility has uncovered for us. The reality is that most of us simply do not intake enough glucose to fuel our body to perform at the level we want. It’s no wonder that nearly 50% of new Supersapiens athletes report that their single biggest change since starting their journey is improving their workout and in-race fueling. This race, think about intaking more glucose than you originally planned for and feel the power difference.
Recover: Refuel appropriately
Making sure that you are recovering well in-between workouts is critical. Ultimately, this is where you drive key performance adaptations (and feel better, faster.) A major piece of recovery is refueling—specifically with glucose. Make sure you are getting the right amount of glucose at the right time to replenish your fuel stores and support other metabolic functions that repair your muscles.
In fact, post exercise, you have a key window for recovery: the glycogen replenishment window. During this period, your body is primed for recovery and ready to uptake nutrients. The recommendations for intake in this timeframe are: 1.2g carbohydrates/kg of bodyweight/hour for 3-4 hours (this should be a mixture of fructose and glucose) and around 1g protein/kg of bodyweight. The combination of carbs and protein help facilitate more efficient muscle protein synthesis. Don’t forget that hydration is a key part of this recovery process too!
For more on recovery see this article.
Hydration, carbohydrates, for those who think this sounds like beer, you may want to read this piece on alcohol's effects on glucose.
So what does all this mean for you?
Basically, don’t let your glucose levels be the reason for a bad race. Above are the top tips and tricks we’ve learned working with elite athletes over the past 2 years. Just remember, whether you use them this weekend or save them for your next race, they just might keep you from bonking and instead help you achieve your goal.
Got questions? Don’t forget to stop by the Supersapiens event tent this weekend!
Supersapiens is the title sponsor of the Milestone Series. Interested in more information about performance fueling? Learn more at supersapiens.com and subscribe to the Supersapiens email newsletter to get all of our newest research and nutrition guidance. Please visit the Supersapiens Education Hub for a full list of references and disclaimers.
