Saturdays eRace on Zwift will see Team INEOS Grenadiers riders compete against each other on the Yorkshire World Championship course. Fuelling smart will play a key role in shaping the outcome of this race with the riders set to push each other to their absolute limits. Team nutritionist, Javier Gonzalez, shared his insight into how the riders will be fuelling. Before The Race As the Team INEOS eRace course is relatively short and riders are likely to complete this in well under 1 hour, carbohydrates are not the most important nutritional consideration here. Before the race, it’s worth having a light meal 2-3 hours before which is low in fibre and contains some easy-to-digest carbohydrates. Caffeine can provide a good performance enhancement when taken 45 mins before the race, so this would be an ideal time to have an SiS GO Energy Caffeine gel. During The Race A Hydro Tab with water would be recommended to replace electrolytes lost in sweat. Carbs are not essential for fuelling due to the relatively short duration of the race, nevertheless, a small amount of carbohydrate may benefit performance in these types of races. Therefore, having a SiS GO Gel or one bottle with SiS GO Energy Powder to hand would be advisable. This type of race may benefit from nitrate and beta-alanine supplementation. Dietary nitrates can lower the oxygen cost of exercise, so supplementing the diet with nitrates for a couple of days ahead of the event may improve performance (1-2 nitrate shots per day for 3 days before the race, and an additional shot 90 minutes before the race). Also, beta-alanine supplementation (3.2 g per day for around 2 weeks) can also improve performance by limiting the acidity of the muscle during exercise. After The Race It is recommended to have a protein shake to assist with the recovery and adaptation processes. 30g of SiS Whey Protein can assist in muscle recovery and adaptation. **TOP TIP** Make some additional bottles up with iced water to have next to the bike to stay cool, and make the protein shake in advance and keep it in the fridge to stay cool. Written By siscontributor Our wider network of athletes, scientists and sports journalists who are hand-picked to share their expertise and experiences with the Science in Sport Community.
