Electrolytes are not the same as carbohydrate. Now that I’ve stated the obvious, here’s why it matters:
I’ve been running with an electrolyte drink for my long runs. I love it. It tastes refreshing! What I hadn’t thought of was that I would still need to some carbohydrate (and specifically, glucose) to energize me for those runs. In the past I did use energy gels, but I’ve found them sticky and – when I’m really tired – hard to swallow. So I haven’t been using them. But I noticed a strong trend in this Sunday’s long run that couldn’t be ignored: while keeping my heart rate within “zone 2”, my pace began to suffer towards the end.
1-12km – my pace was between 8-8.15 min/km
13-19km – my pace was between 8.30-9.05 min/km
I didn’t feel hungry. I didn’t feel like I was struggling (which makes sense since I kept the same heart rate), but the proof is in the numbers.
But wouldn’t you know it, we just had a talk on running nutrition last week! And when I returned home from my run I saw that my aunt had sent me an article about running nutrition! Talk about timing! After careful calculations, I’ve now come up with a Plan to get more carbohydrate in me during the run. I don’t know how well it’s going to work, but that’s why the long runs are all about experimentation!
Total distance: 19k
Total time: 2.40.26
Average pace: 8.27min/km
Average heart rate 134bpm (69%)
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