Your UTMB® training includes not only physical exercises and running sessions, but preparing to run UTMB® also means following a specific diet. Ideally developed with the help of a nutritionist or coach, it should bring you into peak condition on race day.
Thorough preparation, all year round
Your diet should not only provide the essential nutrients your body needs, but also prepare you for the specific nutrition demands of ultra-trail: this can unsettle the body, and careful monitoring will help you avoid stomach problems that many competitors experience. Absorbing energy gels and drinks can sometimes be difficult: only long-term preparation, by getting your body used to these products during training runs, can reduce this risk. Find details of this acclimatisation phase in our article: ultra nutrition: how to prepare and get used to it.
Diet for the final weeks
As the race approaches, especially during the final two weeks, your diet needs to become more specific and closely controlled: carbohydrate-dominant meals, substantial calorie intake, followed by a high-carbohydrate phase in the final days to maximise muscle glycogen stores. Full details, including the day-by-day macronutrient breakdown, are available in our dedicated article: what to eat before an ultra-trail: nutrition in the preceding weeks.
And after the race?
Nutrition does not stop at the finish line: post-race food and hydration play a key role in recovery and replenishing your glycogen stores. Find all our advice on this topic, as well as on gradually returning to training, in our article How can you optimise recovery after a trail?
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Photo credits: Delphine Daniélou.
