Liège-Bastogne-Liège: 258 kilometers and 4.450 meters of altitude difference, the toughest Monument classic. Everything must be prepared to perfection and To run well from the first to the last kilometer, it is important to implement a valid nutritional strategy. You have to take into account the successive climbs, the double-digit gradients, the curves... In this race it is not "easy" to eat like in a Sanremo or even in a Roubaix which, as stressful as it is, has wide and flat roads between one sector and the next.
Strategy for the Doyenne, the doyenne of the classics, as the Liège is also called, which we ask you to illustrate to us Nicholas Moschetti, nutritionist on duty at Bahrain-Victorious (opening @charlylopezph).
Nicola, the food strategy for Liège…
I would say that It starts the day before with a higher intake of carbohydrates across the three main meals. You start loading up on carbohydrates at breakfast. The goal is to replenish your glycogen stores so you're ready for the next day. So if a rider usually eats 120 grams of carbohydrates for breakfast, on the eve of Liège he will take 160-180. Then it also depends on the type of rider, the objective, their role... but basically this is the rule. Especially with one-day races and in Belgium, if you gain a little weight (carbs can cause water retention, ed.) It's not a problem. Look pogacar who said he was running these tests with an extra kilo and a half!
For lunch and dinner?
The same thing: more carbohydrates, but trying to reduce fats a little, but not proteins which will help the muscles not to suffer the next day. So, larger portions of rice or pasta. Another tip is to eat "low fiber," meaning reducing or even eliminating vegetables to facilitate carbohydrate absorption.
So let's move on to the race. With altimetry in mind, what advice do you have for your kids?
As you mentioned, it's not easy to fuel yourself during a race like this. At least not with solid foods like bars, bananas, or rice cake. Solid foods, depending on the stretch and pace, are neither easy to ingest nor digest, and therefore... there is a strong tendency to choose maltodextrins dissolved in water bottles. And also the gels. We in Bahrain-Victorious for example use the C90 malts of Neversecond, where C90 stands for 90 grams of carbohydrates. That is, a water bottle contains 90 grams of dissolved carbohydrates.
And how should they be taken?
The ideal is one water bottle per hour, so 90 grams of carbohydrates, accompanied by a gel or a rice cake, which contain another 30, to reach the 110-120 grams of carbohydrates per hour which is the goal. It goes without saying that reaching 120 grams with solid foods would be difficult: you would have to consume the equivalent of four energy bars or rice cakes per hour. And even if they are easy to swallow, in the long run they are more difficult to digest. Then it's clear that if you go slowly, and therefore spend less, you can even get below 120 grams of carbohydrates per hour.
And we imagine absorption times will change too. Liquids should be absorbed more quickly…
Exactly, and in fact we shouldn't look too far ahead: we need to think that what we need is now. The problem is that riders are often caught up in the race and it's not a given that they eat consistently. Therefore, basic awareness is essential. They need to have a certain level of nutritional education. And this is especially true for solid foods: they should eat them whenever possible.
Is the last “binge” on solid food before the Redoute, so in the last hour and a half, hour and 20 minutes of running?
Yes, but they should also take a gel afterwards.The goal is to not arrive exhausted from carbs in the last hour. Therefore, consuming those famous 120 grams is even more important in the last hour. And here, it's important for the flagship to remind him of this, too. They certainly shouldn't take solid foods. At this stage, two gels and half a water bottle are fine. Perhaps one gel could be caffeine-based.
Caffeine is used more and more carefully.
It reduces the feeling of tiredness. But it is important to take it at the right time. When taking this gel, you must do so knowing that the caffeine peak comes 40-45 minutes later, So you have to do the math. If my "X" point is La Roche aux Faucons, I have to take that caffeine gel 40 minutes before it gets there.
Hydration is also part of the nutritional strategy. You mentioned malt, but what about water?
When you take maltodextrin in your water bottle, water is included and, paradoxically, isn't needed. Runners seek it out for a bit of variety. So, if anything, it's best to drink water in the first half, perhaps accompanied by a few solid snacks.
The “shopping list” for the Liège strategy therefore includes…
It's about a six hour race, so 5-6 malt bottles, 3 rice cakes, 6 gels (1-2 of which are caffeinated).
