TRIBE Ambassador and pro-cyclist Juliet Elliott tells us all about her training and race day nutrition strategy.
As someone who is constantly on the go, TRIBE fits my lifestyle perfectly. Fuelling the right way is really important to me both on and off the bike. It’s crucial that I eat regularly to keep my energy levels up and like many athletes I get really hungry and live in fear of being without food. For that reason, I always have a stash of TRIBE bars with me! It’s awesome having a nutrition sponsor!
Fuelling with TRIBE
TRIBE bars are made of nothing but natural ingredients, which is important if you eat snacks regularly. Without a proper fuelling strategy you risk poor performance. Too much fat or fibre can be detrimental. With a broad range of products in the TRIBE line up – Trail Mix, Protein Bars, Energy bars and the new Hydration Mix there’s plenty of scope for customizing your nutrition and getting it spot on.
Carb Up
Carbohydrates are essential as these are what your body burns to provide energy and after a certain point, your stores of Carbohydrate (glycogen) will run out. If we don’t eat enough carbs, the body turns to protein as a source and this is a fairly inefficient way to fuel as it takes longer to process as energy.
The general rule of thumb is to take on 1 gram of carbohydrate per kilo of bodyweight each hour, so as a 56kg rider I’d be looking to consume around 56 grams of carbohydrate. To do this, I eat a TRIBE Blaze Trails bar, which has around 25 grams of carbohydrates and a banana (25-30grams of carbs). My favourite Blaze Trails bar is the Sour Cherry & Buckwheat. It’s boosted by the cherries’ anti-inflammatory properties, contains no refined sugars and is easy to eat and digest on the go.
Pre-load
If I’m racing I like to eat the grain-based TRIBE Infinity Peanut Butter and Banana bar in last hour before we start as the slow release carbohydrates keep me going. Like many cyclists, little and often works best for me.
Protein Power
Protein is essential to help rebuild your muscles and help your recover faster. Though recently, there’s been some talk of pro-cyclists using some protein whilst training on the bike, it’s generally consider best to consume protein after cycling as an aid to recovery. The TRIBE 10 protein bars are great and contain 10g natural protein for recovery.
Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate!
Even slight dehydration has a bad effect on performance so I make sure to drink plenty whilst training and racing. Like with food, what I take depends on the situation but a new favourite is TRIBE’s natural Hydrate electrolyte drinks.
These super sachets are absolutely amazing – I’m so happy to finally have a natural hydration drink to use. A blend of fruit, botanicals and natural electrolytes (the minerals that we lose through sweat) this product is a game changer.
