You get lots of time to chat with people during ultras. During one run recently I explained the issue I have with carbohydrates to someone, who responded with "you maybe chose the wrong sport?".
That is true, running ultras is tough enough, but running them when eating carbohydrates is mostly out of the question makes things much harder. For one thing, no one is available to give advice. If you look on line for advice on food for ultras, carbs are everywhere.
Time to read Bernd Heinrich again, and maybe 'Chemistry of Life'.
My last ultra was the Calderdale Way. 54 miles (including navigation fuckups) and a couple of vertical km. My pace graph makes interesting viewing - I'm fine up to about 35 miles, then it all goes to shit. My recollection is: I'm fine up to about 35 miles but dehydrated, then I drank a load of flat coke, ate a load of biscuits and... it all goes to shit. Thing is, I *know* it all goes to shit if I eat sugar, I've proved it over and over again. But at 35 miles I would have sold my soul for anything sweet, no matter what it did to my final time.
So.
As a neuroscientist of sorts, one thing I know, the brain is easily fooled. One thing that it can be diddled on with the greatest of ease is cravings. Craving nicotine? Give it sugar, the craving goes away. That's why so many people go cake crazy when they give up smoking.
I'm pretty sure if, when my body craves sugar, I give it cheese, it'll STFU and get on with burning those fats. I LOVE cheese. I crave cheese more or less continuously.
So the next 50 I do, I'm filling my pockets with babybels. Lets see if that works.
