When to use this
The night before an all-day meet, when the cooler gets packed and the posted schedule is guaranteed to slip.
- Multi-event athletes facing gaps from 40 minutes to 4 hours in the same day.
- Athletes who either eat nothing all meet or eat a full lunch right before a race.
- Parents asking exactly what to pack in the cooler for the whole day.
Advanced lab
Carb ranges by gap length
The sheet sorts foods by gap. What each window looks like as real food is here so a coach can size the snack instead of eyeballing it.
Gap math assumes a healthy athlete with a practiced gut. For a runner with recurring GI trouble, or one restricting food on meet days, involve a sports dietitian rather than tightening the numbers.
Evidence sources
These references support the handout’s general education. Individual medical, supplement, laboratory, or injury questions should be handled by the appropriate qualified clinician.
- Burke LM, Jeukendrup AE, Jones AM, Mooses M.(2019) Contemporary nutrition strategies to optimize performance in distance runners and race walkers.
- Burke LM, van Loon LJ, Hawley JA. (2017) Postexercise muscle glycogen resynthesis in humans. Journal of Applied Physiology, 122(5):1055-1067.
- Sawka MN, Burke LM, Eichner ER, et al. (2007) ACSM position stand: Exercise and fluid replacement. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 39(2):377-390.
Where to go next
