Fuelling for the Long Haul: Nutrition Strategies for a 24-Hour Race

Food Prep for a 24hr+ Long Race

Now, if you’re crazy enough, you might find yourself staring down the barrel of a longer-duration race. Yep, you’ve left food prep to the last minute, and now it's 8:30 pm the night before the race. This is the time you should be putting your feet up and relaxing — but instead, you’re deep in the wide web asking how TF to prep food for one of these races.

Well, I’m here to help you… a little.

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My Experience

• Over the years, I’ve switched up my race fuel choices.

• Once fueled on lollies and chocolate, I’m now reaching more for wraps and crackers.

• But you still need some kind of rule or guide to make sure you’re fueling properly and not bonking at 3 am in the middle of the bush.

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The Fueling Strategy

Let’s say your race will go for 24 hours (I’ll cover multi-day races another time).

• If your pace is fast walking with the occasional jog (very occasional), your heart rate will stay pretty low — unless you’re hauling yourself up a big hill.

• At this intensity, you’ll burn:

  • A bit of fat (from body stores).

  • More carbs (which you need to keep topping up).

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How Much Fuel Do You Need?

Since you’ll be burning mostly carbs, you need to stay topped up:

60–90g of carbs per hour is the sweet spot for 24-hour events.

Some things to consider:

•  If you get gut issues → stick closer to 60g/hr.

•  If you’re going hard (high heart rate) → aim for closer to 90g/hr.

•  If you’re not used to eating during events → start lower and train your gut like you train your body.

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Why Not More Fat?

• You’ve got heaps of fat stores — enough to last for days.

• Carbs, on the other hand, are limited — you’ve only got about 90–120 minutes’ worth stored in your muscles and liver.

• That’s why you see runners smashing gels, not blocks of butter.

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24-Hour Fuel Plan Example

Here’s a simple hourly nutrition plan to hit that 60g/hr target:

(You get the idea — rotate through similar combos for the full 24 hours.)

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Creating Your Own Plan

If you want to make your own plan:

1. Write down the foods you like eating during events.

2. Work out the carb content (in grams) for each food item.

3. Split them into hourly (1/24), 4-hourly (1/8), or 6-hourly (1/4) bags.

   •  I like 6-hour bags — less faffing around mid-race and less waste.

   • Aim for 360g per 6-hour bag if targeting 60g/hr.

4. Mix up the flavors — trust me, eating the same thing over and over will get old real quick.

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Side Notes:

• Some people love sweets and sugar — that’s fine, but you can get sugar fatigue pretty quick.

• Add in savory options (like sandwiches, crackers, or dried meat) to keep your taste buds happy.

• If you can't eat, drink your carbs with carb mixes or sports drinks.

• Bee Fast gels are great, but you can’t rely solely on them for a full 24 hours — you’ll burn out.

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Pro Tip:

If you’re putting together food bags:
Don’t mix all your flavors — you’ll end up with a bag full of lollies and no desire to eat any of it.
Avoid messy stuff — honey and jam are great, but if they’re leaking, you’ll hate yourself.
Keep it simple — don’t try to be fancy mid-race; you won’t care how gourmet it is after 12 hours.

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Final Thoughts

• Don’t overthink it — stick to the 60g/hr rule and keep it simple.

• Prep your food the night before (not at 8:30 pm like some of us…).

• Mix up the textures and flavors — it’ll keep you from going nuts halfway through the race.

• If all else fails, just keep eating. Under-fueling is the fastest way to DNF.

And hey, you didn’t even have to pay a nutritionist for this — how good!