|
 |
Endurance Mindset · 🇺🇸 |
Home•Blog•News•Run With Us•Apply•Plans•Store
|
🌍 ¿Recibes esto en el idioma equivocado? Actualiza tus preferencias en el pie → Español 🇪🇸 |
|
 |
|
👋🏻 Hey Reader!
Wednesday September 16 · Chicago series · 4 of 7
This is where a lot of marathons get lost without the training being at fault.
Today: what, how much and when. And above all — rehearsed in training, never improvised on the day.
|
|
Sunday October 11 · 7:20 am
25 DAYS
|
|
|
|
🌡️ Why Chicago demands a different plan
Every marathon has its own nutritional personality. Chicago is fast and flat — you know that already. But it's also an early-October marathon in the American Midwest, which means it can start cool and finish hot and humid right when the 4-hour-plus runners are still out there.
|
|
I've seen years like this
|
8°C
at the start
|
→ |
21°C
at the finish
|
That temperature swing changes your hydration plan more than almost any other factor. And Lake Michigan humidity shows up even on "cool" days.
|
|
|
The good news and the trap in the aid stations
Chicago has aid stations at practically every mile — not every 5 km like several European marathons. Gatorade Endurance and water. It's one of the most generous courses you'll run.
The trap: the Maurten gels at km 30 are for the elite block only. The rest of us carry our own. You can't rely on "what they hand out" at the exact point you need it.
|
|
|
🍝 The two days before
Carb loading works, but it doesn't mean eating a tray of pasta the night before and calling it done. The evidence points to 36-48 hours of gradual increase — 8-10 g/kg of body weight per day — alongside reduced training volume. Not one big feed.
|
| THU / FRI |
Normal meals, good hydration, moderate salt. |
| SATURDAY |
Breakfast and lunch with easy-digesting carbs — rice, potato, white bread, fruit. Low insoluble fibre, moderate fat. Early dinner, nothing new or exotic. |
| AVOID |
Alcohol, excess fibre, very spicy or greasy food. And don't try new restaurants in River North the night before running 42 km. |
Saturday usually has good weather for a walk along the Riverwalk or the Loop. Use it to hydrate while you stroll — not to stand on the Magnificent Mile eating deep dish at 8pm.
|
|
⏰ Race morning
You wake up 3 to 3½ hours before the start. Corrals close early and there's a fair walk from gear check to your corral in Grant Park.
|
| −3 HOURS |
Breakfast of 1 to 1.2 g/kg of carbohydrate — bagel with jam, oats with banana, toast with honey. Coffee if it's your routine. |
| −60/90 MIN |
Extra fast-carb snack if you're hungry — gel, banana, date bar. Plus 300-500 ml of water or electrolyte drink. |
| −15/20 MIN |
Last sip of water. No more than 150-200 ml, so you don't have to stop in the first few kilometres. |
|
|
The most common error I see in Chicago
Arriving dehydrated out of fear of needing the toilet in the corral. The porta-potty lines in Grant Park are long but manageable if you arrive with time. Don't sacrifice hydration for that.
|
|
|
🗺️ Gels, kilometre by kilometre
The recommendation for events over 2.5 hours is 60-90 g of carbohydrate per hour, using multiple transporters (glucose + fructose) to maximise intestinal absorption. Adjust for your goal pace:
|
Your fuel map |
| KM 0-8 |
Loop and Lincoln Park
Nothing yet, just water if you're thirsty. Crowded and loud — not the moment to be digging for a gel in your belt.
|
| KM 10 |
Old Town · gel 1
20-25 g of carbohydrate. Water at the next station.
|
| KM 16-18 |
Wicker Park / Bucktown · gel 2
This is where many start feeling the heat if the sun came out. Check your sweat rate, not just your watch.
|
| KM 24-25 |
Pilsen · gel 3
This stretch tends to have less shade. If the day turned warm, electrolytes instead of plain water.
|
| KM 30-32 |
Chinatown → South Loop · gel 4
With caffeine, if you've tested it before. This is Chicago's wall — after Chinatown the course feels lonelier and more mental.
|
| KM 35-37 |
Toward Michigan Ave · gel 5
If your pace is 4 hours plus. Muscular fatigue is established — simple carbs, nothing new.
|
| KM 40-42 |
To the finish
You don't need more carbohydrate. Just small sips if it's hot.
|
|
Total: 4-6 gels of ~25 g, plus whatever you take from the stations. Practise this exact number in your 28-32 km long runs. Don't debut it on race day. |
|
|
☕ Caffeine: dose and timing
Effective doses sit between 3 and 6 mg/kg, taken 45-60 minutes before the effort. For a 70 kg runner that's 210-420 mg. The range is wide because individual sensitivity varies enormously — and trying it on race day without rehearsing it is an unnecessary gamble.
My suggestion: your normal coffee at breakfast, and if you tolerate it, a caffeinated gel between km 25 and 30 — when central fatigue starts to weigh more than muscular fatigue.
Don't double up on caffeine in the first hour. The effect accumulates. And given what we know about the cardiac response to prolonged effort [PMID:40667749], your heart is already carrying three to five hours of sustained load. This isn't the moment to add unnecessary sympathetic stress.
|
|
|
💧 Water or electrolytes, by the thermometer
|
|
UNDER 12°C
Water at most stations. Electrolytes every 2-3 stations.
|
|
|
OVER 18°C
Alternate water and electrolytes at almost every station. Consider extra sodium if you sweat heavily or have a cramping history.
|
|
There's no single sodium-per-hour formula that works for everyone — sweat rate variability is enormous. What is constant: dehydration beyond 2% of body weight impairs performance and thermoregulation.
👉 Concrete task: weigh yourself before and after your next long runs. That difference is your personal sweat rate, and it's the only number that tells you how much you actually need to drink.
|
|
🎁 Run together, earn rewards
Know someone this email would help? Forward it to them. Every subscriber who arrives through your link brings you closer to the next reward.
|
 |
|
Your personal link to share
[RH_REFLINK GOES HERE]
VIEW MY REWARDS →You have [RH_TOTREF GOES HERE] referrals · Code: [RH_CODE GOES HERE]
|
|
|
|
Coach Henri
USATF · TrainingPeaks · Certified Functional Strength Coach
|
|
|
Pray 🙏 · Love ❤️ · Run 🏃♂️
USA · COL · VEN
Unsubscribe · Update preferences · Actualizar preferencias
© 2026 Project Management of Running LLC · El Paso, TX 79911
|
|
|
