Below are lists of most common nutritional sources during ultra running training and racing to easily allow you to optimize your carbs per hour for peak performance. There is a list for each of these categories: Drink Mixes, Gels, Gummies, Bars and Waffles, and Whole Foods that list the amounts of carbs, sugar, protein, fat, and sodium in each product/food source. 

My goal is to make is easy for you to calculate how many carbs (and other nutrients) are you consuming with your current plan and be able to modify/improve your nutritional plan to optimize training and racing performance and recovery.

Related articles that are must reads to go along with this:
How to get high carbs per hour. 
How to Maximize Race Day Performance and Minimize GI Distress. 
​Carbs are King/Queen! 

We have all heard that carbs are king and we will feel better and perform better while consuming a high number of carbs per hour (60-125g/hour), but how do we do that? 

Step one is start looking at different foods and energy products to see how many carbs they contain per serving. Make a list of them so it's easy to calculate carbs per hour. 

Step two is look at the list and figure out which foods/products you know you already like and your GI system handles well. Figure out which foods/products you can eat per hour to reach your carb goal. 

If you're newer to high carb fueling, start with a goal of getting 60g carbs/hour. Some examples are below. ​

I am a big proponent of high carb intakes during training and racing and research backs this up also. Recently I ran the 28k at Big Alta by Freetrail and Daybreak Racing in beautiful Marin County, California and wanted to use my race as an example of high carb intake during racing. ​

First of all, the Big Alta is an amazing weekend of trail running and I would highly encourage you to go race or watch next year. 2024 was the first year of the race and it amazing. Race weekend was so fun with the 50k on Saturday and the 28k on Sunday. I watched some friends race the 50k on Saturday and hung out at some aid stations and the finish line and it was such a great vibe. Sunday I raced the 28k with a bunch of friends and had a blast. 

In endurance sport, including ultra marathon running, carbs are king/queen. Carbs are our primary fuel source and the one that allows us to perform at our best. Yes we are always burning some percentage of our calories from fat, but maintaining optimal levels of blood glucose through the regular consumption of carbs during endurance running is the only way to perform at our best.