# Race day: why the last four hours before the start decide the race

> On race day it is no longer fitness that decides, but timing. What research shows about pre-start carbohydrate, rebound hypoglycaemia and habituation - and how the WOO® Fast Endurance Orange Box fits that routine.

On race day the training work is done. What still costs or saves performance are a handful of decisions in the final hours before the start: breakfast, timing, how much you drink. For exactly this window, sports nutrition research has surprisingly clear data.

## The last four hours before the start

After a night without food, liver glycogen stores are noticeably depleted while muscle stores remain largely full. It is that liver reserve which stabilises blood glucose during the race. Position stands in sports nutrition therefore recommend **1 to 4 g of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight**, taken one to four hours before the start - for a 70 kg athlete that is 70 to 280 g, the upper end only if there is enough time to digest.

## Rebound hypoglycaemia: the risk of the final hour

The most common counter-argument goes like this: carbohydrate shortly before the start drives insulin up, blood glucose drops during the first minutes of exercise, performance suffers. The effect is measurable. But Moseley and colleagues (2003) showed that in most athletes the drop is transient and does not translate into reduced cycling performance once the effort begins - muscle contraction itself opens insulin-independent glucose channels.

In practice: either the larger portion more than two hours beforehand, or a small amount in the final fifteen minutes, when the adrenaline response dampens insulin anyway. Those who react sensitively notice it in training - not in the race.

## Why nothing new appears on race day

Gastrointestinal complaints are among the most frequent reasons for dropping out in long-distance sport. The cause is rarely the product itself but the lack of habituation: reduced blood flow in the gut, an unfamiliar concentration, an unfamiliar volume. The gut's absorptive capacity is trainable - regular carbohydrate intake during exercise increases the density of transport proteins, and tolerance rises with it. From this follows the one race rule without exception: every race drink must have been tested several times in training at race intensity.

## How the WOO® Fast Endurance Orange Box fits into race day

The box contains ten 60 g sachets. Per serving that is 56.1 g of carbohydrate, 230 kcal, 300 mg of sodium and 25 mg of magnesium - magnesium contributes to normal muscle function. The base is high-molecular corn starch, complemented by maltodextrin, glucose and sucrose.

One sachet per bottle means always the same concentration and no weighing out in the start area.

According to its usage instructions, **WOO® Fast Endurance** is ideal before and during training, with dosage adjustable to the individual. For race day that means: one sachet in the pre-start window, the remaining ones as fixed bottle units during the race. Vegan, gluten- and lactose-free, without artificial additives.

## Frequently asked questions

**How long before the start should I take the last serving?**
Either more than two hours before, or within the final fifteen minutes. The window from 30 to 60 minutes before is the only one in which some athletes feel a brief drop in blood glucose.

**Do I need to drink more on race day than in training?**
Not by default, but intensity is usually higher and with it the sweat rate. More useful than a blanket volume is your individual sweat rate, measured via body weight before and after a session.

**Why sachets rather than a tub for competition?**
Because the fixed sachet makes concentration reproducible. The gut responds to concentration, not to good intentions.

## Sources

Thomas DT, Erdman KA & Burke LM (2016), Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics - Position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: Nutrition and Athletic Performance.
Moseley L, Lancaster GI & Jeukendrup AE (2003), European Journal of Applied Physiology - Effects of timing of pre-exercise ingestion of carbohydrate on subsequent metabolism and cycling performance.
de Oliveira EP, Burini RC & Jeukendrup AE (2014), Sports Medicine - Gastrointestinal complaints during exercise: prevalence, etiology and nutritional recommendations.

*[WOO® Fast Endurance Orange](/en/shop/woo-fast-endurance-orange-box) Box in our NEMAPO shop.*