No two race nutrition plans look exactly alike — and no race goes exactly to plan. This spring, Justin Riele and Chelsea Sodaro hit two different 70.3 start lines with two different fueling strategies. Here's what they used, what went sideways, and what worked.
Race day nutrition rarely goes exactly to plan. What separates good athletes from great ones is how they adapt when it doesn't — and how well they've built their baseline strategy in the first place. At two different 70.3s this spring, Justin Riele and Chelsea Sodaro gave us a study in both.
Justin Riele | 70.3 Oceanside | 12th Place, Fastest Bike Split
Justin Riele showed up to Oceanside and made his presence known early. He opened a gap on the bike, held it, and crossed the timing mat with the fastest bike split of the day — a statement ride to kick off his season.
The nutrition plan was dialed: two bottles loaded with 80g of Amacx Turbo Drink Mix each, watermelon flavor. High-carb, proven, straightforward. Then one bottle ejected mid-ride, and the plan had to flex. Justin reached for his backup gels — a caffeinated Amacx gel and an Amacx Drink Gel — and kept moving. It wasn't ideal. Coming off the bike low on carbs is never the goal, and he felt it on the run.
His first lap was solid, but he's working back from an injury and isn't at full running fitness yet. A 1:20-ish half marathon in that context is a reasonable outcome. 12th place, fastest bike split, first race of the year. The baseline is there.
Chelsea Sodaro | 70.3 Eagleman | 2nd Place | 3:59:22
Chelsea Sodaro's race at Eagleman was a masterclass in execution — 27:06 swim, 2:10:02 bike, 1:17:26 run, second place overall. The performance was sharp, and so was the fueling behind it.
Her morning started with an Amacx Fast Bar when breakfast wasn't sitting right — a practical fix that kept her from toeing the line under-fueled. Five minutes before the gun, she took an Amacx Drink Gel to top off glycogen stores right before the effort began.
On the bike, she ran a two-bottle setup: raspberry Amacx gels up front for quick-access carbs, and Tailwind Nutrition (Courtney's flavor) in the rear bottle for a steady combination of carbs and sodium over the 56 miles. Coming into T2, she was fueled and ready to run.
The run backed it up. She kept taking Amacx gels through the half-marathon and crossed the finish line having executed nearly everything she set out to do. Her post-race plan: a Momentous recovery shake, immediately. Because the work doesn't stop at the finish line.
Two athletes, two races, two different nutrition stories — but the same underlying principle. Build a solid plan, carry backup options, and know how to adapt. That's what racing at this level actually looks like.
