I am like a robot when it comes to fuelling for long runs and races. Over the years, I’ve figured out what works for me, and although I try new things during training, rarely do any of them make it to race day. The Chicago Marathon this year was no exception.*

On race day morning for the Chicago Marathon, I woke up at 5:15 a.m., giving myself enough time to get ready, eat, and catch the El down to the race start. My stomach is usually pretty settled if I leave 30 minutes between eating and running, so I wasn’t too concerned about having breakfast early. As soon as I got up, I focused on getting ready and making sure I had everything I needed in my gear-check bag. I saved breakfast for the last possible moment. At 5:40 a.m., I quickly heated up a bowl of oats with 1% milk, added three teaspoons of sugar and a few walnuts, ate it, and headed out the door into the dark Chicago morning (see more about my breakfast here).

It took me 45 minutes to get down to Grant Park on the El. Once I arrived, I went through security, dropped off my bag, and went to find my friend Megan. I met her at 7:15 a.m., and we sat down to rest our feet before the race. At this point, I drank about a third of a bottle of Gatorade I’d brought with me and ate half a Clif bar. That felt like enough for a little boost, so I tossed the rest.

Once the race started, I followed the same fuelling plan I’ve used for all of my long runs in similar weather conditions. On race day, knowing that I’m going a little further than usual, I’m really careful to fuel early and not miss any of my gels. Between miles 0 and 20, I took a gel every 30 minutes, along with a couple of cups of water from the aid stations. I like to mix up my gel brands so I get a variety of flavours as I find it makes them more tolerable and also gives me a sense of choice when I’m out running. I don’t take gels with caffeine until I’ve passed the half way mark as I don’t want to risk upsetting my stomach, and I also like to feel the kick just as I’m getting tired.

By mile 20, I was bored of gels, but I knew I had to keep fuelling. I drank some Gatorade and took my final full gel at mile 22.5. While I don’t love the flavour or texture, I find the Maurten gels easy on my stomach, so I had one of those and hoped it would give me a little boost to the finish. Feeling tired at mile 25, I decided to have a little of the Mandarin Orange gel, because even just having a little in your mouth can feel refreshing and trick your brain into thinking you have more energy left in the tank.

As soon as the race ended, I refuelled as quickly as I could while walking through the chute. I often lose my appetite for a couple of hours after long runs, so I like to eat before my brain has a chance to realize that! There wasn’t much science behind my choices as I went with what was available. I drank water and ate a banana, an apple, a Stan’s Donut, and a huge piece of cheese. As soon as I got my gear-checked bag back, I also ate the protein bar I had stashed – Barebells to the rescue!

Once I had my checked bag, I headed to the gym for a shower before meeting my friends for a late lunch/early dinner of chicken tacos (and a margarita).

*Full disclosure, I am not a Registered Dietitian so the information above is just based off my own experience. If you’re looking for specific advice, I recommend you connect with an RD.