And while there\u2019s no doubt that more carbohydrate is better, there can be too much of a good thing<\/a>.<\/p>\n As Visma-Lease a Bike nutritionist Gabriel Martins warned us in summer:<\/p>\n \u201cLet\u2019s not jump on the bandwagon of everybody trying to fuel at 120 grams or 150 grams of carbohydrate because we hear Tadej or Jonas [Vingegaard] are doing it. Just because they benefit, not everybody does.\u201d<\/p>\n Tim Podlogar, one of the kings of carbohydrate science and a consultant at Tudor Pro Cycling, served a similar reminder when speaking to Sportal<\/a> this weekend.<\/p>\n The message?<\/p>\n Don\u2019t get caught up in the hype of high-carb outliers like newly crowned Ironman world champion Casper Stornes, Unbound Gravel winner Cameron Jones, and iron-distance chuggers Kristian Blummenfelt and Cameron Wurf.<\/p>\n \u201cThese are trends that pop up from time to time, but as a scientist you often have to temper them a bit,\u201d Podlogar told Sportal. \u201cThese trends can distract from what\u2019s really important, and in the long run can even reduce athletes\u2019 performance.\u201d<\/p>\n Stornes recently fueled at an average 182g carb per hour for close to eight hours during his swim-bike-run around Nice.<\/p>\n Jones chowed an even more gut-churning 200g carb per hour<\/a> to deliver a new course record of 8:37 last summer in the Flint Hills of Kansas. That\u2019s around 800 calories in sugars per hour. Yes, eight hundred.<\/p>\n \u201cThe trend of extremely high carbohydrate intake during a race has been carried over from the world of triathlon to cycling,\u201d Podlogar said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fact is that triathlon is a completely different sport than cycling, so adopting these approaches without understanding the background can cause a lot of damage,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n The complex science of carbohydrates Podlogar has authored multiple leading carbohydrate studies and worked as a nutritionist at team Bora-Hansghrohe before he hooked up with Tudor.<\/p>\n Speaking to Sportal, he warned against us weekend warriors being inspired by the hyper-carb fueling headlines.<\/p>\n Even the WorldTour\u2019s best rarely go much beyond the commonly accepted \u201ccarbohydrate ceiling\u201d of 120g carbohydrate per hour.<\/p>\n \u201cFor riders Tadej Poga\u010dar and Primo\u017e Rogli\u010d who weigh 60-70 kilograms, an intake of around 100 to 130 grams of carbohydrates per hour during the most difficult stages [of a grand tour] makes the most sense,\u201d Podlogar said. \u201cBut certainly not 180 or even 200.\u201d<\/p>\n So why 200g for some, but not others?<\/p>\n And how high-carb is too high carb?<\/p>\n The answer is annoyingly nuanced.<\/p>\n Podlogar explained to Velo that not even an eyecatching study<\/a> published last month, which highlights the benefits of feeding at 120g per hour vs 60g or 90g, necessarily means pushing into three-digit carbs is always best.<\/p>\n So are you getting high-carb \u201cwrong\u201d with your three-dozen gel strategy?<\/p>\n Here are 3 reasons why you shouldn\u2019t hop on to the super high-carb train and fuel as hard as the pros.<\/p>\n Plus, as a bonus, there\u2019s also one surprising reason why, in some cases, you should maybe eat even more.<\/p>\n 1: Relative intensity Relative intensity is perhaps the most obvious factor that dictates fueling demands.<\/p>\n The metabolic fire needs to be roaring hot before you go stoking it with four gels an hour.<\/p>\n It\u2019s thought that 50 percent of energy expenditure is an optimal replenishment rate, meaning a 250-watt ride would require fueling at around 100g carbohydrate per hour.<\/p>\n Contrastingly, Alpecin-Deceuninck steamroller Jonas Rickaert needed close to 175g per hour in his 400w breakaway with Mathieu van der Poel at the Tour de France.<\/p>\n Fueling with more than what\u2019s needed is a waste of money and significantly increases the risk of G.I. distress.<\/p>\n Podlogar highlighted how even in the Mad Max intensity of the modern WorldTour, riders don\u2019t endlessly guzzle to create an anti-bonk \u201csafety net.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDuring a sprint stage, where the intensity is lower and energy expenditure is much lower, some cyclists take 120 grams of carbohydrates per hour, even though 80 grams would have been enough,\u201d Podlogar said. \u201cThen, when you do the math at the end of the day, it turns out that the energy intake was too high.<\/p>\n \u201cTheoretically, that means they should \u2018skip dinner,\u2019 [to meet their prescribed nutrient targets] which would be a shot in the knee the day before a tough mountain stage,\u201d Podlogar said.<\/p>\n As Velo explored in a deep dive on one team\u2019s fueling strategy during the Tour de France<\/a>, pros only fuel the work required.<\/p>\n A total of seven data sets showed daily fueling fluctuated between 85 and 133 gams of carbs per hour, tailored to the demand of the day.<\/p>\n So what merited the insane 200g per hour carb numbers of Wurf at Ironman Texas and Jones at Unbound?<\/p>\n \u201cIron Cam\u201d Wurf set a world record with a 3:53, 46kph bike leg<\/a> during his 7:40 redline effort this April. And Jones? He obliterated 200 miles of Kansas dirt with a monster 150-mile, ~4.0w\/kg attack.<\/p>\n They rode hard, and they ate harder.<\/p>\n The high-carb conclusion?<\/p>\n If you\u2019re pushing the pace, push the carbs, too. But unless you\u2019ve got the watts of Wurf, you certainly won\u2019t need to hit 200g.<\/p>\n Riding easy? Fuel easy.<\/p>\n For most amateurs riding at \u201cchat pace,\u201d 90g per hour is regarded as plenty.<\/p>\n 2. Workload over time The highest carb counts you see in endurance sports come in super-intense single-day races like Paris-Roubaix, Unbound Gravel, and Ironman triathlon.<\/p>\n Very similar stats spill out of the most grueling blocks of a grand tour.<\/p>\n But that\u2019s largely because the outliers averaging 120g or more are thinking several days forward.<\/p>\n \u201cUnderstanding the bigger picture is key \u2013 you always have to know what\u2019s coming next day, you can\u2019t just focus on the current stage,\u201d Podlogar told Sportal. \u201cEnergy balance is a very sensitive thing in cycling.\u201d<\/p>\n Visma staffer Martins explained to Velo that the \u201cday by day\u201d of a grand tour means energy demands are sky-high. Without high-carb fueling, riders would lose their 24\/7 battle to stay in calorie balance.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s very difficult to ingest enough calories before and after the race to cover daily needs,\u201d Martins said. \u201cEating more on the bike helps with that, which also improves day-to-day recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n The high-carb conclusion?<\/p>\n Training volume and fueling requirements exist on the same sliding scale.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re training 30 hours a week, crush \u2018dem Rice Krispies Treats<\/a>. Even short-term energy deficiencies can spark symptoms of overtraining and RED-S.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re not training and racing like a pro, apply caution before you fuel like one.<\/p>\n 3: The carb-guzzling gene Athletes who thrive on high-carb fueling have been blessed with a mysterious \u201ccarb-guzzling gene.\u201d Because even after a bout of gut training, the body\u2019s capacity to oxidise \u2013 i.e., make use of \u2013 carbohydrate is a product of nature as much as of nurture.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, 120 grams is seen as the benchmark, and it gets a lot of talk. But not every rider can tolerate that, and maybe not oxidise it, either,\u201d Visma-Lease a Bike nutritionist Martins told Velo.<\/p>\n As Martins says, not everything that goes in the gut [and doesn\u2019t get spewed back out] goes to good use.<\/p>\n Even more annoyingly, there are few clear indicators of what makes someone a \u201cgood\u201d oxidiser. Podlogar said his research has found no correlation between either body size or power output on carb utilisation rate.<\/p>\n Beyond that, the complex relationship<\/a> between the burn of exogenous (i.e., eaten) and endogenous (i.e. muscle glycogen) carbohydrates means eating more isn\u2019t necessarily \u201cefficient.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGenetics seem to play a big role,\u201d Podlogar said when discussing an athlete\u2019s ability to ingest and process carbs.<\/p>\n \u201cThe whole picture is quite complex, so accurate measurements can only be made in laboratory conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n Jones revealed after Unbound that he discovered he \u201cneeded\u201d 200 grams per hour after he found himself bonking while training with an already ridiculous 150g hourly guzzle.<\/p>\n Surprisingly, even within $50 million WorldTour super teams, only a few lucky leaders<\/a> are sent for the high-cost \u201ccarbox\u201d tests Podlogar refers to.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have already performed these tests on some cyclists and found that their abilities vary considerably,\u201d Podlogar told Sportal. \u201cCarbohydrate intake can range from 100 to 180 grams per hour among World Tour riders.\u201d<\/p>\n As Podlogar said, there can be a huge range in riders\u2019 capacity to make use of the fuel they eat.<\/p>\n So, just because the likes of Stornes and Jones can make good use of a stupid amount of sugars, don\u2019t go thinking that you need to go carb-crazy, too.<\/p>\n The high-carb conclusion?<\/p>\n Some riders just\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0go super high-carb. Either their stomach won\u2019t tolerate it and they\u2019ll spend their ride time in a roadside bush, or they\u2019ll keep it down but not put it to use.<\/p>\n And sorry to say it, but the best way to find how high you can go might be a stomach-churning trial and error.<\/p>\n But: Also consider pro-level carb loading The carbohydrate revolution gobbled headlines in the past few years.<\/p>\n But don\u2019t think performance fueling is all carb drinks and gels.<\/p>\n Podlogar highlighted how an effective pre-race carb load can sometimes lead to confusingly low\u00a0carbohydrate counts.<\/p>\n \u201cIn extremely long events such as Milan-San Remo, energy intake during the race is extremely important. The needs are enormous. In this case, optimizing feeding during the race is crucial as glycogen stores are depleted by the end,\u201d Podlogar said in comments that are equally applicable to the nine-hour sufferfests of Ironman and Unbound.<\/p>\n \u201cOn the other hand, in shorter, four-hour races, intake during the race is not so crucial,\u201d he continued. \u201cHere, it\u2019s much more important that riders have well-filled glycogen stores before the start.\u201d<\/p>\n At all levels of performance, \u201creal food\u201d takes priority over the nutrient wastelands of sport nutrition.<\/p>\n Intakes during lower-intensity grand tour stages or maybe a \u201csprinter\u2019s classic\u201d remain moderate to leave calorie \u201cbudget\u201d for the multi-color mountains served by 5-star team chefs.<\/p>\n \u201c[That] allows them to still have a proper dinner after the stage to replenish glycogen stores for the next day,\u201d Podlogar said.<\/p>\n It\u2019s important to note here that such a contorted consideration of calories is for pro athletes only. Don\u2019t skip a gel so you feel free to pile on the potatoes at dinner, or vice versa.<\/p>\n If in doubt, eat all the carbs.<\/p>\n The high-carb conclusion?<\/p>\n If you\u2019re ever surprised by \u201clow\u201d fueling figures in the pro peloton, don\u2019t forget riders probably waddled onto the bike off of a seven-course dinner and a 1,400-calorie breakfast<\/a>.<\/p>\n Any on-bike fueling plan should be considered alongside the carb load.<\/p>\n \u201cLoading\u201d protocols vary, but the weight of evidence suggests around 8-12 carbohydrate per kilo body mass<\/a> in the 48 hours ahead of an endurance adventure should be sufficient.<\/p>\n
\n![\"Stornes](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2235375604.jpg\"\/)
Casper Stornes ate all the carbs as he swim-bike-ran to the Ironman world title in Nice. (Photo: Jan Hetfleisch\/Getty Images for IRONMAN)<\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2209584266.jpg\"\/)
Being competitive in the huge intensity and duration of the spring classics, Ironman triathlon, and Unbound requires is reliant on a high-carb strategy. (Photo: Pim Waslander\/Soccrates\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GettyImages-2215407791.jpg\"\/)
Riders have to eat big every day of a stage race to survive a 24-7 cycle of racing and recovering. (Photo: Tim de Waele\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/VELO.RACE_.UNBOUND25-96-scaled-e1763392374429-1200x1293.jpg\"\/)
Unbound winner and \u201cMr 200g per hour\u201d Cameron Jones is blessed with huge watts and most likely a very high naturl carbox capacity. (Photo: Alex Roszko)<\/p>\n
\n![\"In-race](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Medium-Content-day-December-camp.jpg\"\/)
In-race fueling and the \u2018carb load\u2019 are both parts of a 24\/7 calorie equation. (Photo: Courtesy Visma-Lease a Bike)<\/p>\n