Kelsey HigginsonSports Nutrition Coach and Founder at Clutch Day Coaching

Track meet day nutrition

17 May 2025 · 0 min

Watch on YouTube

0:26

In this concise YouTube clip, the speaker addresses the common problem of athletes crashing after an initial race and then bonking before a subsequent event. He introduces the "1:1 rule," a simple timing-based carbohydrate strategy: consume 1 gram of carbs for every minute of rest between races (e.g., 15 g for a 15‑minute gap, 30 g for a 30‑minute gap). The advice emphasizes carb‑heavy, low‑protein, low‑fat foods to keep the stomach light and digestion smooth, ensuring sustained energy for multiple race rounds on a meet day.

Track meet day nutrition. The worst thing ever is when you show up to race day and you crush it the first race, and then you race 45 minutes later and you bonk it, right? You need to keep those energy levels topped off. You're going to do that by using the 1:1 rule. For every 1 minute between races, you're going to have 1 gram of carbs. So if you have 15 minutes in between a race, you have 15 grams of carbs. 30 minutes in between a race, you have 30 grams of carbs. Keep it carb heavy, don't have protein, don't have fats, because you want to keep your stomach feeling light and your digestive system feeling good.