Folks, we’ve entered the long-workout season. Starting in the spring, and running through the end of summer, long aerobic workouts become necessary to push the aerobic system and to develop the specific conditioning necessary for hunting.
As a hunter, you’re a strength-endurance athlete. That means you need to eat and fuel more like an endurance athlete than a regular person who likes to go to the gym and workout. You’re training, not working out. Training requires a sound nutritional strategy.
The problem is, most hunters under-fuel their training—especially their long workouts. This creates a host of negative downstream effects. But if you dial in your pre-, intra-, and post-training carb intake, you’ll get more out of your training and have more energy for the rest of your day-to-day life.
Why Under-Fueling Long Aerobic Workouts is a Problem
Long workouts burn a lot of carbohydrates, even when you stay in the aerobic heart rate zones. While you predominantly utilize fat during aerobic training, you still burn carbs. And you burn a lot of them during long sessions—those lasting 90+ minutes. Yes, even if you’re “fat adapted.” You need carbs during long workouts, otherwise some things happen that you’re not going to like.
Under-fueled long workouts deplete glycogen stores, which are your body’s carb stores. You have them in your muscles and your liver. There is about 100g of stored glycogen in your liver, and an average of 400g - 500g stored in your muscles. (Trained athletes can have up to 700g or so stored in muscles.) If you don’t eat enough carbs during your long workouts, you will burn through most of your glycogen stores. Add a ruck and terrain into this equation and the increased demand from your muscles depletes glycogen even faster. This causes a few problems.
It diminishes the quality of the workout. You’ll have to slow down because you won’t have the fuel to maintain a moderate pace. That means you won’t get as good of a training effect. You could even “bonk.” Which means a severe decrease in pace, potentially causing you to completely stop.
Recovery also suffers. When you don’t have enough carbs, your body can use a process called gluconeogenesis to start breaking down muscle protein for fuel. (Gluconeogenesis applies anytime the body uses non-carbohydrate sources to create glycogen.) More muscle breakdown during training means more difficult and longer recovery times. It limits your ability to adapt to training, and the increased recovery time means your upcoming workouts will suffer.
Under-fueling your workouts also impairs your hydration status. Eating carbs during workouts helps your intestines to absorb fluids. Carb intake during training also aids in retaining fluids, which maintains your blood volume. This is super important for just about every function in your body. During training it’s especially important for keeping your heart rate down and ensuring that your muscles maintain electrolyte balance while also getting the fuel and oxygen they need.
Chronically under-fueling long workouts causes all sorts of problems. It impairs hormonal balance, impairs immune function, and can lead to cognitive decline brought on by mental fatigue.
You need to eat adequate carbs to fuel your long workouts. We’ll break down consumption via pre-, intra-, and post-workout.
Session and Duration and Intensity Matter (So Does the Next Day’s Training Session)
You don’t fuel for a 90-minute Zone 1 - Zone 2 unloaded treadmill session in the same way you fuel for a 3-hour ruck on terrain that kisses Zone 3. Carbs for the 90-minute session are helpful. But they’re absolutely critical for the 3-hour session. They require different strategies.
Having a workout planned for the next day also matters. Say you have a 90-minute treadmill session on Friday and then a 90-minute terrain ruck on Saturday. Carbs during the treadmill session become a whole lot more important.
I’ll break down each scenario, working from 90-minute unloaded Zone 1 - Zone 2 sessions up to multi-hour sessions that increase in intensity up to Zone 3.
Pre-Workout Carb Fueling
Getting carbs into your system pre-session starts the glycogen-sparing process that improves performance and promotes recovery. In most long workout scenarios, a hunter benefits from doing at least a little pre-loading. In some scenarios, it’s critical to get the most out of training. We’ll begin with good pre-workout carb sources, then break down intake by session duration and intensity.
Pre-Workout Carb Sources
There are two things critical to avoid during pre-workout long workout eating—high fiber carbs and fat. Eating high fiber carb sources could lead to GI distress during training. Fat slows gastric emptying, so you don’t absorb the carbs as quickly as needed.
Meal 3 Hours Before Training
You want carb sources that are medium-fast digesting and low in fiber. Here’s a list of those to start you on your way.
White rice
Potatoes
Sweet potatoes
Sourdough bread
White bread
Bananas
Melons (watermelon, honeydew, cantaloupe)
Canned peaches
Canned pears
Applesauce
Here’s an example meal: white rice + lean meat (20g to 40g of protein) + fruit
Pre-Training Top Off
You want fast digesting carb sources.
Banana
Honey
White toast and jelly or jam
Applesauce pouch
Gummy candy
Carb drink mix
Fueling gels
90-Minute Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~1 to 1.5g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training.
~30g 30 minutes before training
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~1.5 to 2g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~40g 30 minutes before training
Zone 3 Session (loaded or unloaded)
~2g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~50g 30 minutes before training
2-Hour Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~2g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~40g 30 minutes before training
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~2 to 2.5g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~50g 30 minutes before training
Zone 3 Sessions (loaded or unloaded)
~2.5 to 3g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~60g 30 minutes before training
2.5 to 3-Hour Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~2 to 2.5g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~50g 30 minutes before training
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~2.5 to 3g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~60g 30 minutes before training
Zone 3 Sessions (loaded or unloaded)
~3g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~70g 30 minutes before training
3 to 4-Hour Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~2.5g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~60g 30 minutes before training
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~2.5 to 3g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~70g 30 minutes before training
Zone 3 Sessions (loaded or unloaded)
~3 to 4g/kg of body weight 3 hours before training
~80g 30 minutes before training
Intra-Workout Carb Fueling
Before we jump in, it’s important to note that carb tolerance during training varies from person to person. Some folks can house carbs. Others get GI distress if they have too much. You have to experiment to find the right intake for you. It also helps to start low and progressively increase your carb intake to improve your gut tolerance. The goals are to maintain your blood glucose levels for steady performance, spare glycogen, and prevent muscular fatigue and heart rate drift. You want simple, fast-digesting carbs while training. We’ll list those out and then break down intake based on session duration and intensity.
Intra-Workout Carb Sources
Carb drink mixes
Gummy candy
Dried fruit
Bananas
Honey packets
Maple syrup packets
90-Minute Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~30g per hour
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~30g to 50g per hour
Zone 3 Session (loaded or unloaded)
~40g to 60g per hour
2-Hour Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~40g per hour
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~40g to 60g per hour
Zone 3 Sessions (loaded or unloaded)
~60g to 75g per hour
2.5 to 3-Hour Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~50g per hour
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~50g to 70g per hour
Zone 3 Sessions (loaded or unloaded)
~70g to 90g per hour
3 to 4-Hour Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~60g per hour
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~60g to 80g per hour
Zone 3 Sessions (loaded or unloaded)
~75g to 90g per hour
Intra-Workout Carb Timing
When you eat your carbs during training is just as important as what you eat. Spread your total carb intake per hour into smaller servings every 15 to 20 minutes. Personally, I eat mine every 20 minutes, and that works well for me.
Post-Workout Carb Replenishment
It’s best to eat a full meal within a couple hours of long workouts to promote recovery. The meal should have about a 3:1 carb to protein ratio, composed of about 20g to 40g of protein. This could be a supershake that includes protein powder, fruit, oatmeal, and a fat source. Or it could be solid foods. It’s fine to have higher-fiber carb sources at this meal if you’re not training the next day because you don’t need rapid digestion and you don’t have to worry about GI distress during training. However, if you have a workout the next day, rapid replenishment with lower-fiber carb sources and a lower-fat meal is a good idea.
However, skip out on fruits and other carb sources with high antioxidant content during this meal. This might sound counterintuitive, but eating a bunch of antioxidants post-training can’t blunt training adaptations. You need some moderate inflammation to drive adaptation.
Post-Workout Carb Sources
White rice
Brown rice
Potatoes
Sweet potatoes
Pasta
Bread
Low-antioxidant fruit
Here’s an example of a post-long workout meal: Rice with steak or chicken and fruit with honey for dessert
90-Minute Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~0.5 to 0.75g/kg of body weight
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~0.75 to 1g/kg of body weight
Zone 3 Session (loaded or unloaded)
~1g/kg of body weight
2-Hour Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~0.75g/kg of body weight
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~1g/kg of body weight
Zone 3 Sessions (loaded or unloaded)
~1g/kg of body weight
2.5 to 3-Hour Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~0.75 to 1g/kg of body weight
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~1g/kg of body weight
Zone 3 Sessions (loaded or unloaded)
~1 to 1.2g/kg of body weight
3 to 4-Hour Sessions
Unloaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~1g/kg of body weight
Loaded Zone 1 / Zone 2 Sessions
~1 to 1.2g/kg of body weight
Zone 3 Sessions (loaded or unloaded)
~1 to 1.2g/kg of body weight
Size Matters
Training is more energetically expensive for bigger people. This is especially true for those who carry more muscle mass.
Let’s say a 160lb hunter and a 200lb hunter have the exact same Zone 2. Even while moving at the exact same pace, the 200lb hunter will burn more calories and use more carbs. This causes the 200lb hunter to fatigue faster. Muscle glycogen depletes faster, and this causes increased heart rate drift and decreased muscular endurance.
Fueling for long sessions is even more important for bigger hunters. So, if you’re a bigger person, you’ll want to live towards the high end of the intake spectrum.
Progressing Your Long-Workout Carb Intake
You might have read up to this point in the article and though, man, that’s a lot of carbs. It is, relative to normal intake. But you need the fuel as aerobic workouts stretch on. However, you don’t need to jump into the deep end of the carb-intake pool. Start at the low end of the guidelines, and progressively increase your intake. This allows you to condition your stomach to prevent GI issues, and it allows you to monitor what we’ll talk about next.
Monitor Workout Performance and Recovery
If you maintain a solid pace while keeping your heart rate down and have good energy levels during your long aerobic workouts, your fueling is likely in a good spot. That’s not to say you shouldn’t try to increase carb intake to boost your performance. You might be able to get even more out of your long training sessions.
It’s also important to check in with yourself the next day. If you are dragging ass and your legs feel like hell, you probably under-fueled your workout. However, if you have good energy and your legs feel pretty good the next day, you’re in a good spot with your long workout carb intake.
Fuel for Performance and Recovery
It’s trendy to go low carb, but that’s a mistake for hunters. We are strength-endurance athletes, and we have to fuel like it. Experiment to find the right fueling strategy for you, and monitor your performance and your recovery. You will get much better results.
