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<h4><span style="color: #993366;"><strong>SUGARLESS ENDURANCE FUELLING</strong></span></h4>
My February 2012 experiment was to prove it is possible to successfully race hard over the Marathon (42.2kms) and a Half Ironman Triathlon (2km, 90km, 21km) on water alone - <em><strong>completely free of sports products</strong></em>.
<blockquote><span style="color: #008080;"> <strong>"To do this, I will also prove you will need reach "Fat Adaptation first"</strong></span></blockquote>
I proved by consuming real foods in everyday living, with a good portion of real satiating fats, while spending most of my training at an aerobic <a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/walk.jpg"><img class="alignright wp-image-1864 " src="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/walk-150x74.jpg" alt="walk" width="215" height="106" /></a>intensity (no harder), I could fuel hard exercise over 3-5 hours.  And I'm talking above threshold hard race pace.

My collective health was also assessed - the training period - taper period - racing - and importantly, post race.   I assessed my daily energy, wellness, temperament, appetite, sleep, and stress balance.

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<blockquote><strong><span style="color: #008080;">Now, 2015, 3 years later,  fat adaptation science has been proven in feature documentary - Cereal Killers.  (see video below)</span>
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<h3><span style="color: #993366;"><strong>PAMPY'S POST Feb 2012</strong></span></h3>
<blockquote><span style="color: #008080;"><strong>Can I race at my optimum over a 42.2km marathon and ½ Ironman triathlon on water only – zero calories – zero sugar?</strong></span></blockquote>
Or, is it possible to fuel these athletic pursuits on predominantly stored fat. More so, can my stored fat be broken down fast enough to fuel my <em><strong>race pace</strong></em> – which – is certainly harder than easy conversational effort.
The clear message or dogma from sports nutrition companies suggests I can’t – I will require refined sugar - usually the sponsors drink.
I’d better give you a quick background behind why on earth I decided to tackle a ½ Ironman triathlon (4.30hrs of racing), and marathon (42.2kms) on water alone – absolutely no calories whatsoever. Yep, no Gatorade, Carb gels, bananas, sports bars – zip.

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If you’ve read my Top 10 articles over the past 20 weeks (&lt;2010), it should be clear by now I strongly believe sugar, more so the 50% that is fructose, is the primary cause of unnecessary weight gain, while leading towards self sabotaging illness.   Australia is now 3rd in the world for obesity per head.
I ran my first ½ marathon in 1993 and ever since have raced events that have pretty<a href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/fgggxx.jpg"><img class="alignright wp-image-2053 " src="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/wp-content/uploads/fgggxx-300x250.jpg" alt="fgggxx" width="191" height="159" /></a> much all been sponsored by a high sugar (fructose) sports drink. I was informed at every race that in order to avoid <em>“hitting the wall”</em> I should drink the sponsors’ product in buckets. So I did. I accept that when in depletion our body requires re-stocking of critical fuel (sugar) – so a quicly uploaded hit of sugar made sense.
After either vomiting or dealing with gastric discomfort in nearly every race I entered, and after 10 years replacing most of my teeth, it was time for a change. Do I really need all this sugar to perform athletically?
Further to making a change in my own dietary interests, I’d like just one last rant on sugar and its’ effect on our health……
Australian 2012 statistics clearly report that 67% of our population are living at a body weight excess of what nature intended. 27% are clinically obese, 42% are obese, and 38% are ill - due to what has been coined “the metabolic syndrome”.
What am I referring to as being ill? – The big 4 &gt; Type 2 diabetes, Hypertension, Blood lipid disease &amp; Heart disease. This equates to 75% of our countries medical care. I should state that obesity and unnecessary weight gain doesn’t necessarily cause illness, but it is certainly the driver.
Incidentally in 1970, 9% of Australians were considered overweight. Wow, what the hell happened in 40 years?

Any way blah blah blah...........
<h3><span style="color: #993366;"><strong>Enter: My 8 week experiment – 8 weeks to reach "Fat-Adaptation"</strong></span></h3>
<strong>Here are the rules:</strong>
- I’m only allowed to exercise 5 hours a week – all training is be spent in my AZ (Aerobic Zone – my most perfect fat burning zone)
- I will only consume real foods (<span style="color: #008080;"><strong><a style="color: #008080;" title="BP FOOD CHOICES" href="http://www.bp28dayprogram.com.au/">my complete diet is listed on my website</a></strong></span> – mainly real fats, a bit of protein, above the ground veggies, and a sprinkling of fruits &amp; below the ground veggies - complex carbs)
- I will completely avoid <strong>ALL</strong> refined sugars (again all are listed on my website – gotta watch out for the hidden ones)
- Food volume is dictated by satisfaction – if I’m hungry I eat! (real foods) – if I really feel like I need a sugar hit, I’ll use fruit (which of course comes with fructose – but also with fibre - which is great for our health).
- There’ll be no counting calories – which is great given maths ain’t my strong point.
- I’ll race (meaning, I want to win) a ½ Ironman triathlon and Marathon fuelled only by water – the events will take me 4.30hrs &amp; 2.50hrs respectively.

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- <span style="color: #008080;"><strong>My starting weight 81kg – I am 6’1”</strong></span>

OK, so I here you saying, but you’ve always trained, always played sports, always been pretty much your natural weight.
<strong>Fair enough</strong> – so I’ve pulled in a client Steven Barnett who starts at 110kg, loves all things sugar, tells me he’s a lazy bugger, and supports the Bulldogs – so he hasn’t got a stack going for him.
Steve will follow the identical nutrition and exercise (relative) formula I am following. He will not do the triathlon or marathon thing.

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<span style="color: #993366;"><strong>RESULTS</strong></span>
- I finished the triathlon in exactly 4.31hrs (3rd damn it) fuelling with only water.
- I was 77kg and healthy on race morning
- I never felt like “hitting the wall” and I certainly wasn’t hungry after the race.
- Usually I am hungry for 3 days after a race of this magnitude.

- I raced the marathon a week later and finished in 2.48.  Again, I did not go close to hitting the wall or require sugar along the way.
- Steven’s weight some 8 weeks later is now 95.3kg. His full diet analysis and exercise regime, along with a diary of his journey is also on my website.
- Would I recommend others tackle events sugar-free. YES, but NOT until you’re “fat adapted” - <span style="color: #008080;"><a style="color: #008080;" title="HAWAII FUELLING" href="http://balancehealthprograms.com.au/hawaii-2014/"><strong>9-10HOUR RACING</strong> </a></span>

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<span style="color: #993366;"><strong>So why did this happen?</strong></span>

In short - consistent real food options (30-40% real fat) and aerobic based training changed our metabolism.  We re-programmed our brains to FAVOUR stored fat as our primary fuel source.

Consequently we can go long &amp; hard, while maintaing our health &amp; wellness.

BP
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