Want to Go Longer and Recover Faster? Start Here
How to fix workouts that feel harder than they should
Most beginner endurance athletes assume that to go long on race day, you just need to go long in training.
Stack the miles. Suffer through the sessions. Hope your body adapts.
But I think about it differently...
What you’re really training is your body's ability to sustain effort — and your ability to fuel it to keep going.
That’s endurance simplified.
After coaching 200+ athletes to 70.3 finish lines, I’ve seen firsthand how basic fueling principles can 100x a beginner’s training experience.
In this post I’m going to cover…
The Pre-Training Mix that helps you train like a beast
The Intra-Training Blueprint for finishing strong (and feeling good doing it)
The Post-Training Protocol that lets you recover fast and be Super Dad the rest of the day
It’s the 3-step fueling strategy we teach inside Tribal to help first time 70.3 athletes go longer, feel stronger, and recover faster.
Let’s dive in.
Step 1: Show Up Fed and Hydrated
Last year, I had an athlete start training for his first 70.3.
And he insisted on doing all his basic weekday sessions (under an hour) fasted.
no food
no water
just willpower
Now here’s what happens to beginners: every session is a grind
And it’s exactly what happened to this athlete.
He couldn’t hit his pace numbers. His body comp was struggling. He wasn’t getting any faster.
And he started to question whether endurance was even worth it.
After enough suffering through training that was supposed to be no big deal, he opened up to a different approach.
This is where every Tribal athlete starts:
Hydrate well before the session.
20 oz of water + 1/4 tsp salt in the 30 mins before training
That one shift made a huge difference for the athlete I mentioned.
His energy came up
The sessions felt smoother
Recovery wasn’t such a slog
And… he was having more fun!!!
Once hydration was consistent, we added carbs.
For someone new to fueling, the easiest option is 150 calories of a liquid calorie sports mix like G1M Sport, Tailwind, Infinit, or Skratch 30 mins before training.
It sits light in the stomach
Covers hydration + electrolytes
Gives the body the energy source it needs (carbs)
The result?
He started getting faster and feeling like a beast.
Pro Tips For Swim, Bike, Run Pre-Fuel:
Morning swimmers often struggle to eat. The sports mix works great here.
Afternoon swimmers tend to overestimate how fueled and hydrated they are. Don’t assume lunch carried you — fuel before you swim.
Running is where dehydration hurts the most. It spikes heart rate, slows pace, and makes everything feel worse.
Cycling is easy to survive under-fueled — until you have to run off the bike. Then it catches up fast.
Step 2: Keep Fuel Coming During Training
Once you’ve nailed pre-session fuel, the next step is keeping a steady drip of energy coming while you train.
That means carbs, salt, and water — early and often.
When you under-fuel (or go long stretches without taking anything in), your body shifts into starvation mode.
It stops burning and starts hoarding.
And as a beginner endurance athlete, your job is the opposite:
Give your body fresh fuel — and train it to use that fuel like a machine.
Here’s how that looks for each discipline:
Swim
Most swims are under 60 minutes, so the priority is pre-swim fueling.
But still…
Keep a bottle poolside with 150 calories of sports mix.
Even just a few sips between intervals will help (especially in warm pools).
Bike
This is where we train the body to take in more fuel than it thinks it needs — because on race day, you’re going to need it on the run.
Start with:
300 calories per hour
Fuel every 15–20 minutes to keep blood sugar stable
Think of it like drip-feeding energy into your system so your engine never sputters.
Pro Tip: Most athletes make the mistake of eating once an hour and calling it good.
That leads to blood sugar spikes and crashes — and eventually, a shitty attitude in training.
BONUS Pro Tip: Set a 20 min fuel alert on your Garmin
Run
Here’s the Golden Rule of Triathlon:
How well you run is determined by how well you fueled on the bike.
But that doesn’t mean we skip fueling on the run.
Start with:
16 oz of water per hour
150 calories per hour
Fuel every 15–20 minutes — not all at once
Pro Tip: It’s not just about surviving the session. It’s about finishing thinking…
“I could have gone twice as far — no problem”
Step 3: Fuel Recovery Immediately After Training
Most people think recovery starts once the workout ends.
But here’s the truth:
Recovery starts in training
How well you fuel before and during a session directly impacts how deep your body has to dig to finish the session — and how quickly your body bounces back.
But the final piece of the beginner fueling puzzle is what you do in the first 30 minutes after you’re done.
And as a young dad, this one is crucial for me.
I remember a long ride I did last year in prep of Ironman Chattanooga.
4 hour ride
30 min run off the bike
It was a strong effort and a big day
As soon as I finished, I had to race out the door to a family outing at a local pumpkin patch.
I slammed water standing over the kitchen sink — but skipped calories.
And an hour later at the pumpkin patch, I was exhausted.
I had no energy. And I was just going through the motions as a dad.
That experience reminded me…
The recovery window matters — especially when you go big in training.
Here’s the beginner fueling target1 in the 30 mins post-training:
24 oz water
100g carbs
30g protein
Pro Tip: That 3:1 carb-to-protein ratio is the sweet spot
Carbs replenish glycogen
Protein supports muscle repair
And the water rehydrates your entire system
Don’t overthink it. Just eat.
Fueling Is a Skill
The more you practice it, the easier training feels.
You stop dreading the long workouts. You stop bonking. And you stop wondering if endurance is “worth it.”
Instead, you start stacking strong sessions. You recover faster. You feel confident.
That’s what happens when you get fueling right — even at the beginner level.
P.S.
Want more tactical training tips like this?
Download Endurance Accelerator: my free mini-course packed with tactical fuel tips, training strategies, and mindset shifts to dominate your fitness goals.
Join hundreds of athletes already using this system to build unstoppable endurance.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2575187/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Big G1M Sport fan. Did two scoops per bottle for my first 70.3 and felt fueled 🚀. And most importantly no emergency stops at the porta potty