Nutrition Considerations for Leadville and other High Altitude Races with Uri Carlson

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Summary 

Dave and Uri Carlson (Inner Wild Nutrition) break down how altitude and heat change the fueling and hydration game for high altitude and heat. If you've ever bonked at Leadville, chugged water at 10,000 feet and still felt awful, or wondered why your usual race nutrition falls apart on longer efforts, this episode is for you.

What we cover:

• Why altitude hydration is about electrolyte and fluid balance, not just drinking more water, and how appetite suppression at elevation fights against your body's higher calorie and carb demands
• How to build up from your proven fueling baseline in small, testable increments instead of overhauling your whole strategy
• Why you need a Plan A, B, and C for fueling, and how to use drop bags and aid stations so a failing strategy doesn't wreck your race
• The research on carb dosing: why total carbs per hour matters more than whether you take it in one big bolus or several small doses
• How heat adds its own physiological stress on top of altitude, shunting blood from your gut and shrinking your carb tolerance, and why cooling strategies are part of your fueling plan
• Sodium and hydration targets: what sweat testing reveals, and why most athletes only need 400-600mg of sodium per hour, not the "more is better" approach
• The biggest mistake newcomers make at altitude: underfueling during travel and pre-race days because routine and appetite are disrupted
• Stage race recovery: the 45-minute and 4-hour windows that matter most, and how to keep eating even after a brutal day
• Why ferritin, vitamin D, and iron status deserve attention three-plus months out, and why normal lab reference ranges don't apply to endurance athletes