Quick summary:
- 🍫 Sweets dominate sports nutrition (bars, drinks), but too much can be sickening.
- 🥖 Alternating between sweet and savory foods helps to stimulate appetite and maintain energy intake.
- ⚡ Introducing salt after 3 hours of exertion improves tolerance and the desire to eat.
Why is sugar so prevalent in sports?
In sports nutrition, sugar is everywhere : energy bars, sports drinks, dried fruit, white bread… These foods provide readily available carbohydrates , the main fuel for endurance.
But in ultra-trail running, long-distance cycling, or trekking, the observation is often the same: after a few hours, excess sugar can overwhelm the digestive receptors and lead to a well-known phenomenon → nausea . That's where our ultra crackers come in.
The limits of "all sweets"
- Saturation of the taste buds.
- The onset of disgust, loss of appetite.
- Risk of a decrease in overall energy intake.
👉 This is when a savory alternative becomes valuable.
Why alternate between sweet and savory?
Introducing salty foods into a race is not just a matter of taste: it is an effective nutritional strategy .
- Boosting appetite : contrast helps to restore the desire to eat.
- Vary your carbohydrate sources : white bread, crackers, puffed rice…
- Provide sodium naturally through certain salty foods (chips, broths, crackers).
Science confirms it
A study by Kreider (2020) on ultra-endurance shows that athletes who have a varied diet during the race maintain better caloric intake and reduce nausea.
When to introduce salty foods?
- ✔️ Start of race : favour sweet → bars, dried fruit, light drinks.
- ✔️ After 3 hours : introduce savory snacks → crackers, white bread
- ✔️ After several hours : alternate textures (crunchy, soft, creamy) to maintain the desire.
Comparative table: sweet vs. savory in the race
| Option | Benefits | |
|---|---|---|
| Sweets (bars, dried fruit, drinks) | Quick, convenient, high in carbohydrates | |
| Savory (crackers, white bread) | Boosts appetite, provides sodium, variety |
Practical field advice
- Don't wait until you get sick of it → plan a sweet/salty alternation from the start.
- Test in training → every stomach reacts differently.
- Plan for something simple → sweet bars for the start, crackers later on.
- Adapt to the weather → in hot weather, salt (with sodium) helps to compensate for losses.
FAQ – Sweet or savory on the go
Why is salty food useful in ultra-marathons?
It stimulates the appetite, provides sodium, and allows you to continue eating after several hours of exertion when sweets become sickening.
When should you introduce savory foods into a race?
Starting from the 3rd hour, or as soon as you feel a loss of craving for sweets. Ideally, you should alternate regularly.
Which savory foods should I choose?
Crackers, white bread, chips, and in the COOKNRUN Bivouac range: hummus and crushed tomatoes, easy to take away and digestible.
Conclusion
In endurance sports, alternating between sweet and savory foods is a winning strategy. It helps maintain appetite, vary energy sources, and sustain the desire to eat over time.
👉 At COOKNRUN, we favour simple solutions: sweet bars for the start of the effort, and for long adventures, our savory Bivouac range (hummus & crushed tomatoes) to support performance.
