Congratulations, you are officially in race week!
In our previous posts, we covered why the taper requires stable calories, and which low-fiber recipes work best (e.g., Simple Chicken and Rice). We also walked through the complete 4-week fueling guide with carb, sodium, and hydration formulas.
Now it’s time to get real with your fuel. The final 72 hours are dedicated to achieving glycogen supercompensation (the process of maximizing the energy stored in your muscles) which is the single biggest determinant of performance in the later stages of a marathon.
The Carb-Load Challenge: When Precision is Paramount
The modern sports nutrition consensus is clear: to maximize your fuel tank, you need to consume a high volume of carbohydrates.
Want to do the math? If you’d like to calculate your exact carbohydrate needs based on your body weight and race distance, check out the carb-loading calculator at Featherstone Nutrition. It’ll give you personalized targets for your 2-3 day carb load.
Watch the Demo: Carb-Loading Without the Math
We know that even with the handy calculator, translating numbers into actual food portions (e.g., “how many grams of white rice is that?”), and then fitting that into a 72 hour schedule is exhausting, especially during race week when you’re already stressed!
This is exactly why we built the Mealvana Endurance app. We take the complex formulas and turn them into a simple, food-first plan.
In the short video below, we show you exactly how to generate a full 3-day carb-loading menu (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks). The app does the macro-math, so you can spend your final week relaxing, not calculating.
Fuel Your Best Race Yet
By focusing on precision and simplicity this week, you eliminate the mental worry about fueling and ensure your body shows up on race day fully charged and ready.
This is where Mealvana Endurance provides the final layer of confidence. We transform generalized nutrition targets into personalized, food-first plans.