- Well, today we're joined by David McNamee,
third place finisher at the Iron Man
World Championships last year in 2017,
and the fastest run split in 2015,
and on your debut world champs.
So thanks so much for joining us today, Dave.
- No problem, it's great to be here.
It's great to be back in Hawaii,
and, yeah, it's great to be back racing here.
- Brilliant, and today, Dave is gonna be
sharing with us his top tips for the Iron Man.
(upbeat electronic music)
- Okay, first tip from you David,
I've got the impression that you're
very good at pacing in Iron Man.
So, how do you go about pacing the swim?
- Yeah, first things first, Iron Man is about pacing.
It is a long day, and pacing it's fundamental.
But, for me the swim, you know, you're there at the start
line, you've got a lot of nervous energy.
So, yeah for sure, the first hundred metres is always
going to be fast, 'cause you need to get rid
of this adrenaline buildup.
Built up, even, yeah.
But as soon as that hundred metres is over with,
it's very much, you have to save plenty of
rhythm straight away.
You know, if you try and go hard for four,
five hundred metres at the start,
you're going to pay for it later on.
So yeah, for me, it's very much, yeah.
You use adrenaline at the start,
but after a couple of minutes, it's time to switch off
and go back straight into your goal pace.
- [Host] Okay, so what happens obviously in the race
dynamics, if someone surges or a group goes,
is a little bit faster, you just let it go
if it's beyond what you want to do, or?
- Yeah, I think it's very much about knowing
your limitations, you know?
It's a long day and if you surpass
your limitations early on, there's no coming back.
So, for me, thankfully I'm a good swimmer.
So, generally I'll always be with the front group.
But, yeah, if there's a split, you know,
I need to make that decision on whether
I try and bridge the gap, or stay where I am
in order to conserve energy, because, yeah.
You're right there, I'm out there for 8 hours,
and then 8 to 17 hours, the day is just long.
- Yeah, well, going on from that with the pacing
and maybe going with groups or not going with them,
how do you go about it on the bike then, with your pacing?
- The bike here, especially in Hawaii for
the professional race, there's probably
30, 40 guys that get out of the water together,
and, yeah, and the first ten kilometres here is hectic.
You know, people fighting for position on the bike.
You want to get near the front, but yeah,
for me, you have to limit the sub-g's.
Like, again, if you over expend early on,
you suffer later on.
And that's why you see so many explosions here in Hawaii,
is people just surpass their limitations early on.
So, for me, it's about it's a warm-up for the main battle.
And the main battle here happens out in Queen K highway.
- Okay, and I guess, actually, the same accounts
for like, all the islands.
It's not just Hawaii.
But, this is particularly tough, isn't it?
I guess it's all about like, saving those matches.
Not burning too many, too soon.
And is that the same thing for the run as well?
- Yeah, in the run especially, you know,
you're so happy to get off the bike.
And you get out running, and especially in Hawaii,
there's a lot of crowds there early on.
And, yeah, you can get caught up in the moment, and--
- Stop three minute K's.
- Yeah, and like, experience it.
But, yeah, you gloat and you think you feel good,
so it's time for me to go hard.
You know, maybe have like, a goal of you're gonna start off
at five minute kilometre pace, but you feel good.
So then, all the sudden, you're like, "Okay, 4, 40.
"I can do 4, 40."
But, I've seen nine times out of ten,
you pay for that for that way too hard.
- So, in terms of that, both biking and running,
do you really sort of dial into those paces?
You know your numbers, and you try
and stick to that as best as possible?
- Yeah, I think especially now,
I train all the time with a permit.
I know my numbers.
I know what I can hold on the bike,
and be able to run afterwards.
And yet, for me, it's always remember your limitations,
and I know my numbers, and I know what I can do
in order to get off that bike and sort of,
hopefully run through the field.
(upbeat electronic music)
- Okay, well next hit.
Probably quite an important one for Ironman; nutrition.
So, firstly, what do you take on race day?
- I think, race day I wake up, and the first thing I do is
I start off my morning with a HydroTab.
You know, just to get the salts in.
I think, especially here, it's so hot.
The hydration is fundamental.
It's the key to racing well here.
So, yeah, that's how I start my morning off,
and then I have breakfast.
I keep it nice and simple.
And then, yeah.
So, just before the race, I'll have an energy gel,
just to get us, and sort of firing up.
So, yeah, I'll start off,
I have two energy gels that I use.
I have one with caffeine, and one without.
But, yeah, I will start off using the one without caffeine,
then, yeah, as the day progresses and I get more and more
tired is when the caffeiene comes into play.
- Great.
And then, during the race then,
what is your nutrition strategy?
- So, my plan is very much, I have six energy gels
without the caffeiene, dissolved in water.
That gives me 600 calories of energy.
- [Host] And that's just for the bike?
- That's for the bike.
Then, I also will take two energy gels
with the caffeine, and my bento box.
And that's sort of the later stages on in the bike,
when you begin to suffer, and I find the caffeine
just gives me that little bit of kick.
- For real.
- So, that's 800 calories worth.
And then, I also will have an energy bar with me.
And with energy bar, I break it into small pieces,
and every 30 minutes, I'll take a little piece,
and that's almost mentally helps as well.
That, you know, every half an hour you look forward
to your little treats.
(laughter)
You've got half an hour until you can get another one.
So, yeah.
(overlapping conversation)
- And how often are you taking the gels on,
throughout the bike?
- So, the gels, here in Hawaii it just depends
on the race dynamics.
But, for me, I always try and bring it in gradually.
But, like, from the very start of the bike.
- So, it's just as and when.
- As and when.
The key thing for me is making sure, with 60 k's to go,
that the energy bottle with the energy gels without caffeine
is finished with, and then in the last 60 k's
is when I start using the caffeine gels.
- Great.
And then, getting onto the run then,
what's your strategy there?
- So, the run, again, is for me, it's hydration.
Hydration, hydration, hydration.
But, yeah, again, it's back to the gels.
And again, I start the run without caffeine,
just to give my body a little bit of time to recover.
'Cause you can have such a thing as too much caffeine.
And, I need the caffeine again later on in the run,
when everything hurts.
Yeah, so, I will try and take two gels an hour,
and then between that is just here,
is to drink as much as you can, without feeling bloated.
And then, I also use a carbohydrate mouth rinse,
from Unit Nutrition.
And, I use that at a very, when I'm at the low points.
When I just need the energy, and I need the energy now.
- Okay, so what is the idea behind that?
'Cause I've heard a lot about carb rinsing,
and for a lot of our viewers it's gonna sound quite newer,
and probably quite unusual.
The idea of taking or swilling carbohydrates
around your mouth, and then getting rid of it.
Or, in this instance, you can actually swallow this.
- Yeah.
- So, what is the idea?
What do you get from it?
- Some say the idea is that you take a drink,
you swirl it around your mouth,
and then you can either swallow, or spit it out.
Depending on your preference.
And the science behind it, and it's good science,
and I know that it works for me,
is that the carbohydrate swilling around in your mouth
allows your body to at least carbohydrate straight away,
and just to give you that instantaneous kick.
You don't have to wait for any sort of
forsets to take place.
It's very much instantaneous.
- So, it's almost a little bit like caffeine.
It's utilising carbohydrates that are already
in your stomach, and it's like, kicking them into action.
But, it's kind of fooling the mind a little bit, isn't it?
That's the idea, right?
- It's very much it, sort of, yeah.
It's cognitive.
It's very much, you can feel your body.
And this allows you to fill your body,
in order just to squeeze that little bit of energy out
when you really need it.
- Okay, and is that something you practise,
obviously in training?
So, you know it works.
Long runs, that sort of thing?
- Yeah, so like, these days, whenever I go out
for a long run, I always take a bottle with me.
Yeah, it helps.
Just, you go out for a long run,
you go through high points and low points.
And, I know when I go for a low point, I take a sip,
and I feel better.
(upbeat electronic music)
- Okay, we're on that mental subject.
I think this rolls quite nicely into our next tip,
because that is such a big part of Ironman racing.
How you overcome those highs, those lows,
that you just mentioned.
So, do you have any mental strategies?
- Yeah, I think, first of all, like, on races that I try,
no matter what happens, not to panic.
Like, panic causes you to get stressed, obviously,
and, you know, that uses up energy.
And you need the energy to race.
And, yeah, panicking is, yeah.
At least, in no way apart from a lost performance.
So, yeah, I always try and stay relaxed
no matter what happens, and break the race down
into manageable sections.
- Okay, so, your like, when the group surges on the bike,
and they disappear down the road, you just say, "relax,"
and you focus on that pacing we've just spoken about.
And hope that it pays off on the run, I guess.
- Yeah, very much so.
It's always remembering that it's a long day.
It's a long day ahead of you, and you never know
what's going to happen one hour down the line,
two hours down the line, five hours down the line.
It's very much having the mental strength
to stick to your plan.
Not getting caught up and doing silly things.
Yeah.
- Yeah, and you mentioned about these highs and lows.
So, I'm sure you've had some pretty dark moments
during Ironman racing.
How do you overcome them?
- I think the key is, when you go for the low,
you're always remember that the high will come again.
I've done enough Ironman. - You hope.
- You hope.
But, it generally does, even if it's not higher,
gets better than being very low.
And yeah, I look back in past races, and yeah,
there's times where I've had, even last year
at the world championships here, when I came third,
you know, we got 110 k's into the bike,
and I'd been dropped and I went to a very low patch
with 10, 15 kilometres.
But, I was keeping positive during that time,
and trying to stick to my numbers as best I could,
and remembering that you don't know
what will happen later on down the line.
That sort of ultimately led me to being on the podium.
(upbeat electronic music)
- Okay, and finally, I'd like to ask you about the kit.
Because, I think our viewers will take a lot away from this,
in terms of the aerodynamics, the chafing, the heat,
all those sort of things.
So, what tips could you give for them?
- I think I said aerodynamics is so important.
You know, Ironman's hard enough.
We may as well try and make it as easy as possible.
And that's aerodynamics.
So, yeah like, this year, I focused a lot.
I've been in the Velodoom twice.
Here, especially in Hawaii, heat is important.
So, it's the one time a year that I actually
shave my chest hair off.
And, yeah, that's how I sort of cope with the heat.
- Right, and then also the comfort,
because, I mean, this suit has got to see you through
eight hours, or however long it takes you.
So, is that something you actually think about?
- Not very much so.
You know, that sort of, if you have a badly fitting suit,
it may be okay for one or two hours of training.
But, you get eight hours, and all the sudden that
sort of like, minor irritation becomes like,
a big big problem later on.
So, yeah, I'm fortunate enough that I have a custom
fitted suite to my dimensions.
But, yeah, I'd say for anyone out there,
it's very much finding a suit that fits you,
and fits you well, and making sure
you actually practise in it.
Like, a lot of people never actually wear
the triathlon suite, until it comes to race day.
And then they get five hours into the race,
and all the sudden, you know, they're bleeding somewhere,
and they've got chaffage, and it just makes the day
a lot more miserable.
I need to make sure that nothing will detract
from my performance, and that's what I do.
- See, for real, I'm, this is probably gonna
sound a little bit crude, but the chafing side of things,
do you lubricate?
Do you use a petroleum jelly?
Is that something you got a little routine
you have in the morning?
- Lubrication everyday.
My first year, I switched from (mumbles) to Long Course.
I was like, "I don't understand why people are using
"all this sort of lubrication and stuff."
- [Host] You learn fast.
- You learn fast.
You learn fast and you learn very painfully.
And, yeah, I'm very much, yeah.
I don't try and be cool about it.
I very much, yeah.
Lubrication all the way.
- Well, that was really interesting.
Thanks so much for sharing your tips with us today, Dave.
- No problem.
I love to talk about triathlons, so, yeah.
It's a pleasure.
- Thank you very much.
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