Food selection for the Marathon des Sables is a hugely personal choice (as you might expect), however, is also a delicate balance between hydration (i.e., not taking too much dry or salty food), morale (because the race is hard work, if you hadn’t already realised), and weight (well, obvs).

As a larger runner (I’m 6’ 2” / 188cm and was 97 kilograms at the time), my strategy for what I chose to eat was based on the meal and what I was likely doing at the time.

Breakfast

The first meal of the day is clearly an important one as you want it to be slow-release energy, taste good, and give you a little morale. You’ve slept for as many hours as you can, so your energy levels are already likely to be low before you even get to the start line.

Every morning I’d start the day with an instant 3-in-1 Coffee (either cappuccino or latte), which I’d sometimes mix with a hot chocolate for extra carbohydrates and a little sugar to make me more mentally alert.

Some of the boiling water would also be used to make my breakfast, which would be pre-flavoured porridge oats, another slow-release carb-heavy food source. A few of the mornings would also see me have a few chunks of dried mango as well, but these were more of a morale boost used strategically for when I thought I might need a treat.