With more 100-mile wins than any ultrarunner in history, is no stranger to suffering over long distances. Beyond his hundred-miler wins鈥攆ive of which came at Colorado鈥檚 famously grueling midsummer Hardrock 100鈥攈e has also set FKTs on the Appalachian Trail and Pony Express Trail and founded a race of his own in Utah, the .
Proper fueling is critical to distance-running success, and that preparation begins long before race day. Some ultrarunners are known for their religious adherence to a strict diet filled with high-quality calories and performance-boosting ingredients. Meltzer, on the other hand, has a daily beer habit, while running the AT, and regularly eats Three Musketeers bars and ice cream.
We spoke to Meltzer about what he eats in the days and hours leading up to a race. He agreed to share, with one caveat: The best thing you can do is keep things simple and consistent.
One Week Before
鈥淚 don鈥檛 change a thing here. Whatever I want, I eat without overthinking it. In my case, that often means a bunch of food that sounds odd when you say it all together鈥攕teak, chicken, lots of bacon, pizza, crepes, verde burritos鈥攊t doesn鈥檛 matter to me. A verde burrito is one of my favorites, though, made with herby-green sauce and jalape帽os.鈥
One to Two Days Out
鈥淚鈥檓 almost always traveling at this point before a race. But I鈥檓 not one of these people who brings the ingredients for a perfectly curated and balanced meal with me on the road. I eat at a restaurant and get whatever looks good to me. Will I eat at McDonald鈥檚? No. But I鈥檓 really not picky. Honestly, after two hours in a 100-miler, everything in my stomach is totally gone anyway. So I don鈥檛 really worry about changing my food choices all that much.鈥
The Night Before
鈥淎gain, I鈥檓 at a restaurant the night before, totally satisfying my cravings. That usually means a burger and fries or another pizza鈥攑robably pepperoni. I don鈥檛 overeat, but I do eat earlier than normal to make sure I can get my business done the next morning. I could also go for one of those verde burritos, but I try to stay away from too much fiber.鈥
Race Day
鈥淚鈥檓 really consistent (read: boring) here. I鈥檒l have a yogurt and banana. It goes down easy and isn鈥檛 overwhelming to my system. Back in the day, I used to eat huge breakfasts before big races, but that would upset my stomach. A lighter meal seems to work best for me, especially since I鈥檓 empty so soon after the start. Then I just go with gels, salt caps, and some strawberries and pineapple throughout the hundred miles. This year at Western States, I had popsicles in my cooler with dry ice!鈥