The Biogen Two Oceans Guide: Fuel, Hydrate & Recover Like a Pro

Running 56km around the picturesque Cape Peninsula makes the Two Oceans Ultra Marathon one of the most iconic races anywhere on earth, but beyond its beauty lies an incredibly tough physical challenge that requires the right energy, hydration and recovery strategy to conquer. 

Getting your fuelling and hydration right during the race is essential to delivering the performance you’ve trained for on the day. That’s why we’ve put together these expert tips to help make the 2025 Two Oceans Ultra Marathon your best one yet.

Read on for expert tips to nail your race-day fuelling, hydration strategy, and post-race recovery and bag that PB!

While many runners struggle to eat breakfast so early in the morning, a meal that loads up on essential carbs is a vital first step in your race-day fuelling strategy.  

Stick to a tried and tested pre-race breakfast. Whip up a meal that is rich in simple carbohydrates to top up glycogen stores, and low in fibre and fat to reduce your risk of tummy trouble.

Good options include instant oats due to its lower fibre content, some toasted white bread with jam or honey, or rice cakes with banana and honey. 

The morning is also the ideal time to optimise your hydration levels by getting in all the electrolytes your body needs to absorb fluid effectively.

As magnesium is essential for muscle function, dropping an effervescent tablet of Biogen Magnesium Fizzy Triple Action into a glass of water to drink alongside breakfast may help support muscle function during the race and reduce muscle cramps and spasms. 

Magnesium also contributes to normal energy metabolism, which may help to reduce fatigue and assist in calcium and potassium uptake for better electrolyte balance. 

On your way to the start, sipping on a bottle of Biogen Pure Energy+ is a sensible and convenient way to keep energy and electrolyte levels topped up on race-day morning.

With its blend of simple carbohydrates to provide a rapid source of energy, and magnesium, phosphates, potassium and sodium, this energy and electrolyte sports drink has everything your body needs to get to the start line ready to race. 

Once the start gun goes, you need to keep ahead of your fuelling requirements to maintain energy levels and sustain your efforts to the finish line. A scheduled drip-feed method is often a sensible plan as it can help stabilise energy levels and reduce the risk of tummy trouble.

This plan requires eating and drinking small amounts more frequently. Setting an alarm on your watch at 20 to 30-minute intervals reminds you to take something in, even if you don’t feel a dip in energy levels. This is important to replenish glycogen stores before they run out.  

Ultra-marathon runners who aren’t racing flat out typically tolerate 60-70g well while those working near their aerobic threshold should aim for 90g or more per hour. Your ability to ingest higher amounts is based on factors such as effort, digestibility, palatability and tolerance.

Energy gels provide athletes with a convenient and fast-absorbing source of carbohydrates to maintain energy levels during sustained efforts like an ultra-marathon. 

These compact, portable sachets easily fit into pockets or pouches, and provide a concentrated source of carbohydrates to provide an immediate source of glucose in the bloodstream and top up dwindling muscle glycogen stores.

Biogen Real Food Based Energy Gels provide a convenient and tasty short-term energy boost solution. Made using real food, with natural flavours and no added sucrose, each gel delivers 25g of carbs.

The Real Cocoa flavour contains 36mg of caffeine, making it an ideal option for later in the race when you could use a mental lift to reduce feelings of fatigue and get an energy boost. 

Biogen Liquid Energy Gels, made with real orange juice, offer a different taste and texture profile and provide on-the-go energy with 23g of fast-absorbing carbs. 

Runners can also carry other convenient fuel sources with them, like Biogen Energy Chews, which offer the added benefit of additional electrolytes to replace salts lost through sweat. 

These tasty jellies help break up the texture fatigue that can set in after taking in multiple gels over four or more hours on the road.

Carrying additional salts with you on the route to replace electrolytes is also important to support your hydration and possibly reduce cramping later in the race, with Biogen Cramp Care gels offering a convenient solution.

For runners who are lucky enough to have seconding support out on the course, a ready-mixed bottle of Biogen Cytogen Race Mix is another option to get the required carbs and calories you need every hour to sustain your efforts.  

With a blend of moderate and faster-releasing carbohydrates and Important electrolytes, the ability to access a few bottles along the route makes this energy drink an ideal solution to meet both immediate and sustained energy requirements as the race distance progresses.

Energy drinks are also better tolerated in the latter stages of a race as your digestive system gets less blood, and rising fatigue levels can make it harder to chew and swallow, or even keep solid food down.

Once you’ve triumphantly crossed the finish line with your finisher’s medal proudly around your neck, toast your success with a tasty recovery drink to start the post-race repair process as soon as possible. 

A product like Biogen Pure Recovery or Biogen Recovergen contains rapidly-digested carbs to replenish glycogen stores, whey protein to support muscle repair, and electrolytes to replace lost salts, giving your body everything it needs after such a long and hard effort. 

It is also a tasty and convenient way to get in calories and these important macronutrients soon after the race to support your recovery efforts.