The Worst Nutrition Advice I’ve Seen This Month (and What to Do Instead)

Triathletes, are you being duped by dodgy nutrition advice?
If you're training hard and trying to optimise performance, the last thing you need is gimmicky products or outdated strategies steering you off course. But with the rise of social media "experts" and slick marketing, bad nutrition advice is everywhere — and it’s costing athletes real results.

This month, I’ve seen some absolute shockers. So let’s break them down, explain why they’re wrong, and most importantly, what you should be doing instead.

1. Transdermal Electrolyte Patches — Stickers That Don’t Stick

You slap it on your skin and voilà — hydration solved, right? Wrong.

These so-called electrolyte patches claim to help maintain hydration and performance. But here’s the truth:

• Your skin is designed to be a barrier, not a sponge

• Electrolyte absorption through the skin only occurs in very specific conditions like broken skin, electrical stimulation or prolonged soaking

• Even then, absorption is local, not systemic. So it's useless for replacing the sodium and fluids lost in sweat

What to do instead:
Ditch the stickers and build a proper hydration plan based on your unique sweat rate, sodium losses and training conditions. Oral hydration with the right fluids and electrolytes is the only evidence-based approach that actually works for triathletes.

2. Fancy Ocean Water in a Bottle — $40 of Pure Snake Oil

Next up, concentrated ocean water — a “trace mineral solution” made from solar-evaporated seawater. Marketed as being “natural” and “pure”, it even removes most of the sodium... which happens to be the main electrolyte you need as an athlete.

Why it’s a problem:

• It’s overpriced salt water with zero benefit for performance

• The minerals left behind don’t replace what’s lost in sweat

• It creates a false sense of security around hydration

The smarter option:
Use tried and tested electrolyte solutions that provide actual sodium, matched to your sweat concentration and volume.

3. Online Race Calculators — Fuel Planning Gone Wrong

You enter your weight, predicted time and get told how many calories you need for race day. Sounds helpful, right? Not quite.

These calculators:

• Work off outdated “calories in vs calories out” ideas

• Don’t translate into actual grams of carbohydrate or products

• Ignore vital factors like gut tolerance, sweat rate, intensity and weather conditions

When I tested one, it told me to consume just 30g of carbs per hour for Ironman. That’s laughably low — and a guaranteed recipe for the bonk.

What you need instead:
A personalised race nutrition strategy that considers:

• Your body size and sweat rate

• Your race intensity and gut tolerance

• Your specific goals and environment

And yes — test it in training, not on race day.

4. Carb Loading with Curry? Don’t Do It

Old school advice still floats around telling athletes to “carb load” with a big pasta meal the night before a race. Some even suggest cutting carbs then smashing a high-carb meal right before race day. Both are asking for trouble.

Real athlete story:
One of our Triathlon Nutrition Academy athletes, Brent, used to carb load with heavy, high-fibre meals and spicy curries. The result? Gut distress, emergency toilet stops and cramping during every race. He even planned training runs around toilet locations.

The fix:
Brent revamped his carb loading with a structured, low-fibre, digestible strategy tailored to his event and body. Now he runs marathons without gut issues and is hitting PBs — proof that smart fuelling works.

Stop Falling for Gimmicks and Guesswork

Whether it’s a sticker, a calculator or some salty ocean water, these fads promise a quick fix but deliver disappointment.

Here's what to focus on instead:

• Understand your sweat rate and sodium losses

• Develop a personalised hydration and fuelling plan

• Use science-backed strategies, not hearsay or hacks

• Test everything in training, never on race day

Want to make sure you’re not wasting time or money on bad advice?

Grab the free Triathlon Nutrition Checklist and find out what you actually need to focus on to improve performance: https://www.dietitianapproved.com/checklist