Endurance Eats

What happens when you start taking men's Strava crowns, talking a little smack, and posting the whole thing on Instagram? Apparently, you go from 300 followers to more than 229,000! But there's a lot more to Laini Bones than viral cycling videos, and I couldn't wait to get her on the podcast.
In this episode of the Endurance Eats Podcast, I'm joined by Laini Bones, the cyclist behind the hilarious Taking Men's Strava Crowns series and CFO of Carbs Fuel, the company behind one of my favorite affordable 50-gram carbohydrate gels.
We talk about how her Strava series unexpectedly took off, what it's like dealing with internet trolls, and why she believes cycling should be fun. But we also get into one of my favorite topics: fueling!
Laini shares how she went from running marathons on just one or two gels and barely any water to embracing high-carb fueling and finishing her hardest cycling workouts feeling stronger than when she started. We also get into how she and her husband, Gabe, built Carbs Fuel to make high-carb fueling more accessible and affordable for everyday endurance athletes.
And of course, we talk about why missing a workout, ordering takeout, or not following your training plan perfectly doesn't mean you're failing as an athlete.

What You'll Learn
How Laini's Taking Men's Strava Crowns series went viral and attracted more than 229,000 Instagram followers.

Why Strava segments can be a fun way to push yourself without taking competition too seriously.

How Laini handles negative comments, internet trolls, and the unexpected pressures of social media fame.

Why underfueling left Laini completely exhausted during her marathon-running days.

How increasing her carbohydrate intake transformed her cycling workouts and helped her finish strong.

Why letting go of a scarcity mindset around sports fuel can change your entire training experience.

Resources Mentioned:

Laini Bones on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lainibones/?hl=en 

Laini Bones on Strava:  https://strava.app.link/Mx5aaNdx66b

Carbs Fuel: https://carbsfuel.com/

Fuel Your Training with TrainingPeaks

This season's podcast partner is TrainingPeaks!
I use TrainingPeaks to look ahead at my training volume, training stress, and hardest workouts so I can adjust my carbohydrate intake and recovery accordingly. I love having the data to compare against how I'm actually feeling, because the numbers should support listening to your body, not replace it.
You can create a free account and get two weeks of Premium access when you sign up.
https://www.trainingpeaks.com

Connect with Me:
Follow along for more practical sports nutrition and fueling support: Instagram: @alexlarsonnutrition

Ready to stop second-guessing your fueling and start getting more out of your training? At Alex Larson Nutrition, my team and I help endurance athletes build practical nutrition strategies that support their workouts, recovery, and performance without unnecessary food rules or complicated meal plans. Work with Alex Larson Nutrition: https://alexlarsonnutrition.com/nutrition-services 

Check out our endurance nutrition tools and resources 

Don’t Forget to Subscribe!
Click that follow button to stay updated on future episodes packed with actionable insights and expert advice for endurance athletes. Leave a quick review to help more endurance athletes find the show
Have Questions or Suggestions?
Send me a message, and I might cover it in a future episode!

This episode of Endurance Eats is brought to you by Alex Larson’s 1:1 Nutrition Coaching.
If you’ve ever wondered, Am I eating enough? Am I fueling this right? Why do I still feel tired? you’re not alone. Alex Larson Nutrition helps endurance athletes cut through the confusion and build a fueling plan that actually works for their training, lifestyle, and goals.
You can learn more at alexlarsonnutrition.com. 

This Episode is Brought to You By Carb Culture Shop
Grab your merch from the shop with saying that endurance athletes just get!

What happens when you combine professional gravel racing, race directing, fatherhood, a LOT of carbs, and an impressive knowledge of Midwest gas stations? You get Chase Wark.
Chase and I have worked together on his nutrition over the past year, so this conversation was especially fun because we get to pull back the curtain on what fueling actually looks like for a high-volume gravel cyclist and why getting it right often has less to do with perfection and more to do with planning ahead.
Chase is a professional gravel cyclist, co-founder of Lunchbox Racing, coach, race director, and community builder. His impact goes well beyond his own racing, and in 2026 he received the inaugural Gravel Cycling Hall of Fame Community Impact Award for his contributions to the sport.
In this episode, Chase and I talk about how he went from biking to hockey practice as a kid to competing at the elite level, why giving back to the gravel community matters so much to him, and what it takes to balance training with being a dad, race director, and team leader.
And, of course, we talk nutrition.
When Chase first reached out to me, nutrition wasn't necessarily a disaster. The bigger challenge was consistency when life got chaotic. Travel, race directing, long training days, and stress could quickly throw his normal eating routine off.
Instead of making radical changes, we focused on small adjustments that made his nutrition easier to execute in real life.
That meant meal prepping before busy race weekends, packing coolers for travel, keeping easy meals and snacks available, prioritizing protein around massive training days, and being more intentional about carb loading before races.
We also get into Chase's approach to fueling on the bike, including why gummy worms have replaced some of his beloved gas station donuts, his ability to take in around 120 grams of carbohydrates per hour during races, and why he thinks more endurance athletes need to get comfortable eating carbs while they train.

What You'll Learn
Why Chase believes building the cycling community matters just as much as his own race results

How becoming a dad changed his approach to training, recovery, sleep, and planning

The nutrition challenges that finally pushed him to ask for help

Why we focused on consistency instead of completely overhauling his diet

Resources Mentioned

Chase Wark / Chase the Biker Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chasethebiker

Chase the Biker YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@chasethebiker

Lunchbox Racing: https://lunchboxracing.com/

Gravel Underdogs Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/grvl-undrdgs/id1879702903 

Granny's Gravel Grinder - Registration 

Connect with Me:
Follow along for more practical sports nutrition and fueling support: Instagram: @alexlarsonnutrition

Website: alexlarsonnutrition.com

Want to take the guesswork out of your endurance nutrition and learn how to fuel your training, racing, and everyday life with more confidence? Work with Alex Larson Nutrition: https://alexlarsonnutrition.com/

Check out our endurance nutrition tools and resources 

Don’t Forget to Subscribe!
Click that follow button to stay updated on future episodes packed with actionable insights and expert advice for endurance athletes. Leave a quick review to help more endurance athletes find the show

Have Questions or Suggestions?
Send me a message, and I might cover it in a future episode!

This episode of Endurance Eats is brought to you by Alex Larson’s 1:1 Nutrition Coaching.
If you’ve ever wondered, Am I eating enough? Am I fueling this right? Why do I still feel tired? you’re not alone. Alex Larson Nutrition helps endurance athletes cut through the confusion and build a fueling plan that actually works for their training, lifestyle, and goals.
You can learn more at alexlarsonnutrition.com. 

This Episode is Brought to You By Carb Culture Shop
Grab your merch from the shop with saying that endurance athletes just get!

You can know exactly what you’re supposed to do as an endurance athlete… and still get it wrong.
I’m a dietitian, but I’m also human first. And after years of triathlon, running, gravel racing, and now mountain biking, I’ve made plenty of mistakes along the way. So have Hanna and Mary.
In this episode of the Endurance Eats Podcast, Team HAM is back! Hanna, Alex, and Mary are looking back at years of training and racing to answer one question: If we could do it all over again, what would we do differently?
We’re talking about everything from running a first marathon on basically no fuel (yes, really) to underfueling Ironman training, learning how to fuel a finicky gut, and realizing that sometimes the biggest thing holding you back has nothing to do with fitness.
Because endurance sports teach you a lot. Fueling matters. Recovery matters. Mental preparation matters. But so does knowing when to push, when to back off, and how to keep the sport you love actually enjoyable.

What You’ll Learn
What I would completely change about how I trained and fueled for Ironman Wisconsin

Why knowing how to fuel and actually practicing your fueling are two very different things

How endurance fueling has changed since our early racing days

Why Hanna once felt like taking fuel during training was almost “cheating”

The fueling mistake that can happen when you’re feeling too good during a race

Why your recovery nutrition can determine what you get out of your next workout

How Mary learned what works for her finicky gut through years of trial and error

Why Hanna says her biggest do-over might actually be mental preparation—not nutrition

How we think about training during busy, stressful, or ridiculously hot seasons of life

Why “maintenance is a win” can be one of the smartest approaches to long-term training

The importance of focusing on what you can control on race day

Why preserving the joy of your sport might matter more than forcing yourself through another training block

And yes, somehow we also get into mountain biking, slow walkers, candy corn, and whether mellowcreme pumpkins count as endurance fuel. It’s Team HAM. What did you expect?
Want to fuel your training and racing with more confidence? Explore Alex Larson Nutrition programs and one-on-one support: https://alexlarsonnutrition.com

Connect with Me:
Follow along for more practical sports nutrition and fueling support: Instagram: @alexlarsonnutrition

Website: alexlarsonnutrition.com

Work with Alex Larson Nutrition: https://alexlarsonnutrition.com/

Check out our endurance nutrition tools and resources 

Don’t Forget to Subscribe!
Click that follow button to stay updated on future episodes packed with actionable insights and expert advice for endurance athletes. Leave a quick review to help more endurance athletes find the show

Have Questions or Suggestions?
Send me a message, and I might cover it in a future episode!

This episode of Endurance Eats is brought to you by Alex Larson’s 1:1 Nutrition Coaching.
If you’ve ever wondered, Am I eating enough? Am I fueling this right? Why do I still feel tired? you’re not alone. Alex Larson Nutrition helps endurance athletes cut through the confusion and build a fueling plan that actually works for their training, lifestyle, and goals.
You can learn more at alexlarsonnutrition.com. 

This Episode is Brought to You By Carb Culture Shop
Grab your merch from the shop with saying that endurance athletes just get!

This episode is brought to you by Thorne. 
Shop Thorne Supplements and get 15% off  https://www.thorne.com/u/alexlarsonnutrition

Stress is higher. Life feels heavier. And if your training, recovery, nutrition, or patience feels different lately…you’re probably not imagining it.
In this episode of the Endurance Eats Podcast, I’m sitting down in person with returning guest Erin Ayala of Skadi Sport Psychology to talk about what increased stress actually does to us as athletes and why trying to simply “push through” isn’t always the answer.
Erin and I recorded this one during a mini work-and-riding retreat in Cuyuna, Minnesota, after putting in plenty of miles on the bike (and after I got a very unexpected new max heart rate on some beginner singletrack 😅).
But the real reason I wanted to have this conversation is something I’ve been noticing in my own work: this year feels different.
I’ve seen more athletes dealing with stress, uncertainty, disrupted routines, and situations that make nutrition and training harder than usual. Erin has been seeing it too.
So we’re digging into what happens when life stress piles on top of training stress and, more importantly, what you can actually do about it.
We talk about adjusting expectations during high-stress seasons, why self-compassion isn’t the same as “going soft,” and how social connection can play a major role in resilience.
Then we nerd out on heart rate variability (HRV): what it actually measures, why you shouldn’t compare your HRV to someone else’s, and how Erin is using HRV biofeedback and breathing techniques to help athletes train their nervous systems.
If you love data, endurance training, recovery, or understanding why your body is doing what it’s doing, you’re going to love this conversation.

What You'll Learn
Why increased life stress can change how you show up in training, nutrition, work, and relationships

The connection between stress, loneliness, and recovery

Why your usual training load might suddenly feel harder even when the workouts haven’t changed

How to recalibrate your expectations instead of assuming you need more discipline or willpower

The three pieces of self-compassion Erin wants athletes to understand

Why social support can be a powerful tool for managing stress

How coaches and providers can better support athletes during high-stress seasons

What heart rate variability (HRV) actually tells you about your nervous system

Why your personal HRV trends matter more than comparing your number to someone else’s

How sleep, alcohol, training, illness, nutrition, and life stress can influence HRV

RESOURCES:

Skadi Sport Psychology: https://skadisportpsychology.com

American Psychological Association Stress in America survey 

Follow Skadi Sport Psychology on Instagram 

Connect with Me:
Follow along for more practical sports nutrition and fueling support: Instagram: @alexlarsonnutrition

Website: alexlarsonnutrition.com

Work with Alex Larson Nutrition: https://alexlarsonnutrition.com/

Check out our endurance nutrition tools and resources 

Don’t Forget to Subscribe!
Click that follow button to stay updated on future episodes packed with actionable insights and expert advice for endurance athletes. Leave a quick review to help more endurance athletes find the show

Have Questions or Suggestions?
Send me a message, and I might cover it in a future episode!

This episode of Endurance Eats is brought to you by Alex Larson’s 1:1 Nutrition Coaching.
If you’ve ever wondered, Am I eating enough? Am I fueling this right? Why do I still feel tired? you’re not alone. Alex Larson Nutrition helps endurance athletes cut through the confusion and build a fueling plan that actually works for their training, lifestyle, and goals.
You can learn more at alexlarsonnutrition.com. 

This Episode is Brought to You By Carb Culture Shop
Grab your merch from the shop with saying that endurance athletes just get!

This episode is brought to you by Thorne. 
Shop Thorne Supplements and get 15% off  https://www.thorne.com/u/alexlarsonnutrition

Your labs came back “normal”… but you’re exhausted, your training feels harder than it should, and something still feels off.
Iron deficiency is incredibly common in female endurance athletes and if ferritin isn’t being checked, you could be missing a really important piece of the puzzle.
Today on the Endurance Eats Podcast, we’re talking about iron deficiency in endurance athletes, particularly female athletes.
I’m joined by Dr. Cory Dugan, a postdoctoral research fellow at the LSU Pennington Biomedical Research Center and a researcher in iron deficiency and women’s health. Cory earned his PhD from the University of Western Australia, where his work focused on iron deficiency management and treatment in active females.
My goal with this episode, along with my three-part ferritin series on Substack, is to give you the knowledge and language you need to better advocate for yourself at your doctor’s office.
We’re breaking down what ferritin actually tells us, why hemoglobin alone doesn’t give us the full picture, why female endurance athletes are especially vulnerable to low iron stores, and what we actually know about iron deficiency, fatigue, and athletic performance.
Because being exhausted all the time shouldn’t automatically get written off as “normal.”

What You’ll Learn
The difference between iron deficiency, iron deficiency without anemia, and iron deficiency anemia and why knowing the difference matters

Why your hemoglobin can look completely normal while your iron stores are already running low

Why ferritin is one of the most important numbers to understand when you’re looking at iron status

Why there’s still so much disagreement around what counts as “low” ferritin

Why Cory advocates for looking beyond the traditional ferritin cutoff, especially in athletes

How hard training and inflammation can affect ferritin and potentially make your results harder to interpret

Why female endurance athletes have so many overlapping risk factors for iron deficiency, including menstrual blood loss, GI blood loss, sweat losses, foot-strike hemolysis, and exercise-induced changes in iron absorption

And if you’ve ever been told your labs are “fine” while you’re still wondering why you feel so tired, this is an episode I really want you to hear.

Resources Mentioned
 My three-part ferritin series on Substack

PART 1: Ferritin: The Number No One Agrees On

PAR 2: Ferritin Low, Everything Else Normal: Now What?

PART 3: Iron and Ferritin - Supplementing Smart

Dr. Cory Dugan’s website 

Dr. Cory Dugan on Instagram 

Dr. Cory Dugan on LinkedIn 

Dr. Cory Dugan’s free iron risk questionnaire 

Dr. Cory Dugan’s plain-language iron guide for women 

“The Misogyny of Iron Deficiency” by Dr. Cory Dugan 

Connect with Me:
Follow along for more practical sports nutrition and fueling support: Instagram: @alexlarsonnutrition

Website: alexlarsonnutrition.com

Work with Alex Larson Nutrition: https://alexlarsonnutrition.com/

Check out our endurance nutrition tools and resources 

Don’t Forget to Subscribe!
Click that follow button to stay updated on future episodes packed with actionable insights and expert advice for endurance athletes. Leave a quick review to help more endurance athletes find the show

Have Questions or Suggestions?
Send me a message, and I might cover it in a future episode!

This episode of Endurance Eats is brought to you by Alex Larson’s 1:1 Nutrition Coaching.
If you’ve ever wondered, Am I eating enough? Am I fueling this right? Why do I still feel tired? you’re not alone. Alex Larson Nutrition helps endurance athletes cut through the confusion and build a fueling plan that actually works for their training, lifestyle, and goals.
You can learn more at alexlarsonnutrition.com. 

This Episode is Brought to You By Carb Culture Shop
Grab your merch from the shop with saying that endurance athletes just get!

This episode is brought to you by Thorne. 
Shop Thorne Supplements and get 15% off  https://www.thorne.com/u/alexlarsonnutrition