Tessa Aukje Dekker is a PURE New Zealand Account Manager who practices what she preaches when it comes to nutrition and endurance sports. She used to play hockey in the Netherlands but fell in love with the outdoors in New Zealand and started doing adventure races that involve mountain biking, packrafting, and trekking with topo maps and a compass. Her biggest adventure race so far was Godzone 2022, which took her and her team seven days to complete from the West Coast to the East Coast of New Zealand.
Tessa believes in training with the same nutrition you plan to use on race day, as trying something new on race day can have unpredictable results. She likes to experiment with different types and brands of nutrition during training to figure out what works best for her body and what she enjoys eating. Her favourites are PURE Cola Fluid Energy Gels, PURE Electrolyte Hydration Pineapples, and Electrolyte Caps, which help prevent cramping and aid hydration. In the days leading up to a race, she eats lots of high-fat foods, such as avocados and nuts, and plenty of veggies with potatoes or pasta. She also takes Beet Endurance shots for natural nitrate loading.
During an adventure race, Tessa tries to consume 60-80 carbs per hour, which can be a challenge for longer races that last 12+ hours. She typically uses a combination of energy gels and electrolyte drinks, but also includes some solids like banana bread, mashed potatoes, and creamed rice, which are easy to eat on the go. Her advice for those new to adventure races is to find some friends to race with, start with shorter events to get a taste of it, and have fun exploring the outdoors while challenging yourself.