- Sodium
- 50 mg
- Caffeine
- 0 mg
- Glucose : fructose
- not published
Every aid station on the course, what it serves, and the exact minute you reach it based on your goal time. Then a fueling plan built on this exact course, so every gel is placed where there is water to wash it down and you never hit the wall in the last 6 miles.
Aid tables from the official 2026 Dublin course map, checked 29 Sep 2026. Dublin publishes miles; kilometres are converted. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
This plan was built for a runner looking to finish in 3:48 who needs 81 g of carbs per hour for their fitness level. Get the full course built to your goal and fueling needs here →
Most fueling plans are generic: take a gel every 30 minutes, wash it down with water and drink your carb beverage in between.
But, what if your planned time to take a gel comes right in the middle of a hill? What if there’s no aid station close by to grab water from?
Often, where each gel goes on the course matters as much as how many you take
It’s these small, often ignored parts of executing a fueling plan that trip runners up and have them hitting the wall or slowing down because of an upset stomach, despite having a well-rehearsed fueling plan heading into the race.
things go wrong when you don’t account for the course in your fueling plan
You plan a gel at 60 minutes, but the next water station isn’t for another 15. That means you either have to wait, take it without water and have it sit, or take it with your carb beverage and take in too much sugar for your stomach to process.
Dublin has 10 water stations, but Lucozade Sport is at only four of them, the first near mile 9.5, and High5 gels at two, from mile 16. Nothing in the first nine miles carries carbohydrate, and the longest gap between tables, 3.3 miles, runs from mile 16.2 to 19.4. Without a plan you reach halfway already short and try to make it up from cups.
As intensity increases, your stomach’s ability to process carbohydrates slows down. Couple that with breathing harder up a hill and you’ve got the perfect storm for a gel that can’t be digested fast enough.
The distance between aid stations, the concentration of the carbohydrate drink, and how much you’re actually able to swallow all change how much glycogen you’re actually replacing every hour. Your plan calls for 60 g per hour, but if you only hit 40 g you’ll run out of glycogen before you finish.
So your fueling plan needs to start with one question, and everything after it follows.
Water at 10 tables, Lucozade at 4 of them, gels at miles 16.2 and 22.2.
What that adds up to, and what you still carry.
Fuel off the course ↓Your products, your timing, nothing riding on a cup you might miss.
What the course still decides for you.
Fuel from your own kit ↓Dublin is a good course to do this on. Water comes at all 10 tables with Lucozade Sport at 4 of them. Below is where you’ll find each station.
Elevation is stretched to emphasis location. The numbered dots are your recommended fueling options for your 3:45 goal.
Source: the official Irish Life Dublin Marathon, checked 29 Sep 2026
Water is provided at all 10 tables, from mile 2.5 to mile 24.2.
Lucozade Sport at 4 tables, miles 9.5, 13.2, 19.4 and 22.2. Gels at miles 16.2 and 22.2, High5 Energy Gel.
The course climbs 543 ft in total and its steepest grade is 2.3%, under the 3% where a climb starts to move a feed. So CarbRate still places yours by the water tables, and the arrival times below carry a minute or two of slack on the climbs.
every table, mile 2.5 to mile 24.2
miles 9.5, 13.2, 19.4 and 22.2
miles 16.2 and 22.2, water at both
Put your goal time in and when you arrive at every aid station on the course recalculates. This is the list to put in your pocket, and the one CarbRate builds your feeds on.
| mi | km | Table | What’s at the table | You arrive |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.5 | 3.9 | Ishka water | water | 0:21 |
| 4.9 | 8.0 | Ishka water | water | 0:42 |
| 7.1 | 11.5 | Ishka water | water | 1:01 |
| 9.5 | 15.3 | Lucozade Sport station | waterLucozade Sport | 1:22 |
| 11.7 | 18.8 | Ishka water | water | 1:40 |
| 13.2 | 21.2 | Lucozade Sport station | waterLucozade Sport | 1:53 |
| 16.2 | 26.0 | Water + High5 gel | waterHigh5 Energy Gel | 2:19 |
| 19.4 | 31.3 | Lucozade Sport station | waterLucozade Sport | 2:47 |
| 22.2 | 35.7 | Lucozade Sport + High5 gel | waterLucozade SportHigh5 Energy Gel | 3:11 |
| 24.2 | 39.0 | Ishka water | water | 3:28 |
Lucozade Sport is 6.4 g of carbohydrate per 100 mL. A typical cup contains about 200 mL.
But, you likely won’t actually drink that much. Volunteers typically fill cups about half way to prevent water from splashing and you’ll lose a good amount as you run with the cup and what spills as you drink.
On average, you can expect a net intake of about 60 to 90 mL per cup
This is the part most runners don’t account for in their fueling plan, so CarbRate builds it directly in your plan.
We’ll tell you exactly how many cups at each aid station to drink based on how much glycogen you need and how much you’ll be able to supplement with gels.
A cup holds about 200 mL. Half-filled, spilled and sipped on the run, 60 to 90 mL of it actually goes down.
After you’ve calculated how much of the course drink you’ll likely take at each aid station, you’ll need to fill in your glycogen needs with gels along the course.
A typical gel contains about 25 g of carbohydrate, so use the chart here to calculate how many you’ll need.
If you’ve practiced fueling in training, you can target 75 to 90 g per hour. If you haven’t trained your stomach, err closer to 60 g per hour.
Here’s more on how to practice your fueling schedule to maximize your gut tolerance.
| Finish | 60 g/h | 75 g/h | 90 g/h |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3:45 your goal | |||
| 3:00 | 2to4 | 4to6 | 5to8 |
| 3:30 | 2to5 | 5to7 | 7to10 |
| 4:00 | 3to7 | 5to9 | 8to11 |
| 4:30 | 4to8 | 6to10 | 9to13 |
| 5:00 | 4to9 | 7to12 | 10to15 |
Dublin hands out two carbohydrates: Lucozade Sport in cups at four tables from about mile 9.5, and High5 gels at two, near miles 16 and 22. Practise with both before race day, because mile 16 is the wrong place to meet a new gel.
If High5 does not sit well with you, the closest matches are Maurten Gel 100, Precision Fuel PF 30 Gel and SiS Beta Fuel Gel. Pick one before race week and train on it.
CarbRate builds you a personalized race fueling plan from your own sweat rate, how your stomach handles gels, and then it coaches you through every feed, live, while you run.
It also customizes every gel and every drink placement to align with the actual elevation profile and aid station on your course.
Even carrying your own fuel, the Dublin course influences 4 things about your fueling plan: the timing of your gels, fluid intake, electrolytes, and caffeine.
The common advice is to take your gels every 30 to 45 minutes, but that might not coincide with when you hit an aid station.
If you’re not carrying your own water with you, you’ll need those aid stations to wash down your gel.
For a 3:45 finisher, Dublin’s tables arrive 21, 42, 61, 82 and 100 minutes in, then every 17 to 28 minutes.
So, you need to factor this into your fueling plan.
Enter your goal time in the input box below and we’ll show you when each aid station will arrive for your given pace.
If you want a fueling plan with all of these built in, CarbRate does this for you. Start building your plan here.
For a 3:45 finisher, 5 of 11 twenty-minute alarms land within 2 minutes of a table. Highlighted tables take a gel in a 75 g an hour plan; the first goes down before mile 2.5 from a bottle you carry.
| Finish | 60 g/h | 75 g/h | 90 g/h |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3:45 your goal | 9 | 12 | 14 |
| 3:00 | 8 | 9 | 11 |
| 3:30 | 9 | 11 | 13 |
| 4:00 | 10 | 12 | 15 |
| 4:30 | 11 | 14 | 17 |
| 5:00 | 12 | 15 | 18 |
Research has shown that the optimal carbohydrate concentration is 6 to 8 percent carbohydrate to water.
That means you’ll want about 100 mL (3.5 oz) of water for every 8 grams of carbohydrate you take in. A typical gel contains 25 g of carbohydrate, so you’ll want to aim for about 300 mL (10 oz) of water with each gel.
A good estimate is that each cup of water will provide you 100 mL (3.5 oz) of water. That’s because volunteers typically fill cups about half way to prevent water from splashing and you’ll lose a good amount as you run with the cup and what spills as you drink.
So, if you’re not carrying your own water, have your gel open and prepared to take at the start of the aid station so you can take it early with a cup of water and still have time to grab another cup or two.
Lucozade Sport carries about 500 mg of sodium per litre (120 mg per 8 oz) as the maker mixes it, and it is at 4 of the 10 tables.
Aim for 600 mg of sodium per litre (150 mg per 8 oz) of what you drink. So the cups get you most of the way there and the rest has to come from your gel or your own bottle.
If you’re carrying your own water instead, that sodium has to come from your gel or your bottle. If it’s a hot day or you’re a salty sweater, you should aim for a bit more.
CarbRate can provide your exact amount based on your individual sweat rate and can help you adjust your fueling plan if the weather is hot.
Lucozade Sport at the tables is under the target, so the rest of your sodium has to come from your gel or your own drink.
If you plan to use caffeine, it’s best to time it so the benefits kick in when you need them the most.
Caffeine peaks in your blood about an hour after you swallow it, then it slowly falls.
In that analysis of 4.2 million marathon results, the runners who slowed sharply began to do so just before mile 18.6 (30 km).
With a goal finish time of 3:45 that would place your caffeine at mile 16.2 (26 km).
This should provide you with peak benefits from the caffeine right when you need it the most.
Blood caffeine peaks about an hour after the dose, so a mile 16.2 gel peaks near mile 23 for a 3:45 finisher, after the wall has started. In 4.2 million marathon results, the late slowdown began near mile 18.6.
CarbRate builds you a personalized race fueling plan from your own sweat rate, how your stomach handles gels, and then it coaches you through every feed, live, while you run.
It also customizes every gel and every drink placement to align with the actual elevation profile and aid station on your course.
These are the warnings CarbRate attaches to a Dublin plan, word for word, for the runner in the plan above.
Dublin hands out High5 Energy Gel at 2 points. You need about 12 feeds, so that covers roughly 15% of your carbohydrate. Take them if you want them, and carry the other 10.
The longest stretch without water on Dublin runs 3.3 miles, from mile 16.2 to mile 19.4. At your pace that is about 28 minutes. Carry fluid through it rather than waiting for the next table.
Dublin has Lucozade Sport (flavor not named) at 6.4 g per 100 ml, which is strong. Drinking 500 ml an hour covers about 32 g/h of your 81 g/h target, and your plan has already taken that off your gels.
The first table is at mile 2.5. CarbRate allows 45 minutes for the opening stretch instead of the usual 27, because you start hydrated and fed. So Dublin’s first 2.5 miles never trigger a warning.
Dublin publishes no sodium figure for anything at its tables and never says which Lucozade Sport it pours. The Irish retail label reads about 500 mg of sodium per litre, under the 600 mg per litre target, but that is a label reading, not a figure from the race.
Treat the course as water and carbohydrate, and bring your own sodium. CarbRate works out how much from your sweat rate and the forecast, and puts it on the same schedule as your gels.
From 15 October the start-line forecast appears here, with what it changes in your plan. On a warm day: more fluid and more sodium.
Every fact on this page in one block, for the runner who wants the answer and nothing else.
Yes. Lucozade Sport is at miles 9.5, 13.2, 19.4 and 22.2, alongside water. High5 Energy Gel is handed out at miles 16.2 and 22.2.
Miles 16.2 and 22.2, which is km 26 and km 35.7. There is water at each of them. Plan to carry the rest of your own.
It depends on your carbohydrate target and how much of the course drink you take. At 75 g an hour a 3:45 finish needs about 280 g. Drinking one cup of Lucozade at each drink table covers roughly 40 g of that, which leaves about 10 gels of 25 g, 2 of them handed out on the course, so carry 8. Drinking half a litre of Lucozade an hour, carry 5. The grid above works this out for any finish time.
Mostly. Our course profile shows 543 ft of climbing across 26.2 miles, a net change of -10 ft, and a steepest quarter mile of 2.3%, under the 3% where a climb starts to move a feed. So CarbRate still places every feed by the water tables, and even pacing is a fair guide with a minute or two of slack on the climbs.
The race does not publish sodium figures for anything at its tables, and we could not confirm one for the on-course mix. Treat the course as water and carbohydrate and bring your own sodium plan.
Dublin publishes none. The tables carry water and Lucozade Sport and nothing else.
The first table is at mile 2.5. After that they come every 1.5 to 3.3 miles. The longest gap after the start is mile 16.2 to mile 19.4, about 5.2 km, which is 30 minutes at 4:00 pace and 38 minutes at 5:00 pace.
At even pace: 2:09 into a 3:30 race, 2:19 into a 3:45, 2:28 into a 4:00, and 3:05 into a 5:00. Enter your own goal time in the station table above to see every table.
There are 10, at miles 2.5, 4.9, 7.1, 9.5, 11.7, 13.2, 16.2, 19.4, 22.2 and 24.2. All 10 have water. 4 of them, miles 9.5, 13.2, 19.4 and 22.2, also have Lucozade Sport.
Yes. Dublin does not take personal bottles from the mass field, so everything you carry starts on you at the gun, with water at every table to top a flask from. Carrying everything at 75 g an hour is 12 gels of 25 g for a 3:45 finish, or 10 if you take the course gels.
60 to 90 grams an hour, set by your body size and by how much your stomach has practised absorbing. Start at the rate you have already trained at rather than the rate you want: 90 g an hour is a target to build toward over a training cycle before you race on it.
Only for the opening 2.5 miles. The first table is at mile 2.5, about 21 minutes into a 3:45 race, and after that tables come every 1.5 to 3.3 miles. If your first feed comes before mile 2.5, carry the fluid for it from the start line.
1 to 4 g of carbohydrate per kg of body weight in the 1 to 4 hours before the start, from food you have already eaten before long runs. A 68 kg runner eating 3 hours before the start needs roughly 130 to 200 g of carbohydrate.
The tables, the Lucozade and the course profile above are already in. Add your weight, goal time, sweat rate and the gels you like, and CarbRate builds your feed-by-feed plan for Dublin, then calls each feed by voice on race day.
The plan is free. Live race-day guidance and the practice schedule are in the app, $9.95 a month or a one-time $49.95 Race Pass that expires after your race.