A Fueling Plan Built Specifically for the Long Beach Marathon

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.

Build my Long Beach plan Start with the course ↓
2XU Long Beach Marathon
Sunday 11 October 2026 · 26.2 miles
Water only 4 Water + Gatorade 11 Gel depot miles 10, 16.5 and 20
Map of the Long Beach Marathon course with the 15 aid tables marked
© OpenStreetMap contributors
Elevation profile drag along the profile to scrub
26.2 miles ▲ 305 ft gain ▼ 291 ft loss +77 ft high -3 ft low
0 mi 5 10 15 20 26.2 mi +77 ft 0 mi 10 20 26.2 mi +77 ft

Aid tables from the official Long Beach marathon page, checked 12 Sep 2026. Long Beach publishes miles; kilometres are converted. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Why the course changes the plan

Why you need to adapt your fueling plan to the specifics of the course

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.

4

things go wrong when you don’t account for the course in your fueling plan

1A planned gel with no water

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.

2You miss a table

Long Beach does not publish how many run its marathon, and it starts an hour before a half marathon that finishes on the same road. Tables that busy are easy to misjudge and not get the fuel you need. Without a plan for the next one you either double up later and pay for it, or run the rest of the race short.

3Your plan calls for a gel in the middle of a hill

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.

4Miscalculating the fluid on the course

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.

Option 1

I am going to use what is on the course

Water at 15 tables, Gatorade at 11 of them, gels at miles 10, 16.5 and 20.

What that adds up to, and what you still carry.

Fuel off the course ↓
Option 2

I am going to carry all of my own fuel

Your products, your timing, nothing riding on a cup you might miss.

What the course still decides for you.

Fuel from your own kit ↓
Option 1

If you are going to use what the course hands you

Long Beach is a good course to do this on. Water comes at all 15 tables with Gatorade Thirst Quencher at 11 of them. Below is where you’ll find each station.

Long Beach Marathon course strip Elevation relative to the start across 26.2 miles, the 15 aid tables marked by mile with what is at each, and the 12 feeds of the reference plan as numbered dots. +77 ft -3 ft 2 4.5 6 8 10 11.5 13 14.5 16.5 18 19 20 22 23.5 25 mi 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Water only Water + Gatorade Gel depot Feed in the 3:45 plan, on a table Feed with no table, water carried

Elevation is stretched to emphasis location. The numbered dots are your recommended fueling options for your 3:45 goal.

Source: the official 2XU Long Beach Marathon, checked 12 Sep 2026

1What is on the course

What is provided at Long Beach, and where

Water is provided at all 15 tables, from mile 2 to mile 25.

Gatorade Thirst Quencher at 11 tables, miles 6, 8, 10, 11.5, 14.5, 16.5, 18, 20, 22, 23.5 and 25. Gels at miles 10, 16.5 and 20, Honey Stinger Fruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free).

The course climbs 305 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.

The Long Beach course, table by table
Water stations
15

every table, mile 2 to mile 25

Gatorade
11

miles 6, 8, 10, 11.5, 14.5, 16.5, 18, 20, 22, 23.5 and 25

Fruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free)
3

miles 10, 16.5 and 20, water at each

2Your goal time

Every table, and the minute you reach it

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.

Arrival times assume even pace, which is a fair guide on a course with 305 ft of climbing. At 3:45 you reach the first gel station at 1:26.
Build my Long Beach plan
All 15 tables at 3:45
mikmTableWhat’s at the tableYou arrive
23.2Aid station, water onlywater0:17
4.57.2Aid station, water onlywater0:39
69.7Aid stationwaterGatorade0:51
812.9Aid stationwaterGatorade1:09
1016.1Aid station + Honey Stinger gelwaterGatoradeFruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free)1:26
11.518.5Aid stationwaterGatorade1:39
1320.9Aid station, water onlywater1:52
14.523.3Aid stationwaterGatorade2:04
16.526.6Aid station + Honey Stinger gelwaterGatoradeFruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free)2:22
1829.0Aid stationwaterGatorade2:34
1930.6Aid station, water onlywater2:43
2032.2Aid station + Honey Stinger gelwaterGatoradeFruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free)2:52
2235.4Aid stationwaterGatorade3:09
23.537.8Aid stationwaterGatorade3:22
2540.2Aid stationwaterGatorade3:35
3The course drink

How much glycogen does the Gatorade on the course provide

Gatorade Thirst Quencher is 7 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.

What the drink is worth per hour
Glycogen left
200 → 60–90 mL

A cup holds about 200 mL. Half-filled, spilled and sipped on the run, 60 to 90 mL of it actually goes down.

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you run out here Planned full cups Real 60–90 mL a cup full empty start finish
Glycogen left across the race, a plan built on full cups against what a cup actually delivers. Illustrative, not your plan.
4What you carry

How many gels you still carry

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.

25 g gels to carry, after the course
Finish60 g/h75 g/h90 g/h
3:45 your goal
3:000to22to44to6
3:301to13to35to5
4:001to24to56to7
4:302to45to67to9
5:002to55to88to11
5The products

The 2 products Long Beach hands you

The gel is Honey Stinger, caffeine-free, at three tables, and the drink is Gatorade Thirst Quencher, which is the supermarket formula rather than the Endurance one most big races pour. Practise with both before race day so mile 10 is not the first time your stomach meets them.

If Honey Stinger 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.

On the Long Beach course
Sodium
50 mg
Caffeine
0 mg
Glucose : fructose
honey
Science score73/100
Full write-up, who it suits →
Sodium
230 mg / 16 oz
Caffeine
0 mg
Glucose : fructose
sucrose and dextrose

Get a Fueling Plan Built for Long Beach

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.

Build my Long Beach plan
Option 2

If you are going to carry all of your own fuel

Even carrying your own fuel, the Long Beach course influences 4 things about your fueling plan: the timing of your gels, fluid intake, electrolytes, and caffeine.

1Timing

Set your feed times to Long Beach’s tables, unless you carry water

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, Long Beach’s tables arrive 17, 39, 51, 69 and 86 minutes in, then every 9 to 17 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.

Feed times assume even pace, which is a fair guide on a course with 305 ft of climbing. Everything below recalculates from 3:45.
Your watch against Long Beach’s tables
Gel alarms with water
4 of 11 alarms

For a 3:45 finisher, 4 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 from a bottle you carry.

Gel alarm every 20 min Long Beach tables, 3:45 pace 6 8 10 11.5 14.5 16.5 19 23.5 25 start 1:00 2:00 3:00 finish
alarm within 2 min of wateralarm with no watertable taking a gelwater-only table
How many 25 g gels that is, carrying everything
Finish60 g/h75 g/h90 g/h
3:45 your goal91214
3:008911
3:3091113
4:00101215
4:30111417
5:00121518
2Water

A gel needs more water than a cup holds

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.

What a gel needs and what a cup delivers
One 25 g gel needs
300 mL
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cupsempties fast, no sloshing8%concentration300 mL+2 cupsstill too thick to empty13%concentration200 mL+1 cupsits in your stomach25%concentration100 mL
3Sodium

The course drink covers some of your sodium, not all of it

Gatorade Thirst Quencher carries about 490 mg of sodium per litre (120 mg per 8 oz) as the maker mixes it, and it is at 11 of the 15 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.

Where the sodium is
Sodium per litre you drink
600 mg / L

Gatorade at the tables is under the target, so the rest of your sodium has to come from your gel or your own drink.

NaLong Beach’s tables490 mg / LNaAim for600 mg / LNaHot day, salty sweater800–1,000
the target for what you drinkthe hotter, saltier end, where CarbRate sets yours from your sweat rate
4Caffeine

Time your caffeine so it helps you when you need it the most

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 14.5 (23 km).

This should provide you with peak benefits from the caffeine right when you need it the most.

When the caffeine is working
Caffeine table, rolling course
mile 14.5
2 hours 4 minutes into a 3:45

Blood caffeine peaks about an hour after the dose, so a mile 14.5 gel peaks near mile 21 for a 3:45 finisher, after the wall has started. In 4.2 million marathon results, the late slowdown began near mile 18.6.

the wall starts mile 18.6 avg, 4.2 M results dose at the start mile 14.5 table · 2:04 peak ≈ mile 21 0 mi 5 10 15 20 26.2 mi peaknone
dose at the mile 14.5 tabledose at the startwhere the wall starts on averagecurve shape illustrative, timings from your goal time

Get a Fueling Plan Built for Long Beach

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.

Build my Long Beach plan
Built for your exact course

What a finished Long Beach plan looks like

This is a real CarbRate plan rather than an example we wrote out: a 68 kg runner, 3:45 goal, trained stomach, drinking the Gatorade and taking the course gel, 14 °C at the start. Adjusted finish 3:48. Target 81 g an hour, 307 g in total, as 12 feeds of 25 g.

10 of the 12 feeds land on a real Long Beach aid table, so there is water in your hand for every one of them.

#ClockmiWhereWhat
10:111.3No table here · mile 1.3 (water in hand)One 25 g gel, your own
20:283.3No table here · mile 3.3 (water in hand)One 25 g gel, your own
30:515.9Aid station · mile 6One 25 g gel, your own
41:097.9Aid station · mile 8One 25 g gel, your own
51:269.9Aid station + Honey Stinger gel · mile 10Fruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free) from the depot
61:4111.6Aid station · mile 11.5One 25 g gel, your own
72:0514.4Aid station · mile 14.5One 25 g gel, your own
82:2216.4Aid station + Honey Stinger gel · mile 16.5Fruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free) from the depot
92:4418.9Aid station, water only · mile 19One 25 g gel, your own
102:5520.1Aid station + Honey Stinger gel · mile 20Fruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free) from the depot
113:2323.4Aid station · mile 23.5One 25 g gel, your own
123:3825.1Aid station · mile 25One 25 g gel, your own

The first feed comes before the first table on purpose: CarbRate starts you early, with the water you carry from the start line. Say you are carrying your own instead and it rebuilds this same timeline with your products and more feeds, on the same tables. On race day the app calls each feed by voice as you reach it.

This is one runner. Yours will look different.

CarbRate builds yours from your weight, your sweat rate, your goal time, the gels you already train with, and the race-day forecast. Answer a few quick questions and it is built, with the Long Beach course already loaded.

Build my Long Beach plan
What CarbRate says about Long Beach

What CarbRate flags on a Long Beach plan

These are the warnings CarbRate attaches to a Long Beach plan, word for word, for the 3:45 runner above.

Plan to carry

Long Beach hands out Fruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free) at 3 points. You need about 12 feeds, so that covers roughly 23% of your carbohydrate. Take them if you want them, and carry the other 9.

In your favour

Long Beach has Gatorade Thirst Quencher, Lemon-Lime at 7 g per 100 ml, which is strong. Drinking 500 ml an hour covers about 35 g/h of your 81 g/h target, and your plan has already taken that off your gels.

Only at 5:00 pace

The longest stretch without water on Long Beach runs 2.5 miles, from mile 2 to mile 4.5. At your pace that is about 29 minutes. Carry fluid through it rather than waiting for the next table. Under 5 hours that stretch takes less than 27 minutes, and CarbRate stays quiet.

Quiet on purpose

The first table is at mile 2. CarbRate allows 45 minutes for the opening stretch instead of the usual 27, because you start hydrated and fed. So Long Beach’s first 2 miles never trigger a warning.

Sodium: not published

Long Beach publishes no sodium figure and does not name the Gatorade it pours — its own page links the retail Thirst Quencher sticks, which carry roughly half the sodium of the Endurance Formula other races use. The 230 mg above is that stick's label, not the race's.

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.

Shows inside 10 days
29 days to go

From 1 October the start-line forecast appears here, with what it changes in your plan. On a warm day: more fluid and more sodium.

The short answers

Long Beach Marathon fueling at a glance

Every fact on this page in one block, for the runner who wants the answer and nothing else.

Race
2XU Long Beach Marathon, 11 October 2026
Distance
42.195 km / 26.2 mi
Aid tables on the course
15
First table
mile 2 (km 3.2)
Spacing after the first table
every 1 to 2.5 miles
Water
at every table
Sports drink
Gatorade Thirst Quencher, Lemon-Lime, at mile 6, mile 8, mile 10, mile 11.5, mile 14.5, mile 16.5, mile 18, mile 20, mile 22, mile 23.5, mile 25
Drink strength
7 g carbohydrate per 100 ml
Gel handout
Honey Stinger Fruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free), mile 10 (km 16.1), mile 16.5 (km 26.6) and mile 20 (km 32.2), 3 points
Food on course
none published
Personal refreshment
not accepted for the mass field
Published sodium
none, for anything on the course
Total climb
305 ft, steepest grade 3.9%
Typical carbohydrate target
60 to 90 g an hour
Gels to carry, 3:45 at 75 g/h
3 to 4 using the course drink, 12 carrying everything

Long Beach fueling questions, answered

Is there Gatorade on the Long Beach Marathon course?

Yes. Gatorade Thirst Quencher, Lemon-Lime is at miles 6, 8, 10, 11.5, 14.5, 16.5, 18, 20, 22, 23.5 and 25, alongside water. Honey Stinger Fruit Smoothie Classic Energy Gel (caffeine-free) is handed out at miles 10, 16.5 and 20.

Where are the gel stations at the Long Beach Marathon?

Miles 10, 16.5 and 20, which is km 16.1, km 26.6 and km 32.2. There is water at each of them. Plan to carry the rest of your own.

How many gels do I need for the Long Beach Marathon?

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 Gatorade at each drink table covers roughly 120 g of that, which leaves about 7 gels of 25 g, 3 of them handed out on the course, so carry 4. Drinking half a litre of Gatorade an hour, carry 3. The grid above works this out for any finish time.

Is the Long Beach Marathon flat?

Mostly. Our course profile shows 305 ft of climbing across 26.2 miles, a net change of +14 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.

Does Long Beach have electrolytes or sodium on the course?

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.

Is there food on the Long Beach Marathon course?

Long Beach publishes none. The tables carry water and Gatorade and nothing else.

How far apart are the water stations at Long Beach?

The first table is at mile 2. After that they come every 1 to 2.5 miles. The longest gap after the start is mile 2 to mile 4.5, about 4.0 km, which is 23 minutes at 4:00 pace and 29 minutes at 5:00 pace.

When will I reach the gel station at mile 10?

At even pace: 1:20 into a 3:30 race, 1:26 into a 3:45, 1:32 into a 4:00, and 1:54 into a 5:00. Enter your own goal time in the station table above to see every table.

Where are the aid stations at the Long Beach Marathon?

There are 15, at miles 2, 4.5, 6, 8, 10, 11.5, 13, 14.5, 16.5, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23.5 and 25. All 15 have water. 11 of them, miles 6, 8, 10, 11.5, 14.5, 16.5, 18, 20, 22, 23.5 and 25, also have Gatorade Thirst Quencher, Lemon-Lime.

Can I carry all of my own fuel at the Long Beach Marathon?

Yes. Long Beach 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 9 if you take the course gels.

How much carbohydrate should I take during the Long Beach Marathon?

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.

Do I need to carry water at the Long Beach Marathon?

Only for the opening 2 miles. The first table is at mile 2, about 17 minutes into a 3:45 race, and after that tables come every 1 to 2.5 miles. If your first feed comes before mile 2, carry the fluid for it from the start line.

What should I eat before the Long Beach Marathon?

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.

Your Long Beach plan

Build your Long Beach plan with the course already loaded

The tables, the Gatorade 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 Long Beach, then calls each feed by voice on race day.

Build my Long Beach plan

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.

Fueling guides for the other courses

Long Beach, 11 Oct 2026
Free plan, course loadedBuild my Long Beach plan