Whether you are professional cyclist pushing some serious wattage to win a race or a bike newbie who’s just excited to explore the countryside, a sound nutrition plan will be a huge determining factor in how your body responds to the century challenge.

For all the counting, measuring, weighing, fussing and fretting most Americans do to watch calories, we often allow liquid calories to sneak in. Almost one-quarter of the calories Americans consume come from beverages. Shockingly, sodas and other sweet drinks are the single largest calorie contributors to the American diet and to America’s ballooning waistline.

Paying attention to the glycemic index may be a positive for your performance.

These days we’re all on overload. You have meetings. You drive carpool. You have after school activities. How do you find the time to cook? The easy out is simply dialing up Domino’s and within 30 minutes, a cheesy pie is right in the middle of your dining room table with very little effort expended.

True adventure is about defining your own path and breaking beyond your traditional rings of comfort to establish new performance potentials for your body that your mind may have once doubted. Whether you are planning 50 miles of single-track action on your mountain bike, some backcountry skiing, a long rock climbing ascent or a trek up to the summit of a 15,000-foot peak, the boundaries set by your mind can continue to be defied with the aid of proper nutritional planning for the long haul.

Every athlete prepping for his first long endurance event should have a well thought out nutritional strategy. But what to do when that perfect plan goes out the window?

Not one menu is a perfect fit for all athletes, but there are some general rules that everyone can use as a guide during the final 24 hours leading into your race.

Like spring, triathlon season is in full bloom with nearly a quarter million athletes coming out of winter hibernation to gear up for a series of races in 2008. Special to this crowd, are the virgins of the sport, those who will be taking the triathlon plunge for the first time. If you fall into this category, welcome to the sport. And remember: while triathlon is officially defined as a three-discipline sport, it is important that you combine your swim-bike-run training with proper nutrition (the fourth leg of triathlon) to fuel your performance. Below, are nutrition essentials that will help you feel and perform your best as you prepare for race day.

David, 14, stands 5’9” and weighs 131 pounds. He initially came to my office after medical tests revealed ketones in his urine. David also needed to address his frequent bouts with dizziness and premature muscle fatigue. Having recently dropped 50 pounds through an intense exercise routine that included several hours of boxing, weight training and running, David was interested in learning healthy techniques to halt his weight loss yet still allow him to gain muscle mass as he entered another growth spurt.

Whether you’re hiking to the summit of Mount Whitney, kicking up some dirt in a 24-hour mountain bike relay race, conquering mile after mile in an ultra-marathon or combining several disciplines over several hundred miles of an adventure race course, reaching the peak with respect to performance requires careful nutrition planning. In this article, I offer you a “nutrition essentials timeline” as you prepare for your next big adventure.