Plan a race

Guide · updated 8 November 2026

Fuel reminders on your watch or bike computer

A fuelling plan only works if you follow it, and on race day it's easy to forget the next gel. Here are two ways to let your device remind you: one that works on almost anything, and an experimental one that puts every gel on the course map.

1. Make your plan

  1. Open the race-day planner, pick your race and set your goal times.
  2. Add your course GPX file to the bike and/or run (optional but needed for method 2).
  3. Open Fuelling and fill in what you know: carbs per hour, gel size, bottles, aid stations.
  4. In the fuelling plan you'll find "Reminders on your watch or bike computer", for example "eat alert every 20 min, drink alert every 15 min". Those are the numbers for method 1.

2. Method 1: time-based reminders

Works on: most GPS watches and bike computers. It doesn't know about climbs or aid stations, but it's simple and reliable.

  1. On your device, open the settings for the sport you'll use (bike, run, or the triathlon multisport mode).
  2. Look for alerts or reminders: a repeating time alert, or dedicated eat and drink alerts.
  3. Set the eat alert to the interval from your plan and the drink alert to every 15 minutes.
  4. Do the same for each leg if your device has separate settings per sport.

Garmin

On Garmin Edge bike computers: activity profile → Alerts and Prompts → Eat Alert / Drink Alert. Some models also offer a "Smart" type that adjusts for heat, climbing and effort (Garmin manual). Many Garmin watches have similar alerts in the activity settings.

Other brands

Wahoo, COROS, Suunto and Polar menus differ by model and software version, so check your device's manual for "alerts" or "reminders" in the sport-mode settings. If your device has no repeating alert, method 2 or a simple lap-time habit (eat every second aid station) can stand in.

3. Method 2: course file with fuel points Experimental

Atrical can export your own course with every gel and aid station added as a point along the route. On devices that support it, you'll see the points on the map and, on some, an alert as you approach ("Food in 500 m"). The file is made from the GPX you loaded.

  1. In the fuelling plan, under Course file with fuel points, choose FIT or GPX for each leg.
  2. Load it onto your device using the steps for your brand below.
  3. Start navigating the course for a short test before trusting it on race day.
What we know about each brand (as of November 2026)
BrandBest fileFuel points
GarminFITCourse points with "approaching" alerts; most reliable when copied straight to the device
Wahoo ELEMNTFIT or GPXRoute imports fine; waypoint pop-ups are documented for komoot, Ride with GPS and Strava routes
COROSGPXWaypoints are kept and the distance to the next one is shown; alerts not documented
SuuntoGPXRoute imports; waypoint handling not documented
PolarGPXRoute imports; waypoint handling not documented

Garmin (FIT)

  1. Connect the device to your computer with its USB cable. On a Mac you may need Garmin Express (Garmin manual).
  2. Copy the .fit file into the device's Garmin/NewFiles folder (Garmin forum).
  3. Unplug, then find it under Courses (or Navigation → Courses, depending on the model).

Importing through Garmin Connect can drop or misplace course points, according to users on Garmin's forum (thread). Copying the file directly avoids that.

Wahoo ELEMNT

  1. Download the file to your phone and open it with the Wahoo app (Wahoo guide).
  2. In the app: Explore → My Collection → My Routes, select the route and send it to your ELEMNT.

Wahoo documents waypoint pop-ups for routes synced from komoot, Ride with GPS or Strava (Wahoo guide). Importing our GPX into one of those services first may work, but we haven't confirmed it. Use method 1 as a backup.

COROS, Suunto, Polar

Import the GPX in the brand's app or web service and sync it to your watch (COROS, Suunto, Polar). The route will work; whether the fuel points show up depends on the model. Pair it with method 1.

Tried it on your device? We'd like to know what worked so we can improve this table; you can reach us through the about page.

4. Race-day tips

  • Test it in training. Do one long ride or run with the reminders on before race day.
  • Use both methods if your device allows: course points for position, time alerts as a backup.
  • Check the start. A course only lines up if you start navigating at the start of the leg.
  • Practise the fuelling itself. Higher carb intakes are much easier after your gut has trained for them.

Atrical's fuelling numbers are calculations from published guidelines and your own inputs, not medical advice. See the methodology.