15 Things Not To Eat During Open Water Swims

On marathon swims or channel swims, open water swimmers eat a variety of foods. Many get through their swims with commercial or custom liquid and gel packs; others simply drink Maxim; and others add in a bit of food ranging from chocolate to bananas.

While there are many opinions as to what foods and drinks are best, we tossed out a few ideas on the least probable foods that one could take on board and consume on a marathon swim.

1. A liver sandwich: lots of iron, but the salt water mixture is unpleasant
2. Sushi: raw fish would be flat-out wrong during an ocean swim
3. Mussels: see #2
4. Anchovies: see #2
5. Tuna sandwich: see #2
6. Calamari: See #2
7. Haggis: sheep’s heart, liver, lungs minced with onion, oatmeal, spices is a bit heavy
8. Menudo: cow’s stomach lining with chili, onions, cilantro is the wrong taste in the sea
9. Brussel sprouts: even with butter, a bit too bitter for salt water swims
10. Salted caramel french fries: may stick in your teeth for miles on end
11. Candied apples: See #9
12. Cauliflower: savory and scrumptious, not
13. Black olives: pop a few in your mouth and the taste may not go away
14. Tofu: easy to consume, but unsatisfying after expending so many calories
15. Sauerkraut: not even a hot dog or sausage can make it appealing in the ocean

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