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20 miles
20 miles is about the distance it takes to deplete the glycogen stores in the body. That's why most people hit the wall in the marathon around that distance, and it's why many runners plan on scoffing gels every 20 minutes (from early on).
I do all of my training runs up to HM distance on an empty stomach (as I do them earlyish in the morning). If it's warm I'll take a 500ml hand bottle of electrolyte with me otherwise I'll just drink 500ml of water/electrolyte about half an hour before setting off.
For HM distance to 30km I'll take 3-4 gels along plus the 500ml hand bottle of electrolyte.
For the last long run (usually 35km) I do 3 laps of Richmond Park using my bike as a stashing point for more gels and electrolyte. Each lap I'll aim to have 2 gels and 500ml of fluid as it's usually quite warm when I do this (April 6th or 7th this year).
If I wasn't doing laps of anything I'd carry the gels and electrolyte tablets with me and try and top up on the move. If you're training for ultras you could just stick the extra stuff in a backpack (it'd be ~2kg or so) which you'd probably carry on an ultra anyway (depending on how self-sufficient you need to be).
(I use SiS ISO Gels so I don't need extra water with them unlike the normal concentrated gels.)
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Greenbank
“The idea being it trains the body to use what it's already got stored. No idea if there is any real science behind it but seems to work for me.”
That has totally been my MO too, and I do think there’s something in it. However I sometimes find i tank at about 20 miles and my calf muscles start cramping. Also it makes recovery frustratingly slow.
I’m gonna start hydrating better and eating earlier for sure.