Running On Empty? Fuel For Runners

Running on empty?

michellem 18 years ago

Try to eat a healthy meal full of carbs the night before a big race. Any pasta food works. I would love to see some healthy recipes posted for this group. Also any race tips at all would be great!

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chickpea_chef 18 years ago said:

I run races. A lot. I know everyone says to eat carbs before a race---but carbs make my whole body puff up and turn my thighs into lead blocks!--for me the best is a little thing of yogurt and some dried fruit about an hour or two before the race. But thats just me.

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jfalk 18 years ago said:

Check out these links for some great info regarding energy foods for athletics:

http://www.extension.iastate.edu/nutrition/sport/fat.html
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/nutrition/sport/protein.html
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/nutrition/sport/carbohydrate.html

As a rule of thumb, eat fat 6-8 hours before a long race for sustained energy, eat your carbs 3-4 hours before the race, drink sports drinks and fluid carbs 1-2 hours before the race and eat your protein after the race.

chickpea_chef:
A lot of people get the kind of bloating you mention (myself included) from a slight gluten allergy. Try using rice or corn as a source for your pre-race starches instead of wheat.

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michellem 18 years ago said:

Thank you for all the tips on eating and drinking before races. I have not experienced the bloating from eating carbs. I will check out the web sites you have posted. ~ Who is doing marathons this summer?~M

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chickpea_chef 18 years ago said:

I knew it! I knew it was a gluten allergy! thanks. no one would beleive me.

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michellem 18 years ago said:

How are you doing with your gluten allergy? I hope all is well and your able to run a lot this summer with out any puffy parts...:-)~M

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swimkim 18 years ago said:

I am not a runner (well, not a distance runner, that is), but I am a swimmer. Every night before a meet, my team gathers at someone's house for a "pasta party," as we call it, where we all load up on carbs. This works well for me, however, in swimming the longest race is usually only 6 or 7 minutes long, which certainly doesn't compare to a marathon.

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michellem 18 years ago said:

Hey Swimkim Im so glad your here. Your team pasta partys sound super fun! Have you ever thought about running ? Well Im sure you have many years ahead of you to think about it. I think swimming is so hard. Im not very good at it. How often to you work out? Well take care and post any ideas you may have. Thanks, Michelle

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