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What to eat

What to Eat Before Running

Written by Olympian Jeff Galloway

Posted Jul 25, 2008

I’ve never seen a runner die of starvation during a run. While I’ve observed runners get nauseous because they ate too much, many suffer from low blood sugar and run better when they have the right snack, appropriately timed before exercise. In this article I will offer tips on how to tell if you are having problems due to eating too little or too much, with suggestions about correcting the problem. In most cases, the solutions are simple ones.

Nutritionally, most runners don’t need to eat anything before a workout. It usually takes at least 36 hours for a food item to be digested, delivered to the cells, assimilated, and available for use during exercise. So eating right before a run is not going to deliver vitamins, minerals, protein, etc. for use during that workout.

Eating can lead to nausea… or worse. Most of the eating-related problems that I hear about are due to eating too much, or eating too soon before running. If you are having nausea, you should make a list of what you’ve been eating. Some foods will take longer to digest, and/or cause digestion problems. If you do need to eat something, follow the guidelines below.

Low blood sugar level (BSL) can lead to low motivation, low energy, and reduced performance. If you have a tendency toward this problem, you need to adjust your eating plan. As you find the right timetable, the right quantity of each snack and the food items that boost your BSL without causing nausea, problems will be eliminated. Many adult runners suffer from low BSL – especially those who run in the afternoon or evening. Those who are prone to this problem will be more motivated to exercise, will feel better during exercise and may experience a faster time in races when a low BSL is boosted correctly.

Your body usually adapts. It is common during the first two years of running to experience nausea when eating two or three hours before a run. But as you continue to run, your system often will adapt to the challenges.

If you tend to have nausea when working out or racing in the morning, don’t eat a large meal the night before, and don’t eat much after 5 p.m. the evening before the workout.

Don’t eat much, if anything, for breakfast if you exercise in the morning. If you suffer from low BSL later in your workouts, drink four to eight ounces of a sports drink with a little protein (like Accelerade) about 20-30 minutes before the workout, and/or use a gel-type product during the second half of your run while sipping some water.

Those with very sensitive digestive systems should avoid eating solid foods altogether for three to four hours before an afternoon workout. Experiment with liquid snacks, sports drinks and energy bars, in limited quantity, to maintain BSL at manageable levels.

Foods to avoid for several hours before races or workouts: fried or high-fat foods, foods with a lot of fiber or a high percentage of protein, dairy products, or any foods that tend to cause individual digestion problems.

Limit the quantity of your pre-run snack, and drink some water with it. Among the runners I’ve worked with who have consumed sports drinks during long runs, a high percentage experienced nausea – but did not with water. There are some additional race countdown suggestions in my books available at www.RunInjuryFree.com.

If you tend to have low BSL

Most runners with whom I’ve worked who have low BSL in the morning have found that oatmeal or the original version of PowerBar have worked best to stabilize BSL during at least the first half of the run.

Runners with low BSL in the afternoons should try to eat more frequently in the afternoon – about every two hours. This allows them to reduce the quantity of each snack.

Keep track of snacks that have kept your BSL at good levels, and replicate the schedule leading up to and during your runs, especially those in the afternoon or evening.

Try ingesting some BSL booster foods (gels, energy bars, gummy bears, sports drinks) with water during training runs when BSL starts to dip. The average intake during a long run, among the folks I’ve tracked, is 35 calories per mile, starting three to four miles into a run, with three to four ounces of water.

Write down what you eat, your successful schedule, fine-tune it, and you should gain control over your eating problems.

Olympian Jeff Galloway has coached over one million runners through his fitness schools, Tahoe/beach retreats, training programs, consultations and books. For more information visit www.JeffGalloway.com.

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