Marathon Week Nutrition - Strategies to Run Your Best Race!

Sioux Falls Marathon weekend is fast approaching!

Next Sunday, September 11th 2016, runners from Sioux Falls and beyond will toe the starting line to run the Miracle 5K, half marathon, full marathon or marathon relay. This year, the race has some big changes, including a new start/finish location inside the Sioux Falls arena.

If you're running one of the Sioux Falls races, now is the time to really start thinking about your race week nutrition.

You don't have to be an elite runner to apply some science-based recommendations about carbohydrate loading and nutrition to your race week planning - your meals in the week leading up to a big race can really make or break your performance, no matter what your race goals are.

The Lowdown on Carbohydrates

When you run out of carbohydrates on a run, you can "hit the wall" or get that feeling of fatigue, where you think you can't take another step. Runners are notorious for eating a high carbohydrate diet, but during race week, it's important to note who needs to pay special attention to carbohydrates, why they're needed, when it's necessary and how many grams of carbohydrates are needed.

• Carbohydrate loading is the traditional practice of runners focusing on eating carbohydrates in the days leading up  to their race to optimize their glycogen stores. 
• Runners who are racing over 90 minutes should be thinking about carbohydrate loading. When we eat carbohydrates, it is stored as glycogen in the liver and muscles, and our muscles use this fuel primarily during a race. Having high energy stores won't necessarily make you faster, but it can help you delay fatigue. 
• Research shows that as few as 2-3 days of carbohydrate loading in addition to rest (tapering) can optimize glycogen stores! You'll find so many methods for the best way to carbohydrate load, but one of the easiest ways is to make sure your mileage is low the week before your marathon, and focus on increasing your carbohydrate intake 2-3 days before your race. 
• Start several days before your race by increasing your normal amount of carbohydrates from 55-65% to 70% in those several days before your race. This can easily be done by increasing your portions of carbohydrate foods (add an extra serving of carbohydrates during the day) and decreasing your protein and healthy fats.
• This doesn't mean eliminating protein and fat completely for carbohydrates - you still need some good balance to feel great on race day!
• The numbers end up being 4.5 - 5.5 grams of carbs per lb. body weight, sounds like a lot or carbohydrates...so just focus on those whole grains, vegetables, fruits, potatoes/sweet potatoes, and dairy foods as tolerated several days before the race by adding a serving of those foods at each meal and decreasing protein and fat servings. 
• You don't need to eat extra food or more calories - you'll be less active during this time, so try to keep your portions and amount of calories you're eating the same and change the composition of your plate to focus on carbs. Some runners tend to think they can eat whatever they want the week of their race, or focus too much on carbohydrates and show up to race day feeling lethargic and heavy. Save that ice cream/pizza/donuts/whatever for after the race!

Many runners experience moderate weight gain of 1-3 lbs. due to the fact that glycogen stores water along with it. If you experience this, don't worry! Your body is just preparing itself for race day.

The Day Before Your Race

The day before your race, your eating plan should be to eat throughout the day, focusing on carbohydrate rich foods because you aren't going to be able to fill your glycogen stores in just one big pre-race meal. 

Choose easy carbohydrate options at each meal - 

• Grains such as rice, oatmeal, quinoa, pasta
• Baked and roasted potatoes and sweet potatoes
• Bread/buns/toast
• Pancakes
• Bagels
• Tortillas
• Yogurt
• Juice/sports drinks

Fruit and vegetables are also good carbohydrate options, but watch the fiber content! Bananas are always a good go-to fruit, and you can cook your vegetables to make them easier to digest. 

Instead of the traditional heavy pasta dinner, try eating your main pre-race meal for lunch the day before your race to ensure you have enough time to digest that food, and try having a lighter carbohydrate-rich dinner and a carbohydrate snack before bed. 

Pre-Race Breakfast

The morning of a half or full marathon, you should ideally wake up 3-4 hours before  your race to top off those glycogen stores with carbohydrates by eating a meal that contains mostly carbohydrates with moderate protein and fat. You want this meal to hold you over throughout your race without weighing you down, so the closer you get to the race, the smaller your meal becomes.

Again, stick what has worked for YOU in the past and don't stress out over it!

• 1-4 hours before: 1-4 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram body weight (150 lbs/2.2 = 78 kg)
• 1/2 cup oatmeal cooked in 1 cup milk, a banana, peanut butter, raisins, sweetened with honey and cinnamon and a dash of salt
• A turkey sandwich 
• 1/2 or full large bagel with peanut butter, honey and a banana
• 2 pieces of toast with banana and honey, some sports drink or juice
• 1 Nature Valley granola bar and a banana

There is a lot of research and information on carbohydrate loading, with results showing it is beneficial and other results showing it doesn't make a difference.

The bottom line is - if you can eat extra carbs in the days leading up to your race, it isn't going to cause you any harm and you might actually be able to help your performance, so it's worth a try!

Nutrition for a 5K or Short Relay Legs of a Race

If you're running a 5K or marathon relay, you'll be running pretty hard for those 3.1 miles or however long your relay leg is. As mentioned above, you don't necessarily need to carbohydrate load or focus on diet during race week as much as a half or full marathon runner, as you will likely be running under 90 minutes total and your body has plenty of glycogen stored away to get you through your race. 

Follow the same "day before" plan as a marathon runner, though you probably won't need as many calories. You should consider what you eat the day before the race - focus on eating healthy carbohydrates (potatoes, whole grains such as whole grain bread, pasta, rice, quinoa, fruits and vegetables), lean proteins and limit the amount of fats you eat. 

Again, avoid high fat and high fiber foods the day before if you know your stomach is sensitive - cook your vegetables, peel your fruit or choose fruit juice, and avoid those high-fiber grains and vegetables. 

A big breakfast on race morning might cause stomach upset, so instead, try to eat at least an hour before the race. Many people opt for easy-on-the-stomach carbohydrate foods, like a banana with peanut butter, toast and jam, a granola bar and a piece of fruit, or some sports drink/juice. Eat enough to hold you over throughout the race, but not too much that you're feeling stuffed and heavy at the starting line. 

Rules to remember on race week:

1. Now isn't the time to experiment. You might have some tried and true pre-run meals you know sit well with you - go with those foods and relax!
2. Everyone is different! Some people might be able to handle high fiber, high fat foods the day before a run or race, but others may do better with a higher carbohydrate, low fiber diet. You know yourself best, so if your running partner is eating a huge plate of pasta and you haven't eaten that before your run before, do yourself a favor and stick to foods you know!

If you have any last-minute race nutrition questions before your race, give the Sanford Sports Science Institute Nutritionist a call at 605-312-7878 or e-mail her at Elizabeth.Kuckuk@SanfordHealth.org

Training Talk - 3 Things Runners Need to Know About Carbs

One of the biggest nutrition topics runners ask about is CARBOHYDRATES.

• Why do we need them?
• When should I eat them?
• When should I not eat them?
• Which carbohydrates will make me fat?
• Which carbohydrates are good?
• Should I try a low carb diet? 

This article is going to delve into why runners need carbohydrates, why runners need carbs on the run and which ones are best, and why it might be beneficial to train without food some of the time.

Despite the fact that all athletes' nutritional needs are different, most runners need to follow a diet that is high carbohydrate for the best training and racing results. I work with athletes all the time to help them determine how to fuel their bodies with enough carbohydrates, protein and fat from real food without overdoing it. 

While most athletes can (and should) focus on carbohydrates for the majority of their calories, it is important to stress the fact that as an athlete, you are an experiment of one - you get to decide what diet, training schedule, and recovery methods work for you. For example, there is plenty of anecdotal evidence that a high fat/low carb diet may work for some endurance or ultra-endurance athletes, but here I am making the recommendations for a higher carbohydrate diet for runners, based on the fact that your muscles' preferred fuel source is carbohydrates/glucose. This can be a controversial subject in the endurance world, but this article will delve into why we need carbohydrates most of the time, but how going without carbs may help boost performance. 

1. Daily Carbohydrate Needs

There is a huge emphasis for runners to get lots of carbs in their diets to help them run. Honestly, carbohydrate intake is sometimes overemphasized. Carbs before running, during running, after running, all day after a run - runners often neglect protein and healthy fats. That is not to say carbs aren't important! Carbohydrates from food are stored in the body as muscle and liver glycogen, which is used as fuel during exercise. At low intensities, a greater amount of fat is used as energy (though carbohydrates are always being used), but as exercise intensity increases from low to moderate/high intensity, the use of fat as fuel decreases and carbohydrates are used as the primary fuel source. Well-trained muscles can store even more glycogen, which is good news for endurance athletes who need that energy at mile 20 and beyond.

Fueling an endurance athlete through training and racing requires about 2.5-4.5 grams per pound of body weight, or 55-65% total diet from carbohydrate (compared to 2.5-3.0 grams/pound for moderate exercisers and more than 4.5 grams/pound for ultra endurance athletes).

Many athletes like to "bookend" their training with those carbohydrates, which is the time our bodies need the carbs the most.

• eat breakfast sometimes* (granola bar, cereal with milk, oatmeal, a banana with peanut butter, toast)
• fuel with carbohydrates during long runs sometimes* (Gu, gels, chomps, candy, etc.),
• refuel with a mix of carbs and protein post-workout 

Don't neglect those carbohydrates right after a workout - whether it's a post-workout snack or a full meal that contains carbohydrates and protein, this meal is important for recovery so athletes can accomplish their goals at their next workout. 

*Keep reading for "train low" techniques to try on long, slow training runs. 

2. The Science of Mid-Run Carbs

Once a workout goes over 90 minutes, glycogen/stored carbohydrates can get drained, especially for a moderate to hard intensity, prolonged workout. Eating some sort of carbohydrates on a run will help athletes to spare their glycogen stores, keep blood glucose from dropping, and can help replenish glycogen stores before the next training session, therefore helping you perform better on training runs and at races. 

During a training run or competition, aim for 40-60 grams of carbohydrate per hour (120-240 calories/hour) after that first hour of running. Most carbohydrate energy products (Gu's, gels, chomps, etc.) contain different types of sugars, so it is important to practice with many different types of carbohydrate fuels during training to experiment with how your body will respond to the different fuels. 

Some people may bring regular candy on their training runs, like gummy bears, but those pre-made carbohydrate products are usually formulated with electrolytes and also mix different types of sugars, allowing the body to absorb more carbohydrates per hour (more than 60 grams per hour).

Many carbohydrate products on the market contain maltodextrin (a very quickly and easily-digested carbohydrate) AND a different type of sugar (simple sugars like glucose and fructose). Anything above what the body can absorb and use may cause gastrointestinal distress, so it's important to practice fueling during training runs. I recommend practicing with many different types of carbohydrate fuels (solid, liquid, gels, different brands) to see how your body responds to them. 

Check the label for this GU energy gel, containing maltodextrin and fructose for sugars + electrolytes at about 100 calories , 23 grams of carbohydrates. 

Salted Watermelon Gu

INGREDIENTS: Maltodextrin, Water, Fructose, Leucine, Sea Salt, Citric Acid, Natural Flavor, Potassium Citrate, Sodium Citrate, Calcium Carbonate, Valine, Green Tea (Leaf) Extract (Contains Caffeine), Gellan Gum, Isoleucine, Sunflower Oil, Sodium Benzoate (Preservative), Potassium Sorbate (Preservative).

3. Try Training Low, Some of the Time

As mentioned above, carbohydrates stored in the muscles and liver, in addition to any carbohydrates eaten on the run help runners keep their energy levels high, prevent blood sugar from dropping, and help replenish glycogen levels for speedier recovery. This is especially true as intensity increases - when runners are pushing the pace or climbing a hill (anything at a higher intensity), they're burning carbohydrates. Having full glycogen stores and eating carbohydrates on runs over 90 minutes helps to delay fatigue and "hitting the wall" by sparing the glycogen stores from getting depleted. Once glycogen stores are depleted, fat becomes the primary source of fuel for exercise.

Endurance training increases the body's ability to oxidize fat, which in theory can help runners prolong endurance exercise without depleting their glycogen stores. It is more difficult for our bodies to use fat for energy, and if given the choice, muscles prefer carbohydrates to use for energy, but many athletes want to be able to burn more fat, to run longer in training and races without taking fuel with them or without "hitting the wall." Being able to burn more fat means being able to tap into the nearly limitless fat reservers (50,000 to 60,000 calories of triglycerides stored in your body, compared to only ~2,000 calories of total body glycogen stored). In fact, some recent studies have looked into "training low," or restricting carbohydrates for workouts. The research right now isn't strong enough to say that eating a high fat diet benefits performance, and in fact, repeatedly performing with low glycogen stores have been shown to decrease endurance, especially at high intensities.

So, train low or no? It's not so black and white!

Regardless, of research, athletes can use the "train low" strategies to train their bodies to use fat more efficiently on runs.

They can to include some fasted workouts into their training schedule (not more than 50% of runs!) to promote training adaptations and work their fat metabolism versus training each and every time with carbohydrates. According to Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook, runners can try training with lower glycogen levels when they have a lower-intensity workout and keep themselves fueled for any high-intensity workouts.

Athletes can try eating a normal (higher carb) dinner the night before a long, slow training run, and wake up and run before breakfast, just taking water with them on a their runs. Most runners have enough energy to run at least 90 minutes, but may have to build up to running without fuel if they are used to usually running after eating. Athletes can also try training more than once a day, with that second training session being a low glycogen workout. Make sure to refuel right away after a workout to promote muscle recovery and glycogen storage.

Remember: Everyone is different!

These strategies may not work for everyone, and likely will not work for every run. If someone is a very speedy marathon runner, a low carb run or diet may not fit into their training. For best results, working with a Registered Dietitian with experience working with athletes can help you decide the best strategies to help you fuel YOUR workouts. Call the Sanford Sports Science Institute to make an appointment with the Registered Dietitian at 605-312-7878!

Read more:

Training Peaks (Asker Jeukendrup) || Food Fight: High Carb or High Fat Diet For Endurance Athletes

Running On Veggies || Nutritious Recipes for Athletes

Outside Magazine || The New Science Behind Low Carb Training

The Guardian || High Carb or High Fat? The Running Diet Debate

Marathon Week Nutrition

We're gearing up for the Sioux Falls Marathon next weekend, which means most athletes registered for the races are going to be reducing their mileage (tapering) and eating more carbohydrates (carbohydrate-loading). You've made it!

This is a great time to look back at all those summer training runs and feel confident that you put in all those sweaty miles in the heat to be able to cross that finish line on race day. In honor of the race being ONE WEEK away (no pressure), we're going to be  talking a little bit about race week nutrition for marathon runners.

Most of the information applies to runners for all distances, and the Sioux Falls Marathon website has some great videos on Steps to running your first 5K, which have great tips for runners of all abilities, but especially for those who want to start running, or have signed up for their first race. 

Source: Sioux Falls Marathon

Hitting the Wall

In the world of athletics, we hear a lot of information about protein, but runners need to be making carbohydrates a priority, especially in the days leading up to a big race. 

Carbohydrates are our muscles' preferred fuel source. When you eat carbohydrates, your body stores it as energy in the form of glycogen. When you're a distance runner, your muscles use up this energy. 

Have you ever hear of a marathon runner hitting the wall? "Hitting the wall" is a term to describe the sudden feeling of fatigue, lack of energy and feeling that you can't even take one more step when a runner has used up all of their stored carbohydrates, often around mile 20 of the marathon. This is why you often hear people say, "The race is half over at mile 20" because those last 6 miles can often feel like an eternity if you haven't taken the proper steps to ensure your glycogen/energy stores are filled and ready to push you to mile 26.2. 

Source: Buzzfeed

I'm sure the new runners are panicking at the thought of hitting that 20 mile mark now. Don't worry! There are a couple steps during this week to make sure you're getting in some good nutrition to fuel your muscles on race day. 

Carbs are King

Most runners think of carbohydrate loading as eating a huge bowl of pasta in the days leading up  to a race. We're not here to tell you that that's not a good strategy - if you've been eating pasta for every meal leading up to all your long runs, you probably don't want to change a good thing. 

A good rule to follow is: "Don't try anything new in the days leading up to a race!" For many runners, a big pasta meal, especially the night before the race (the traditional "carb loading meal"), is probably not going to digest fully before you start the race, so you may feel bloated and heavy while you're running. Instead, start thinking about your nutrition plan after your last long run, the week before the race. After you've finished this run, you're in the taper phase, so your runs over the next couple days should be easy - you've already put in the work, so pushing yourself too hard isn't going to help you gain any extra fitness. During the week leading up to your race, many runners feel like they can't back off the running - they may feel bloated or gain a couple pounds during the week, but just know that tapering is helping your body store the energy it is going to need to fuel your muscles during your big race. The extra weight is from your body storing glycogen (energy) and water, so sit back and try to relax. 

• 3 days before your race (mid-week) is a great time to ramp up your carbohydrate intake to about 3-4 grams of carbohydrate per pound of body weight. 

For a better visual, let's think about what our plate might look like on a "normal" day, with 45-65% of our calories coming from carbohydrates: 

United States Olympic Committee Sport Dietitians and the University of Colorado (UCCS) Sport Nutrition Graduate Program.

The normal plate is great for every day and easy training days. Our carbohydrates come from vegetables and fruits, which should fill up half of our plate, and the rest from whole grains and quality starches, such as brown rice, whole grain pasta, potatoes and sweet potatoes, etc. 

In the 3-4 days leading up to a marathon, we're going to want to make carbohydrates the majority of our plate, which we can do by increasing the amount of carbohydrates we are eating at each meal and snack. This doesn't necessarily mean increasing our portions at each meal to add in an extra piece of bread, but making an effort to cut down on the protein and fats and aim to have carbohydrates make up ~70% of our daily intake. 

Compared to the above plate, this is a better visual of what your plate might look like in the several days leading up to race day: 

United States Olympic Committee Sport Dietitians and the University of Colorado (UCCS) Sport Nutrition Graduate Program.

As you can see, we've really increased the amount of grains and starches, so maybe instead of your daily salad for lunch, you choose a sandwich instead, or instead of an egg for breakfast, you have a peanut butter and banana sandwich so you're just making sure to make the majority of your plate carbohydrate-rich.

Keep in mind that this week is not an excuse to eat whatever you want. Carbohydrate loading is the combination of reducing your activity level and increasing your carbohydrate intake - not eating a full pasta or pizza dinner each night. We also can't push protein and healthy fats to the side. Your plate should be balanced with quality carbohydrates, vegetables and fruits and healthy fats, which is what we should be aiming to include in most of our meals every day.

Don't Try Anything New

You want to remember the above rule - to "not try anything new" in the week before the race. If you've eaten the same meal the day before every long run during your training, you probably want to stick with eating that same meal the day before your race. If you haven't really kept track of what you eat, stick with eating foods that you're familiar with or bland foods you know won't upset your stomach the day before the race. 

In contrast to the common carb-loading strategy of eating a huge pasta dinner the night before your race, we recommend eating your last larger meal for lunch the day before your race, and keeping dinner on the light side. Keep carbohydrate intake high on the day before the race, but if you're going to have your pasta dinner, try having it for lunch instead to ensure you have time to digest and feel good on race morning. 

Some examples of this meal include: pasta with red sauce and chicken breast with a side salad, rice and stir-fried vegetables and tofu or chicken, a turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato and onion and an apple.

Race Morning 

The morning of the race is your chance to top of your glycogen stores with a quality carbohydrate-rich meal. It is recommended to wake up several hours before the race, if possible, to eat ~150 grams of carbohydates. You want to make sure you've tried eating on some of your training runs to know how your body will react to eating before running. Some of the most common go-to breakfasts include carbohydrates and a little bit of protein and fat to hold us over until the race starts: bagel with peanut butter and a banana, granola with milk and fruit, yogurt with fruit, granola bar and an apple. Whatever you choose, make sure it's something you've tried before a long run and you know will agree with your stomach. 

Source: RunnerUnleashed.com

This breakfast should be substantial enough to get you to the starting line without being hungry, but not so large that you feel heavy and stuffed when you start running. 

If you've followed your training plan, tapered, and loaded up your plate with plenty of healthy carbohydrates in the days leading up to the race, you should feel confident that you've done everything in your power to cross that finish line. 

Again, if you're running the half marathon, this information is going to apply to you, too, just on a smaller scale. Marathon runners are going to have a larger intake of total calories, but the percentages of carbohydrates can still apply to those running the half marathon next weekend.

Any race week tips?

Favorite carbohydrate-loading meals?

Stories of hitting the wall? 

Questions for the Registered Dietitian?

Leave your comments below!