Homework #2. Nutrition.

If you check out this post from last week, you'll know that I'm being a good little running student, and doing my homework. Traditionally I try (try being the keyword) to eat as clean as possible. You can read about my clean eating plan here. Now, I've had some issues with this when it comes to running. I need more carbs, is basically the bottom line. I was getting sick after my long runs and having a hard time forcing myself to eat enough.

 

But I did my last race ---> the Charlotte 10 miler in 1:45:26 and I am sooo happy about it. I felt like I could keep going and do a half, I also had a good bit of energy the rest of the day, and I ate. They had breakfast for us afterwards, and I, for one, can never say no to breakfast. Also, I'm getting stronger. My timing for this one came down almost an entire minute per mile, and this one had more hills. I did make a running buddy, when my planned running buddy slept through the race I happened to be chatting with someone who runs about the same pace as I do. She finished a couple people ahead of me, but it was nice to make a new buddy.

So as far as nutrition goes, a lot of what I've seen and read basically says follow a balanced diet. Bad carbs, greasy food, and a lot of salt will make you feel like crap, slow you down, and bloat you. Just so you know, my definition of bad carbs is simple carbs: white sugar, white bread, white potatoes, white pasta. Good carbs are whole grains, oatmeal, hearty breads, veggies and fruits... These will not give you the "sugar high" of simple carbs, the energy from these will last longer and your body will use them correctly.

The more good you put in your body, the less bad you'll want, and the better you'll feel.<--- This is the idea I try to follow normally. If you like to eat a lot, like most runners do, the majority of your food should be whole, clean foods. By this I mean fruits and veggies, whole grains, nuts, lean proteins, and don't forget to drink a lot of water!! Those things that are minimally processed, easy to digest, healthy foods.

This project has gotten me back to eating very clean. I don't like the first couple weeks of this process because my stomach cannot handle the amount of veggies I typically eat in a day. To offset this, and also, to practice my nutrition with my long runs, I haven't been limiting my grains or my healthy fats. I think that if I'm feeling sick after an 8 mile run at this point, it's not because of what I'm eating, it's because I'm not eating enough. I'm allowing myself to eat more of things that I know calm my stomach (bananas, oatmeal, toast) as long as I'm drinking extra water and meeting my veggie and protein requirements for the day.

As suspected, from the articles below (among others), I need more healthy carbs. I am total carb-o and cannot even begin to express my excitement that I can nearly triple my carb intake for the day!! I should be eating around 60% of my calories everyday from carbohydrates. Right now I'm at about  12-15%, and usually those are incredibly clean, low calorie options. Now, if I'm not training that day, I shouldn't be eating quite that much. But this explains a lot for me. I am an incredibly active person (because I work in a restaurant) I average 8 miles a day on an easy day, without a run. I burn a lot of calories and this tells me that I really haven't been eating enough carbs at all. I may have spent some time contemplating my healthy carb options today, in the grocery store... and also may have splurged for some Pierogies (Mrs. T's of course)... Not exactly clean but oh my word delicious.

Some of my favorite Runner's nutrition articles that I've found:
Someone who know what she's talking about
The normal tips
Helpful
In case I don't talk about clean eating enough
If you're a calorie counter
If you run to lose weight
Myths, Facts, Tips, and Tricks
The Basics
Information for all serious athletes

Do you have any runners nutrition tips?
Do you follow an awesome running blogger?
What are your favorite go-to clean meals??