Nutrition and the Marathon

The one thing every new runner hears is to stay hydrated and never to test out new foods on race day. Well that awesome but there is a lot more to it then that...

No lie. When I ran my half's I would be knocked out several hours after completing them.  Although the run was enjoyable the post-run, well not so much.

Here is what I learned and tried out prior to my first marathon. I was running with Johnny, the President of my running club and Chad, a member who was about to run his first 50k. (he skipped the whole marathon and just dove in). On our jog I asked about nutrition and any advice Johnny, an avid had.

His advice- If you run Saturday don't eat any carbs on Monday, or Tuesday, Wednesday start "carbo loading" then on Friday continue eating carbs but around dinner stop. Eat lean protein.

Now, I wasn't sure about this to say the least. But when I sat down with Chad right after he completed his 50k and I asked what he did. He said he took Johnny's advice.

So here is what I did the entire month before I ran the marathon. Every morning I alternated between had a bowl of organic oats, chia seeds, with a dash of vanilla, and a kale, chia, flax seed, banana smoothie. For lunch I had a sandwich whole-wheat bread with sunflower butter and a banana. For an afternoon pick me up I have low sodium V8 and a greek yogurt. For dinner I had a lean mean and tons of veggies. Man, I felt a huge difference just eating healthier.

Ok, now to the fun part. The week of. The Carb depletion. I wont lie it was a bitch. I never wanted a buttered piece of bread so bad! But I did it for two days. I layed off carbs. When my two days were up I wouldn't say I "carbo loaded" I went back to my routine of a good carb rich diet. On Thursday two days before the race I baked lean chicken, and whole wheat pasta. But I didn't go crazy I had the same amount I would always eat. I didn't stuff my face. In fact, I believe a palm full of pasta is all the carbs your body needs. Oh, and I literally ate a banana every day the month before the race!

Call my crazy but it worked. I ran the marathon with little exhaustion and went out that night. No naps! It was a miracle. Now, this may not work for everyone but it sure did for me and eating healthy and reaping the benefits from that sure didn't hurt!