So I wrote a bit about food and eating and stuff a year or so ago, but mainly in regards to the days leading up to a big meet. If you're interested, you can review them here and here. Now I want to talk about nutrition in general, as far as fueling your body for training and generally eating in a way that will benefit you.
To start with, why is eating any different for a distance runner than anyone else? Well, as athletes we burn more calories, lose more electrolytes and sodium, and need more protein for muscle recovery than inactive people. Runners expend quite a bit of energy, and if we don't recover properly we can get injured or have our performances drop. That's not good. What can we do to prevent it?
THE BASICS
1. Drink water! This is probably the oldest and most basic advice, but it can be tough to follow. If you already drink a lot, good for you! But if you're like me, you forget, or don't think you're thirsty, or don't want to drink too much and end up with side aches. My trick? Try carrying a water bottle around everywhere and take a few sips every half hour or so. If nothing else, try and down a water bottle after practice, so you will at least regain most of what you sweat off. Nuun (which you can buy at West Seattle Runner or QFC) is a fantastic electrolyte drink. It works amazingly and is free of all the sugars and food coloring used in "sports drinks" like Gatorade. Have you ever looked at how many grams of sugar are in a bottle of Gatorade? About 34. That's a lot. If you can't visualize how much sugar that is, check out these examples!
2. Maintain a balanced diet. Okay, I'm sure you've heard this in health class every year since you were ten, but what does it mean? Make sure you're getting protein, carbs, fresh fruit and veggies EVERY. DAY. Female runners, who are more likely to be anemic, should make sure they're getting a lot of iron (kale or other dark greens, beans, nuts and seeds are all good sources). Make sure you'e not eating too much or too little, and aim for at least 3 meals and a snack or two throughout the day.
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| Yaaay random veggies! |
meal. As I mentioned above, focusing on nutrients and a BALANCED diet is essnetial. If you subsist solely on lettuce then sure, you might be thinner and think you're going to be lighter for running, but you're never going to have enough muscle or energy to do anything. Vary it up!
THE EXTRA STEP
Eating healthfully most of the time and drinking a lot of water are the biggest aspects of staying healthy and preparing yourself for cross country season. However, there are a few other things you can tweak in your life to give you a little more of an edge...
Nutritionally... You know how at Jamba Juice, you can add a "boost" to your smoothie? Seek out superfoods at places like Super Supplements and add them to various meals throughout the day. In my house we always have chia seeds, flax meal, spirulina, bee pollen, and maca root. These are all in the form of mostly flavorless seeds or powders, so you can throw them in smoothies or juices. Or baked goods. Or egg dishes. Or cold cereal and oatmeal. Or just sprinkle them on top of fruit or a salad. You can use them for anything! Some less versatile add-ins are protein powder and wheatgrass. Protein powder again works well in smoothies and baked goods (just look at this this protein powder pancake recipe!) and wheatgrass is a great in juices or on it's own in "shots."
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| Pomegranate and kiwis are great post-workout snacks; pomegranates are full of antioxidants and kiwis have almost as much potassium as bananas! |
Physically... Obviously, come to practice and complete every workout the way it's intended to be completed. If it's a hard workout, push yourself, and if it's a rest day then make sure you get that rest. Then? Sleep! It's a lot easier to race on 8 hours of sleep than it is on 3- I know this from experience. Lack of sleep won't mess with your body too much unless it's a matter of consistent deprivation (we're talking 1-2 weeks here) but you'll be mentally exhausted, which is not the best way to start practice- or a race!
Finally, here are some websites and blogs to check out for health tips...
- fitbie.com, recommended by Levi
- fitsugar.com (mainly for the girls...)
- runnersworld.com
- anutritionisteats.com
- thehealthyhedonisttalks.blogspot.com- this is actually a blog run by a friend of mine, but she's really knowledgable about health and is a former high school xc runner herself!
Questions? Things you'd like to add? Talk to me or one of the other captains and we'd be glad to help. See you all at practice this week!
