Running Nutrition tips
Posted on Nov 22, 2007 under Running News |Running nutrition article. Always seek medical advice before taking up running or this nutrition sheet.
Get your running nutrition right and your endurance, running times plus stamina will improve. Your diet as a runner should include plenty of Carbohydrate for energy and Protein for muscle growth and repair. Take a look at the diet sheet we have put together running Nutrition.
As a guide, it is a good assumption that if you are running 15 or more miles per week, you should not be consuming less than 2000 calories per day, even if you are trying to lose weight. If your running 25 miles per week you should average closer to 2500 calories a day.
Running nutrition tips
Carbohydrate is the most important fuel for running nutrition & energy, so you should eat lots of foods that are rich in starchy carbohydrates.
The richest sources of carbohydrate for running nutrition are bread, rice, pasta, cereals and potatoes, but other foods also contain useful amounts, such as: fruit, vegetables, beans, pulses, yoghurt and milk.
Carbohydrate is stored in the liver and muscles as glycogen, and if you get tired running, this might be because your glycogen stores are running low. (normaly long distance runners)
What are the best Nutritional foods for runners?
Ask a group of runners what the best food is to support their training, and nine times out of ten the answer will be ‘pasta’. Pasta is the runners food of choice, it’s also ideally suited to fuel your training and racing.
A diet of pasta alone doesn’t make for a balanced nutrition plan, though. The most common mistake that runners make is to focus so much on fuel that they neglect repair and rebuilding, which is provided by protein.
However, a diet that includes good-quality low-fat protein – found in lean meat and fish – will ensure that your muscles remain in tip-top condition. So, protein is a very important component of your diet.
To combat the effects of heavy training, make sure that you eat plenty of protein – ideally around 1.5g per kg of bodyweight. So a 60kg runner may need as much as 90g of protein each day!
What are good sources of protein?
Eggs, milk, fish, beef, peanuts, oats, rice, whole wheat products, corn products, soybean products, sesame seeds, peas, and beans are all good sources of protein.
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Directly after a training session, try to drink a glucose energy replacement drink within 15 minutes of exercising. During this short 15-minute period, your muscles are most receptive to restocking with fuel – and a glucose drink is an ideal for this purpose, as it will rapidly enter the bloodstream and be absorbed, thus accelerating the recovery process.
Keep it complex
At times other than the first 15 minutes and within 2hrs after your session, concentrate on meals containing complex carbohydrates such as bread, pasta, rice and pulses. These will release energy into the bloodstream at a slower rate, giving you sustained energy, which will help you avoid being tempted to snack on high calorie foods such as biscuits, sweets and chocolate.
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Here is a diet sheet guide for runners, however do take medical advice before following this…
Carbs
Men: Eat 10 to 12 servings of fruits and vegetables daily along with 10 to 12 servings of grains to help you meet your higher fiber needs (38 grams per day).
Women: Aim for nine servings of fruits and veggies and at least seven servings of grains (mostly whole) to help you get the 25 grams of fiber you need per day.
Women burn more fat than carbs than men while running, so men need at least four grams of carbs per pound of body weight daily. Women need three.
Protein
Men: Include at least four protein servings each day, such as three ounces of grilled fish or chicken, to take in 90 to 110 grams.
Women: Aim for 70 to 80 grams daily of high quality protein sources, such as tofu, low-fat dairy, lean meats, and fish.
male runners use more of this nutrient than women during long runs.
Calcium
Men: Use fat-free milk on cereal, sprinkle low-fat cheese on pasta, and drink calcium-fortified juices to get 1,000 to 1,300 milligrams of calcium per day.
Women: Women also need 1,000 to 1,300 milligrams of calcium per day, so if you skimp on dairy, consider a calcium supplement (400 to 500 milligrams).
Even though running can strengthen bones, you still need calcium to ensure bone health. Women may struggle to meet their needs in fewer calories.
Iron
Men: Meat-eaters will easily meet iron needs (about eight milligrams). Vegetarians should eat iron-fortified breakfast cereal or nutrition bars.
Women: To get about 18 milligrams of iron each day, eat iron-fortified cereal with vitamin C-rich fruit for better iron absorption, and select lean cuts of red meat.
Some runners risk greater iron losses due to heavy exercise. Women need about twice as much of this mineral as men because of menstruation.