An effective training schedule isnt made up of runs alone; to improve both your fitness and your race times, its essential to put thought into what youre putting into your stomach. By eating the right foods at the right times, your body will recover and be able to perform the way you want it to, says Lauren Antonucci, R.D., a board-certified specialist in sports nutrition and director of Nutrition Energy. Plus, youll reduce your chance of injury and illness, she adds. Heres how to fuel up pre- and post-run to maximize results.
Easy/Recovery Runs:
Before: For a morning jog of no longer than 30 or 45 minutes at a relaxed pace (you can hold a conversation), a glass of water might be all thats needed ahead of timeprovided you had a decent dinner the night before. But if last nights meal wasnt filling or if you ate it early, downing some orange juice or a banana will replace glycogen stores in your muscles to stave off sluggishness. If youre heading out in the afternoon, have a snack with about 50 grams of carbs in itlike yogurt and a granola baran hour or two beforehand, suggests Monique Ryan, R.D., author of Sports Nutrition for Endurance Athletes.
After: Theres no need to take in calories immediately, but try to eat a snack or your next meal within an hour or two. Skipping a solid post-run meal could lead to lethargy or sugar cravings later in the dayor down the road, even sickness or injury.
Speed Workouts
Before: It doesnt matter whether youre tackling hill repeats or a fartlekany kind of speed work will zap your energy stores, so some pre-run chow is a must. This is not the place to skimp on calories, says Antonucci, who advises taking in 200 to 400 calories (depending on your size and how long before the run youre snacking) of easily digestible carbs, such as toast with jelly. And Ryan suggests replenishing your fast-twitch muscles with a sports drink or gels between intervals. Its been shown to improve performance up through the last rep.
After: Unlike with those easy runs, youve got no time to waste after speed work. Its absolutely crucial to eat something within 30 minutes, says Antonucci, to supply your muscles with fluid, carbs and some protein: aim for a 4 to 1 ratio of carbs to protein (ultra-easy source: chocolate milk) to best aid recovery.
Long Training Runs
Before: Its most beneficial to eat a full meal three or four hours before you head out to slog through many miles. But, Antonucci says, Theres ideal, and then theres practical. If the idea of setting your alarm for 3 AM sounds, well, insane, just have that meal an hour or two ahead of the run. But adjust the menu if breakfast gets close to the outing: Go for something easily digestible, like a banana with peanut butter and a high-calorie sports drink. Even more important, says Ryan, is to have a good hydration and fueling plan for the run. Try to take in between 150 and 300 calories per hour during extra-long boutswith gels, sports drinks, or whatever snack that you can carry and your body can handle.
After: Same as with speed work, make sure to eat within half an hour of your finish. Go for 200 to 300 calories and try to include an anti-inflammatory food, such as avocado or walnuts, to reduce inflammation caused by all that pounding the pavement. Then sit down to a bigger meal a few hours later and continue snacking every two hours or so for the rest of the day, suggests Monique: Your muscles cant bounce back from one feeding; eating more often jump-starts recovery.
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