Ware
Joggers 10k Training Programme
Runners Dietary
Requirements
As your fitness improves, and you start to run
further and faster, your body adapts to become more efficient at using food to
repair and recover from exercise. Therefore it’s important that you start to
consider your diet to ensure you are able to maximise your performance.
Contrary to popular opinion you probably won’t need
to make dramatic changes to what you eat if you already have a good balanced
diet. It is also unlikely that you will need to increase the number of calories
you consume (in fact if you want to lose weight you need to maintain an average
of 2000 calories per day), but you will benefit from changing your eating
patterns.
Carbohydrate is an absolutely essential for runners,
it provide the glycogen which fuels your muscles. Most people who train for a
marathon have about 3hrs, or 18 miles worth of glycogen stored in their muscles,
so when you hear of runners “hitting the wall” what that actually means is that
they have used up all their glycogen stores. This is why you see marathon
runners drinking Lucozade or eating bananas on their way round the course – they
are trying to replenish their glycogen stores.
Newer runners often struggle to eat before running,
either because it makes them feel sick or because they suffer from stitch. Often
the last lot of fuel their body received was some 5-6 hours before they run,
consequently their glycogen stores become depleted quite quickly, they become
tired and their legs feel really heavy. If this is your problem try eating low
fat food in the 3-4 hours before you run, and ensure you warm up properly before
increasing the pace or attempting a hill session
In order to get the most out of your training session
as a newer runner you need regular intakes of food. This teaches your body to
use its glycogen stores effectively; as a runner your mantra should be little
and often. Try eating a small amount of food every 3˝ - 4 hours, for example:
·
Breakfast
(07.00) Cereal/porridge with banana
·
Mid morning
(10.30) Apple or cereal bar
·
Lunch (12.30)
·
Mid afternoon
(16.00) piece of fruit or handful of dried fruit and nuts
·
Early evening
(18.00 if running at 19.45 that evening) crumpet or small slice of Malt loaf, or
banana
·
After running –
small piece of grilled chicken or fish, brown rice and
salad.
You burn about 100kcals for every mile you run, but
as the intensity increases (eg taking part in a coached hill or speed session)
so does the number of calories burnt – up to 10kcals per minute per mile. You
will also continue to burn kcals after running, which is why it is essential you
eat and drink after a run. Try and eat foods that contain both carbs and protein
- the protein will help repair your muscles. Runners need about 75-100grams of
protein per day.
Carbohydrate can be sub-divided into two simple
groups - starches and sugars. As a runner you need to focus on carbs that
contain starch (low GI) rather than sugar. You should aim for 60% of your total
daily food consumption to be carbohydrate. Don’t fall into the trap of assuming
you need to eat loads of pasta or increase the size of your portions just
because you run. Brown rice, beans, wholegrain bread and jacket potatoes are
excellent alternatives to pasta and often have a lower GI
index.
By far the biggest problem new runners experience is
feeling light-headed or dizzy after a run. Generally this is simply because they
haven’t drunk enough water. Dehydration causes fatigue and slows down your
ability to digest food. Try and aim for at least 8 glasses of water a day and
more as the weather improves.
Finally, running may not actually help you lose
weight as muscle weighs more than fat, but it will help you tone up. The best
way to test this is to find a skirt or pair of trousers which are a bit tight
now and then try them on again after a couple of months of regular (3 sessions a
week) running, coupled with a good balanced diet, and see the difference.