A Running Mom

Always eat and drink a little something before you run.  It will give you energy, keep you comfortable during the run and help you recover more quickly after a run.

The Key, of course, is not to eat or drink too much. And to allow enough time between what you eat and drink at the run to ensure a comfort level. The amount of time between will vary from person to person. Here’s what works for me:

For example, if I’m going to run at 10:30am I eat a 1/2 serving of oatmeal, drink 1/2 cup of coffee and 1/2 water by 8:30am. This works out perfectly.

If I’m going to run at 1pm, right after lunch, I’ll skip lunch and eat 1/2 banana and 1/2 cup of water by noon. After the run I’ll drink more water and eat accordingly.

For a late afternoon run, I’ll eat a granola bar or 1/2 banana within 45 minutes of running.

At night, I never eat anything more than 6 apple slices within 45 minutes of my run. Generally speaking, nighttime running doesn’t require as much nourishment for me before or after. My challenge at this time of the day is to ensure I’ve taken in enough fluids. If I don’t, my muscles, skin and eyes will feel uncomfortable and tight. Hydration is always key, but for me, running at night presents a unique challenge. 

The only time I don’t eat anything before I run is if I’m running first thing in the morning. Sometimes I’m running within 10 minutes of waking up. In these cases, I simply drink 1/2 cup of water and go. These runs work out ideally for me because they suppress my appetite for hours, heighten my thirst so I drink more water throughout the day, and overall, provide a huge burst of energy for that day as well.

What do you do?

May your next run be a good one.

Rebecca

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 17th, 2009 at 9:38 am and is filed under Food. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.