Hi everyone,
Last week was HUGE! \u00a03 15-minute segments \u2013 that is fantastic. \u00a0We are SO proud of all of you. \u00a0And THANK YOU to Clay and all of you for the amazing lunch and delicious chocolates. \u00a0It was so special to be able to socialize not wearing our running clothes!<\/p>\n
This week, we are keeping it steady with the same 15 minute segments. \u00a0For those of you going away for the ASL break, just do your best to get in the runs. \u00a0Remember, beginning this week, the Tuesday run is now a total of 45 minutes exercise time and your weekend run should be 30-35 minutes total. \u00a0Break it up with walk\/runs however feels most comfortable to you.<\/p>\n
And now for the lengthy part of the email. \u00a0Feel free to skim or skip it \u2013 I know it is quite verbose!<\/p>\n
Protein:<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s start with protein because that is probably the most critical component as you increase exercise intensity or duration. \u00a0When you run, you create tiny tears in your muscle fibers and protein is required to repair that damage. \u00a0For female long-distance runners, experts suggest taking in about 90g a day (or 1.6-1.8g\/kg of body weight). \u00a0That\u2019s a lot of protein \u2013 it takes a concerted effort to get there and at our level, we don\u2019t need that much. \u00a0Make it \u201cclean\u201d protein when possible \u2013 lean meats, fish, nuts, yogurt, lentils\/pulses and low-fat milk (this is the one low-fat product that most nutritionists agree is fine). \u00a0Most professional runners eat salmon like crazy \u2013 I\u2019ve never heard a nutritionist say that salmon is THAT much better than other fish, but a lot of very experienced runners sing its praises.<\/p>\n
Carbohydrates:<\/p>\n
A lot of trainers will encourage you to increase your carb intake, but I don\u2019t fully agree (particularly for our type of running). \u00a0It may be necessary for athletes training at\u00a0extemely high intensity zones, but that\u2019s not what we\u2019re doing. \u00a0Bottomline\u2026. \u00a0we are trying to teach our bodies to use fat as fuel. \u00a0Fat is easier to access as an energy source and requires less fine-tuning in terms of timing carb intake during exercise. \u00a0Our bodies have about 1000-1200 \u201ceasy access\u201d calories available which will get most ladies about 10-11 miles (depending on their weight and fitness level). \u00a0After that we will use gels (carbs) to fuel that last 2-3 miles of a half-marathon. \u00a0If you increase your carb intake on a daily basis, then your body starts expecting a constant feed of carb fuel and may begin to resist going to fat as a fuel source. \u00a0Your body needs carbs so don\u2019t completely cut them out \u2013 just\u00a0choose clean carbs, complex when possible, ie. grains, wholewheat products, basmati rice (the longer the grain the better \u2013 long grain basmati is better for you than even brown rice).\u00a0\u00a0Bread is not evil, just don\u2019t rely on it as your major carb source.\u00a0\u00a0Sourdough bread is better for you (usually made with naturally occuring yeast) than traditional loaves.<\/p>\n
Fat:<\/p>\n
Fat is necessary in our diets. \u00a0I would make a nutritionist cringe by explaining it so simply, but basically fat creates a slower release of energy\/fuel. \u00a0It\u2019s as though you\u2019ve taken a time release medication rather than a typical dose when you combine a bit of fat with your other nutrition sources. \u00a0Fat from avocados, olive oil, nuts, etc is obviously better for you than fat in brownies, cookies, etc (sorry about that!!!). \u00a0Some current research is suggesting it is actually it\u2019s the sugar in those products rather than the saturated fat that is causing a big problem with obesity, diabetes and heart disease. \u00a0We can let the scientists battle that out \u2013 for us, just try to get your fat from more natural foods.<\/p>\n
With all nutrition, the closer you can get to whole food, the better (i.e., apples are better than applesauce, whole vegetables are better than pre-packaged ones). \u00a0Basically, the closer your food looks to how you would find it \u201cin-situ\u201d, the better. \u00a0That concept is one thing on which all nutritionists\/dietitians seem to agree.
Before you run, I would suggest the following:<\/p>\n
That could be a half bagel with cream cheese, yogurt with nuts (if the nuts don\u2019t upset your stomach), a smoothie, or try oatmeal\/porridge \u2013 it wins the prize for a near-perfect carb\/protein\/fat mix for pre-run.\u00a0\u00a0Most people find simpler carbs work better before a run than complex carbs as they are more easily digested (so a plain bagel instead of a wholegrain\/seeded bagel). \u00a0Ideally, eat the pre-run meal 90 minutes before running. \u00a0Sometimes that is just not possible, so the closer to the run that you eat, the more you should consider simplier carbs for easier digestion. \u00a0\u00a0The latest research on coffee\/caffeine pre-exercise, suggest there is no impact on performance, but a huge impact on perceived exertion. \u00a0This is interesting to me \u2013 basically these new studies conclude that given two athletes who have eaten the exact same thing, and are asked to perform at the exact same level, and who have the exact same result feel differently about how hard the session was. \u00a0The one who has caffeine in their system will feel it was easier \u2013 their \u201cperception of exertion\u201d is lower.<\/p>\n
Within 30 minutes after you run, I would suggest the following:<\/p>\n
The protein piece is critical as is the timing of this food. \u00a0Again, a nutritionist\/scientist would cringe at how I try to explain this, but here we go\u2026 when you exercise your muscles are agitated\/traumatized. \u00a0The cell membranes temporarily become more porous (instead of a wall, it\u2019s more like a mesh allowing the flow of nutrients easy passage). \u00a0Some post-run ideas would be a latte and yogurt, a latte and a piece of fruit or a latte and half a skinny muffin. \u00a0I\u2019ve attached the Starbucks nutritional info to make this easier for you. \u00a0Basically a tall, skinny latte has 14g of carbs, 10g of protein and 0g fat \u2013 so you\u2019re looking for another 35g of carbs in addition to the latte. \u00a0All of this pre\/post run info would apply to longer runs and what qualifies as a long run is different from runner to runner. \u00a0You are probably just fine eating whatever you normally consume until about mid-end January when our runs lengthen.<\/p>\n