[Owain]

Hi!
New to the forum so I hope this question hasnt been asked before. If it has, sorry....

Ive been training for the Edinburgh half marathon for the last 2 weeks, before that I was running on a regular basis (3 times a week) about 5k at a time, I stopped in October but started using my local gym and the treadmill 2 weeks ago. Everything is going well and I have 1 out door run a week usually on the weekend just to get used to outdoor running again. Once the nights get lighter I will spend most of my training outdoors unless Im doing weights.

My question is, what should I eat to help my training? Im 6 foot 2 and currenlty way 17.9 stone and 26yrs old...Im obviously overweight and looking at loosing the belly, this is one of the reason why I have decided to give myself a target...the Edinburgh 1/2 and Full Marathons both in aid of the RNLI. I'm the kind of person that needs to set targets otherwise I give up...my running is strong and Ive never had a problem with distance...dont ask me to do sprints, I'm not built for that
Im currently running 6.5 miles in about 40mins on the treadmill and about 4.9miles in the same time when running outside. My pace seems to drop when running outside.

I have cereal for breakfast with semi-skimmed milk, for lunch I usually have a sandwich or a pasta and then for dinner I have a home cooked meal with veg.
I try and drink as much water during the day as I can as I am really bad for not drinking enough since I don't drink Tea or Coffee....

Any advice would be great.....be as harsh as you like, I'm thick skinned

O.

[richardsimkiss]

Sounds to me like you're eating fairly well Owain! 3 meals a day is always a good start, just make sure your portion sizes are sensible and not too big and that snacking is kept to a small amount focusing on fruits or other healthy bits.

Losing weight is as simple as making sure you consume less calories than you expend... it may be worth looking into the calorific content of your evening meals, as as I said a moment ago, keep an eye on portion sizes.

As you start with longer distances you may want to do some research into the benefits of complex carbs, but for now your lunchtime pasta should be help sufficiently to fuel your runs.

Two things about running indoors Vs outdoors - to simulate outdoor running on a treadmill you should set the incline to +1, whilst it doesn't sound a lot it takes it's toll after 40mins! Secondly the treadmill forces you to run faster... as the ground moves underneath you then it's a case of either you keep up, or you fall off the back! lol. It may be worth you entering a shorter race before the half mara to give you a feel of how you can perform! I've not found anyone who can match their racing pace in training!

[almost_no_specifics]

Hey, yeah I second that, it all sounds good. It's actually a good idea to snack on fruits and other healthy things between meals - helps your body balance your blood-sugar levels. I don't really do this, but my body is fine at balancing itself out, I don't get hungy between meals. The reason might be that I eat lots of wholegrain/brown cereals and carbs... ie complex carbs (this includes brown pastas, bread and rice), they get burned much slower, and so obviously will be good to help you cover longer distances without running out of energy.

Also to aid recovery, it's good to make sure you have some sort of snack after your runs, just a small one, just to top up your energy levels, and also some protein (to help any muscle repair). I find a handful of Almonds is a good start

[Owain]

Thanks for the advise!
Since I started using the treadmill a week ago yesterday I have had it set to an incline of +2 so I guess I am doing OK on that. I found running with no incline so harder on my legs for some reason....

The training plan I am working on (Edinburgh Marathon - Beginers 12 week program) had me doing longer and longer runs every weekend so by the time the 1/2 marathon comes along I should hopefully be ready!

In the last week I have lost 4 pounds so I presume I am eating less calories than I am using but I also expect the weight loss to slow down i.e. in 2 weeks time I may not have lost 12 pounds..

Any other advice would be great, whether its about weight lose or training..


I was going to ask about muscle recovery actually because I went for a 4.9(ish) mile run on Sunday and yesterday and today my legs are killing me. Just when I walk, if I jog the pain goes away.....I'm glad today is a rest day on my training I tend to eat dried fruit and/or dried seeds i.e. sunflower, pumkin and things like that between meals since I do get a bit hungry mostly between breakfast and lunch.


O.

[richardsimkiss]

losing 4 pounds in a week you're definately consuming less than your expending... I remember reading somewhere that for every 3500 calories you expend (without consuming calories) you'll lose 1lb. 4lb a week is about as much as you want to lose... anymore and I'd say you're running the risk of underfuelling yourself. You're right though in that as you get closer to an optimal weight, you'll find it harder and harder to shift the pounds.

[Owain]

According to the BMI calculator things I am meant to get down to 12.5 stones or something crazy like that!!! I would look like a bean pole if I did that! 4 stone is a small child!

When I was running last summer I got down to 16.13 and then I stopped running I was gutted when I got on the scales and found I had put a stone back on!
Saying that, I don't go for weight more how I feel. I think you can get a bit OTT with the scales and numbers at times....

When I'm not running I'm at the beach teaching or enjoying my other hobby (Traction Kiting), this is when I have a really bad habit of not refueling, then I get bad tempered and the girlfriend tells me to eat something!!

O.

[almost_no_specifics]

Originally Posted by Owain

I was going to ask about muscle recovery actually because I went for a 4.9(ish) mile run on Sunday and yesterday and today my legs are killing me. Just when I walk, if I jog the pain goes away.....I'm glad today is a rest day on my training I tend to eat dried fruit and/or dried seeds i.e. sunflower, pumkin and things like that between meals since I do get a bit hungry mostly between breakfast and lunch.


O.

Yeah, basically, after a couple weeks of training you'll find that will probably go away, so long as you're eating a reasonable amount of protein you'll be fine... BUT I do find, a bit of pre-emptive theigh rubbing and a bit of stretching does the trick. Just sit and rub your legs in the shower, or whilst you're sitting around or whatever (or get someone else to do it!), that helps the circulation get going, and wash out any crap from your muscles and help the nutrients get into them. Or atleast, I'd THINK that's how it works

[cheriton]

as above but definately try and get someone else to rub your thighs.

You'll be killing two birds with one stone as it were!!:

[Owain]

Thanks for all the replies...will let you know how I get on!
O.

[TOrunner]

Hey O.

I would suggest limiting yoru consumption of dairy and wheat-based products. They are 2 most common food allergens and can seriously impair your body's energy and subsequent running performance.

Instead of skim milk go for a nut milk or rice milk - much better for you. Instead of wheat-based pasta go a rice pasta. You can even try a raw pasta which is basically to thinly shave vegetables such as zucchinis (or sweet potatoes) in their uncooked state and top them off with a homemade marinara sauce.

You'll notice an immediate sore in energy and endurance.

For more recipes along these lines you can check of my book on healthy eating called Eating for Energy (i can't add the hyperlink at this current time but just google it).

I know they'll make a huge difference for you. Using the principles in the books, I've lessened my recovery time in half and bettered my runs big time!

Yuri

[ChristinaC]

I'm running the Bath Half Marathon next week and I just wanted to know what I should eat before the run? Some people have said have a fry up, some have said have porridge so I'm a bit confused. Also, how long before the run should I eat?

[cheriton]

It's a personal thing really .

I eat porridge about 3 hours before

[cheriton]

Originally Posted by ChristinaC

I'm running the Bath Half Marathon next week and I just wanted to know what I should eat before the run? Some people have said have a fry up, some have said have porridge so I'm a bit confused. Also, how long before the run should I eat?

Sorry Christina i've had a sh*t day

Let me start again

personally prefer porridge i've tried other stuff before running but find it repeats on me also porridge is a slow release carbohydrate so good for longer distance running

Some people however prefer to eat just before they run i don't know why

What do you normally eat before you run? It's not a good idea to do anything unusual before you start on race day

good luck though let us know how you get on !

[richardsimkiss]

Porridge over a fry-up anytime for me... the grease would just sit in my stomach and plague me all race, though as cheriton says, do what suits you! Also as cheriton says, make sure you don't surprise your body something out of the norm on race day as it may not go down as well as you'd planned.

Forum member 'Pedestrian' is a self confessed 'far from healthy' eater, but his PB's are rather impressive! Just goes to show that what doesn't work for one person may suit another fantastically!

[twinkle toes]

I too am a porridge eater before a race or long run.

Good luck with the Race and let us know how you get on.

TT