[pav1971]

Hello,

I have just signed in today and as you can see I'm a complete novice! I have lost a lot of weight since I started running but the loss has started to slow in the last couple of weeks. That in itself isn't bothering me but the one thing that I am really struggling on is when and what to eat before a run? And also during the run? Is water best? My runs are generally between 30 and 45 minutes.

Thanks for any help/suggestions!

 

[Hrun]

personally nothing. I just run.

 

[pav1971]

Hello,

My weight when starting was exactly the same as yours! I am down to 16-8 but would still like to lose another stone. Any tips?

Thanks.

 

[almost_no_specifics]

Hey, personally I don't eat anything before a run, unless it's over 12 miles, in which case 2 hours before I have a slice of toast with some honey on it/plain alpen bar, also unless it's over 7 miles I generally don't bother taking any fluid (unless it's very very hot) or food and when I do take fluid its just a pouch of lucozade sport (its the right volume and is handy for carrying about scrunched up in the pocket of my shorts heh), over 12 miles also I might consider an energy gel midway... this is all from my own experiences though, so perhaps it's best to try out different things/times and keep a note of it and your performances/weight loss or whatever you're more interested in... I think a general rule though is something very light, like a yoghurt or something, a good couple of hours before you head out, lest you get a stitch/runners runs.

 

[Hrun]

My take:

To lose weight energy out must be more than energy in.

I try to eat normally but have cut out a lot of little snacks and upped my exercise from none.

That's it. Nothing special.

 

[Generous Hypocrisy]

Hrun is right.
I've cut out the junk and eat way more fruit now.
Just eat healthily and run. The weight should go.
Make sure it's slow though, otherwise you are more prone to putting it back on again

 

[ChrisCrossCountry]

I have to eat before I run otherwise I just feel awful. I have a bowl of cereal about an hour and a half before the run and I have never had any problems at all. I also carry a runners bottle with water in and take small sips every few minutes. Works for me on runs up to 1 hour and 15 mins.

 

[Grant]

I have to eat before I run otherwise I just feel awful. I have a bowl of cereal about an hour and a half before the run and I have never had any problems at all. I also carry a runners bottle with water in and take small sips every few minutes. Works for me on runs up to 1 hour and 15 mins.

I do the same for my long runs, but only take water if I'm running 8-10miles or more, or its really hot. If I'm running in the evening, I just have a light dinner before going out.

 

[twinkle toes]

It all rather depends on you, if you have been doing fine with your current routine, I don't think to need to change, if you are feeling low on energy before your run, try having a banana 1/2 hour or so before you go.

 

[richardsimkiss]

I just stick to my normal diet... as long as you're reasonably well hydrated then you should be fine to complete your 35-45min runs without taking anything along with you - then you can just top up the tanks when you get home

As for food.. a nice healthy diet should be fine, if you do feel rather enrgyless then a snack of something like honey on a slice of wholemeal toast should be plenty

 

[John Honney]

I think its hard to advise too generally as what works for one person may be a nightmare for another. Much depends on a whole range of factors from what you do, how regurlarly your run/exercise to your own metabolic rates.

I run on Saturday mornings only and mirror as much as possible what I do on marathon race day. I take on board more liquids two days before and I generally avoid eating after lunchtime the day before a run and might only have a light snack the night before.

If your weight loss has levelled out then it might be that all your exercise has increased muscle density and that might be causing you to think that despite shedding the blub, your weight remains the same or even getting heavier. If so, it might be due to your muscles getting heavier.

Anything other then a healthy diet is a waste of time in my opinion and for fans of fads only. However, what I do if I need a little kick start on losing the old belly, is to ease up on the carbs a bit and my body burns fat up quicker. Dare I say it stop drinking booze as well.

This works for me, but it might not work for you. Carbs are important for fuel as I am sure you know, so I don't usually do something like carbavoidance for more than a week.

 

[Scarbib_jack]

I think its hard to advise too generally as what works for one person may be a nightmare for another. Much depends on a whole range of factors from what you do, how regurlarly your run/exercise to your own metabolic rates.

I run on Saturday mornings only and mirror as much as possible what I do on marathon race day. I take on board more liquids two days before and I generally avoid eating after lunchtime the day before a run and might only have a light snack the night before.

If your weight loss has levelled out then it might be that all your exercise has increased muscle density and that might be causing you to think that despite shedding the blub, your weight remains the same or even getting heavier. If so, it might be due to your muscles getting heavier.

Anything other then a healthy diet is a waste of time in my opinion and for fans of fads only. However, what I do if I need a little kick start on losing the old belly, is to ease up on the carbs a bit and my body burns fat up quicker. Dare I say it stop drinking booze as well.

This works for me, but it might not work for you. Carbs are important for fuel as I am sure you know, so I don't usually do something like carbavoidance for more than a week.

Good post. Carb cycling works well...go easy on them say mon-fri and eat away at the weekend re-fuelling slightly.

 

[star-shaped]

I have to eat before I run.

If I go in the morning I have cereal about an hour before going out, which is fine. Couldn't imagine going out on an empty stomach, although this works for plenty of others.

If I run late afternoon I have half a Nakd bar (89p from Tesco, absolutely fantastic) half an hour before I go out.


I used to carry a doughnut bottle with me with water, but have been getting out of the habit now. Don't really need it on shorter runs (35-40 minutes without water is fine). When I do longer runs I leave a bottle in my front garden a do a couple of circuits which take me past my front door! As my 'longer runs' are 10K, some would say this is unnecessary, but I couldn't imagine running longer distances without some water.

It's all about experimenting and finding out what works for you personally.

With regards to weightloss- I found that the absolute best thing I ever did for my waistline was giving up alcohol.