Fueling During A Long Run

Busy day.... again. 

I'll get through the food stuff for the day and then move on to how I fuel during a long run. 

Lunch was inhaled way too fast unfortunately, I was short on time as I test drove a car during my lunch hour.  I popped by my house and whipped up my lunch.

-left over hamburger on a Arnold WW sandwich thin, little cheddar, sprouts, tomato and Wickles... oh and of course ketchup

-side of super yummy watermelon

Then I rushed back to work and finished out my day.  Met up with the hubby to pick my car up from the garage, last time taking it there yay!!!  On my way back I stopped by the car dealer again to test drive another car that was not there at lunch time.  After that I headed home to walk Reggie.... he was definitely ready to go!

Hubby headed off for another meeting while I made dinner.  He's still not back yet, so I had to go ahead and eat with out him.  Tonight was chicken tacos/fajitas whatever you want to call them.... 

The fixin's.... cheese, fresh salsa, plain greek yogurt and some sauteed onions & peppers

I just sauteed the chicken in a pan and then added some mexican spices.  

-little chicken, peppers, onions, greek yogurt, cheese, salsa, all on a spinach Flat Out

-side of Crop Share corn, steamed in the microwave

-little vino on the side....ahh all is good.

So fuel during a long run.  I think I mentioned in my pre-run fueling blog that I typically don't bring anything other than water with me on runs under 10-12 miles.  Over that I tend to put some thought into fueling along the way. There are SO many options now for on the run eats.  I think back in 2000 when I did my first half marathon I just did water & gatorade, since then 

I've moved on to trying stuff out such as....

• GU
  
• Power Gel
  
• Sport Beans
  
• Shot Bloks
  
• Hammer Gel
  

I'm sure there are others but those are the ones that stand out.  What will work best for you? Only you can learn that through trial and error unfortunately.  

There are so many factors... what flavors you like, what flavors sit well in your stomach, do you want something you need to chew or can just slurp down, do you want caffeine in it, additional sodium, etc. 

I'm not too fussy.  But I have opted to use the gels provided at a race before and definitely regretted it..... yes I should know better.... never try anything new on race day!

My preference, the "Just Plain" flavor of Gu.  I usually stick to that with some water in my Fuel Belt.  Occassionally I'll also bring some watered down Gatorade as well, usually orange or lemon-lime.  I get the powder mix and water it down.  While running I typically take a Gu every 40-50 minutes.  I stop and walk, making sure to get it down and drink some water.  I'm fine with walking a bit during my training run, I personally don't see it as a big deal.  

The only thing different I do on race day for a half marathon or full marathon is for my last Gu or fueling I switch to Power Gel, one with caffeine like Double Latte.  Honestly I hate the flavor, but the bit of coffee flavor and seeing the words CAFFEINE on it make me think I'm getting an energy boost... which is usually what I need around mile 21-22 of a marathon!  

Here are some articles to check out on fueling....

• Four Steps to Perfect Marathon Fueling (for those mathematically inclined)
  
• Carbs On The Run
  
• Get Your Carbs Here
  
• Foods For Energy
  

Those should give you some additional ideas on what you can fuel with and how to go about finding out what will work for you.  Use your training runs to their fullest advantage, not only for the miles but to figure out fuel, clothing and other possible needs (ex. bodyglide).  

Have a great night!!

Britt

Never turn your alarm off.....

And then roll back over to snuggle with your hubby and fall back asleep.... it makes you LATE!!!

Ack, that was stupid.  Rolled over just in time to see that I had about 5 minutes to get to Kettlebell!  Fortunately we live close.  I took Reggie out for a quick pee and then bolted for class, got there just in time to warm up..... pretty impressed with myself. 

Today's class wasn't too bad, I was still a drippy mess at the end but I did add some reps. 

20 Minutes, every 2 minutes repeat the following

5 burpees  (did 8-10 burpees the last 5 times through)

5/5 snatches  (6-10 snatches each side)

15 knees to chest crunches (did 20 most sets)

My poor hands are killing from the snatches.  The bell I had had kind of a rough handle on it, fortunately no really bad blisters.... just sore hands. 

I'm running a bit late.... so you will be SHOCKED at my breakfast.  ;)

-H2H, greek yogurt, berries, flax, AB and a little of that caribbean granola I found

Gotta scoot.  Will post later today about how I fuel DURING my runs!

Happy Hump Day!

Britt

No weeding and no wine... for now....

We had some good thunderstorms coming moving through tonight and actually this morning too.  It put a glitch in my plans to Weed & Wine.... bummer.  Its a group of volunteers I organize to weed a few sites downtown for a non-profit that takes care of some municipal plantings.  By adding in the wine aspect I got more interest, imagine that!  But no weeding tonight, eventually I may wine. 

I need to drop my car of for the last repair EVER that I will make to it, we are selling it Friday!  It will be a tad bittersweet.... when it ran well it really was a great car.  I'm a tad bummed though because the used car I wanted and we went to put an offer in on today has been sold.  They did get a similar car just in, one year older and a few more miles though...... we will see, I need to test drive it first.  But hopefully this weekend I'll have new wheels.  :)

Today was a bit hectic at work, seems as I'm finally making progress on a couple projects an emergency crops up..... so then I get distracted and caught up in that.  Ugh. 

So to keep me pushing through my morning, I had an iced coffee & a plum, yum. 

At lunch I was determined to get my 5 mile run in, the skies looked a bit gloomy so I opted for the gym.... the dreaded treadmill.  Actually it worked out well in some ways as at mile 3 I had to scoot to the bathroom, damn dairy at breakfast.  So after a pit stop it was back on the mill to finish the last 2 miles.  

I ran about an 8 minute pace, although I did go faster for awhile to get the overall time down to equal 8 min/mile pace....since my warm up was at that pace.  Yes, it annoys me to be have that stupid computer making me look slower, so I run faster than an 8 pace to have my overall time equal an 8 minute pace.  Call me crazy, but in the end it gets me to push my pace.  

I stretched a bit, took a quick shower and then quickly got back to work.... where I dined at my desk again. 

-spinach flat out, 1 slice turkey, 1 slice provolone, sprouts, peppers, tomato, Wickles and lil mayo

-side of extra chopped green peppers (no they aren't hot ones, they are just pale peppers from our CSA)

I had to get another fruity snack in, a deliciously juicy nectarine, love them!!!!

Apparently I had the munchies today, when I got home from work I had to have some cantaloupe!  So good right now!

I had hoped the storm would pass so that I could still go weeding, but unfortunately it did not.  So I ventured back out to pick up the pooch, Reggie, from the grand dog parents..... my in-laws help us out and dog sit a few times a week.   They are so good to us!

Then it was home to finally make dinner.  Unfortunately the hubby was home for just a short bit before heading out to a night time meeting :(   Hopefully it doesn't go too long.  Between our two busy schedules we are lucky if we see each other for an hour a day at times, thus why I LOVE the weekends cause then we get to hang out more!

DINNER

Since it was raining I opted not to grill, which is how I usually cook baby turnips.  

Instead I sauteed them with olive oil & a little garlic.

I guess I just love turnips as these came out so good and juicy, grilled or sauteed, they rock!

The turnips joined some baked haddock & corn on the cob. 

I dipped the haddock in milk, rolled it in panko crumbs, sprinkled on some Blue Crab Bay Co. Herbs for Seafood, lemon juice and some olive oil.  Baked in a 500 degree pre-heated over for 15 minutes, probably could have gone a minute or two less. 

Yum good dinner.  Well hubby still isn't home, but my wonderful father-in-law just called to offer to help me drop my car off at the garage!  

Have a great night!  I am so looking forward to going to bed EARLY tonight, have 6am Kettlebell tomorrow!

Pre Run Eats

Despite the fact that I slept in (had to cut myself some slack after a long day yesterday) and skipped my run this morning, I'll focus a bit in this post on what I eat before a run. Don't worry though I will get my run in, may just be during my lunch hour.

So before I touch on the pre run eating I'll review my eats so far today.... but its nothing shocking, just the usual suspects....

However it did have on addition, some Caribbean Granola I picked up at a local farm stand/store on Friday. It has dried pineapple, dried papaya, coconut and almonds in it.

PRE RUN EATS

Apparently Blogger hasn't been allowing people to comment all the time. Not sure if its something I'm doing or just the site being fussy. I'll see what can be done. Rather frustrating though when you are a blogging newbie and its exciting to just get a few comments.... lets you know that people are actually out there!

You may have noticed before my long runs I don't eat a whole heck of a lot. On Sunday I just grabbed a handful of cereal a little bit before my run and only took water with me. I had only planned a 12 mile run but ended up doing 14, if I had known I was going to do that I may have taken some Gu with me.

I rarely eat a lot before a run, especially in the morning as I just don't run well with a lot in my tummy. Ideally it would be nice to have something more substantial to eat and then wait a hour or two before heading out for my run, but I'm typically a bit time crunched and just want to get going with my run & my day. This light pre run eating has therefore also become part of my racing routine, as most runners know... don't try anything new on race day, stick to what you did during your training! So usually before a marathon I keep it light, a couple hours before the race I'll eat half a bagel with peanut butter and keep hydrating with water, then about a half hour before the race I'll have a GU and some more water.

Everyone is different so you may have to learn through trial and error what works for you. I know I need to stick to somewhat bland foods before a run and absolutely have to stay away from dairy the night before and morning of my long run.

Some Suggested Reading/Watching On The Topic of Pre Run Eats:

(All of these are from Runner's World)

Runner's Digest (includes various food issues, eating the night before)

The Pack Rules: Essential Advice from Runners & Readers (includes pre, during and post food info)

Pre Run Fuel: Video on Pre Run Food Suggestions

Tomorrow I'll blog about how I fuel during my long runs.

Have a great day!

Britt

Holy Hunger!

Ugh... I finally got home about a half hour ago (10pm) and was so hungry for dinner!  My meeting tonight lasted way too long, it started at 6pm.  I had hoped to have dinner before hand but got stuck at work late so I only had time for a snack.  

But first recap of the day......

MORNING SNACK

Nectarine & iced coffee w/ skim milk & one splenda

LUNCH

-Spinach Flat Out, turkey, spinach, sprouts, tomato, Wickles, little mayo

-Side of cantaloupe

AFTERNOON SNACK

Um.... Afternoon dessert.  ;)

Then it was my 3rd snack of the afternoon before my meeting.  

-cottage cheese & a little almond butter (not bad)

I thought the almond butter would provide some staying power.... 

but not enough for FOUR HOURS of a meeting!!!  Ack!

I was dreaming of food near the end, my tummy was growling, I really should have brought a snack...unfortunately its not a meeting that is very conducive to eating during it (its televised).  

DINNER (finally)

The hubby made dinner so I just heated up leftovers.... a burger.  Dang that tasted good!

-lean meat, whole wheat bun, cheddar cheese, spinach, sprouts, tomato, Wickles, and probably more ketchup that I should have used..... oh well

-corn

-tall glass of milk

I chowed.  Now to digest a bit and then head to bed.  

Staying Flexible.....

Happy Monday.... so soon it comes.  

So last week was not stellar as far as sticking to my training schedule, however I'm not really one to get freaked out about that.  You have to be flexible.  You have a life and you do the best you can to get your planned workouts in, if not you do what you can and hope the next week goes better.  This philosophy has worked out fairly well for me in the 11 marathons I have completed.  It does help when I'm a bit more focused on my long runs & speed work, I think that is what helped me finally break 4 hours. 

So far this week is off to a good start, I'm feeling motivated after yesterdays 14 mile run.  I was up and out at 6am for Kettlebell, before heading out I grabbed a handful of Kashi Heart to Heart and some water. 

This mornings class was a good one for a Monday... no counting.... just going for time.  

1 minute of each w/ a 1 minute rest at the end, repeat 5 times

One Arm Swings

Split Squats

Slingshot

Presses

Weighted Squats

After repeating 5 times then we did planks

1 minute basic plank

10 situps

1 minute alternating hip to ground plank

10 situps

1 minute side planks, change sides mid way through

10 situps

After all that I headed home to a tall cold one....

After shower and getting ready for work, my usual favorite was calling me.

-kashi heart to heart, oikos greek yogurt, strawberries, blueberries, almond butter... oops forgot the ground flax!

Today is going to be a busy one!!  Will probably be at work late and then I have a meeting at 6pm that is looking like it will be LONG.... blech.  Glad I got my workout in this morning!

Have a great day!

Britt

Sunday comes too fast... again

Even with Friday off the weekend went by too fast and I had no time to blog!

The beach on Friday was wonderful!  Shortly after arriving my mom and I headed out for a 5 mile run along the beach.  We had a nice sea breeze for most of it.  Once we got back to the house a grabbed a few almonds and hopped on a conference call for work, by the time that was done it was lunch time.  I raided the fridge and my mom kindly let me have some of her left overs from the nigh before.... steamed veggies, shrimp and rice.  

I added a salad w/ pomegranate raspberry vinaigrette....

After digesting a bit my mom and I headed to the beach.... to read magazines and lounge.  We did put our feet in the water, but it wasn't a hot enough day to warrant going much deeper in the freezing Maine ocean.  

The wind started to kick up a bit so after a bit of lounging we headed back to the house.  I opted to lounge some more by the water at the house. (you can see my shadow in the picture)

My mom and I ventured to a local farm stand for veggies for their dinner.  After the drive I needed a snack. 

But eventually it was time for me to head home.  I was running a bit behind so when I grabbed munchies for the concert in the park.... I kinda forgot what I had just had....  so more crackers & cheese... my favorite!

That was apparently not enough cheese though..... you will see shortly.  I met some friends out after the concert and went with a glass of pinot grigio.  

And this pile of cheesy goodness showed up.  I had to have a few since it turned out a real dinner was not going to happen.  

We stayed out much later than we should have...... then got up much earlier than I would have liked on Saturday.  Saturday was my slacker photo day... got none.  So I'll spare you the boring details and move on to today.  

I had a 12 mile run planned, when I got home and finally mapped it out... it was closer to 14.  But it was a beautiful one!  I stopped to snap a photo by and old mill along the river. 
My run was a bit of a roller coaster... and that is not counting all the hills.  But I had moments where it felt so effortless and than other times it just felt like torture.  Although I think those torture moments were mainly when I was going up a rather large hill!  Some day I need to learn to like hills. 

Once home from my run I was STARVING since I had just grabbed a handful of cereal before hand.  I fixed myself a big bowl of berries, kashi heart to heart, little caribbean granola and milk.  It definitely hit the spot.  Plus some watered down lemon-lime gatorade. 

After breakfast I had to do some emergency plant watering.  My tomatoes, hanging plants and hydrangeas were all looking so sad!!  Then it was time to water myself and clean up. 

The hubby and I were then headed to our friends' house to help clean up their yard & gardens.  They have been away for over a month with her mother, these are the ones that we just visited for her mother's funeral.  

On my way over I needed a little something to help me weed, so I had a Larabar. 

It was so good to have our friends home!!  The boys mowed the lawn & weed whacked, while the ladies weeded.  We made quick work of it all, so I left for a bit to grocery shop, once done I headed back to our friends' house for some snacks..... that I forgot to photograph.  They were delish.... pitas w/ hummus & baba ganoush (from Wegmans so good!!!), cheese & crackers, plus some cantaloup & pineapple. 

It filled me up so much that when we got home I kept it light.... some watermelon & some cottage cheese.  Simple but hit the spot.  

So now I"m finally watching the finale of SYTYCD.... FINALLY!  I might have a nectarine to finish off the night.  Feeling a little snacky now that my butt is sitting in front of the tv.... amazing how that happens, huh?

Hope you had a great weekend!!!

Britt