By Zuzana Nemeckova
So much has been written about nutrition for runners you’d think everyone would be getting it right.
But there is so much information out there that it can be pretty daunting to try and make sense of it all.
Plus all the information out there encourages people to skip the basics.
So let’s start with the basics.
Before you even start thinking about things like:
- What’s the best source of protein for recovery?
- What ratio of carbs/protein/fat do I need to eat each day?
- Do I need dual-source carbohydrates for my race fuel?
- Should I run fasted to teach my body how to use fat for fuel?
- Are liquid carbs better than solid carbs?
Ask yourself this first…
Am I eating enough?
Read that again!
Unless you eat enough food to generate enough energy to fuel your run, you will hit the proverbial wall. And you will hit it hard!
It won’t matter if you ate two hours before the race. If you used solid or liquid fuel. Or if you had the perfect carb/protein ratio meal.
Because if you don’t eat enough in the first place:
- you will NOT have enough energy to complete your training session successfully
- you will NOT have enough energy for optimal recovery
- you will NOT reach the finish line within the time you hoped for. That’s if you get there at all!
So many runners get this basic principle wrong!
Under-fuelling is the most common factor in running-related injuries and underperformance!
Sure, if you want to optimise your nutrition for incremental performance gains, you need to pay attention to what you eat, when you eat, and what macros you eat.
But none of that will matter if you don’t eat enough!
You often hear coaches saying to their athletes: “You get out what you put in.”
I could not agree more! Because this applies to both training and fuelling strategies.
If there is one thing you absolutely have to get right when it comes to performance nutrition it’s this: ‘ALWAYS EAT ENOUGH’
Zuzana is a sports nutrition coach specialising in working with runners.
BANT and CNHC registered Nutritional Therapist
You can follow her @ontrack.nutritionist.