I was recently asked by the lovely team at Central Performance Physiotherapy to give a talk about nutrition and running for their clients who are planning on running the City 2 Surf in August.
Here are some of the key summary points to take home from the session:
Carbohydrate:
- Carbohydrate is the major fuel that is used when running
- Will benefit from including as part of training diet to optimise performance
- Carb rich meal the night before, and a meal/snack in the morning before longer runs
- Carb loading only necessary once doing further than ½ marathon distance
- Less time before start = higher GI
- GI doesnt matter when it comes to recovery
- Timing of intake is important
- Practice -There should be nothing new being used come race day
Protein:
- Recreational endurance athletes need 0.8-1g/kg/day (less 15% for females)
- No need for ‘extra’ protein, but must be included as essential part of training diet.
- Helps muscles recover properly post training
- Timing of intake is important for recovery
- Include regularly over course of day
- Different types of protein have different benefits - include a variety of plant and animal based proteins for best health and performance
- Consuming prior to sleep assists with muscle protein synthesis overnight
Recovery:
- Combo of protein and carbs essential: 1-1.2g/kg carbohydrate, 15-25g protein (including 3g of leucine)
- Consume within 15-30mins if finishing, definitely within 1 hour
- Try to include animal protein (eg milk, eggs, fish)
- No need to eat extra food in most instances – can result in weight gain
- Train in morning = breakfast as recovery meal
- Train in evening = dinner as recovery meal
- Low fat chocolate milk
Good luck to everyone who attended, along with everyone else who is getting stuck into training for the event!
Chloe McLeod is a dietitian at BJC Health. This blog focuses on diet & nutrition generally and diet & nutrition in relation to the treatment of arthritis and arthritis-related diseases. Contact us if you’d like our help in managing diet-related health issues
