Runner’s Diet – To Load or Not to Load?

A runner’s diet can be very tricky, simply because you have to change your food and nutrition intake when you’re training and even weeks or days before the big race. For some, they’ll just stick to a low-carb diet while others would load up on carbs before the big race. So before you even decide to put on your coolmax clothes and train, there are a couple of things that you need to understand about carbohydrates and other nutrients.

Low carb diets are recommended for athletes when they’re training. The body relies on 2 energy sources, carbohydrates and fats. While carbohydrates are the first source of energy that the body turns to, a high carb diet will not allow you to burn fats; which would basically make you fatter while you train. Any professional runner knows that carbs and fats combined are more effective than relying on just carbs or fats. The carbohydrates that are not burned during the training or workout are then converted to fats.

Carbo loading, or basically a high carb diet, is only ideal the night before the big race. This allows you to store glycogen and can be used as an instant energy source. Once your glycogen levels are tapped out, your body should be using the fats for energy.

Excellent sources of fat and carbs

As stated earlier, you should also have adequate amount of fat levels in your body; but it doesn’t give you the right to eat anything you see. Mono-saturated fats should be your go-to fat source like sardines and non-grain fed meat, both of which contain omega-3 fatty acids and healthy fats. A double bacon cheeseburger will not help store fats nor carbs, even if you plan on eating one the night before the big race.

Complex carbohydrates like rice and grain should definitely be your primary source of carbohydrates; despite its low sugar content, complex carbohydrates take a lot longer to burn as well as provide you with a decent supply of energy.

Remember, the key to being a good runner is to watch what you eat. The more you pig out, the lesser the chances of you even finish even the simplest 100m dash.

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