Properly Fueling for your Long Run

The first time I trained for and ran a marathon, I had no idea that I needed to eat during my training runs or, ultimately, the marathon itself.  I very blindly ran the 2003 TCM and took little to nothing in during my 4+ hours of running.  I've done a lot of running these last 15 years, and have much experience of trial and error when it comes to proper and improper fueling. The marathon is hard enough without adding the extra challenge of running on empty!

Rules of thumb:
1.  The full marathon itself is not a good way to lose weight.  If you want to lose weight, try the half.  When you run 20 or more miles, you are asking a lot out of your body.  Would you expect your car to drive with no gas? No way.  Why would you expect the same thing from your body?

2.  Our bodies typically have 2000 calories on reserve and ready to go.  With adequate training, this will take you through mile twenty....what about the remaining 6 miles?  On average, we burn 100 calories per mile.  This means that you need to take in (at least) 600 calories during the race itself.  While there are many different ways to do this, I think that gels are the easiest. I usually take one gel every 4 miles starting at mile 5.  In addition, I choose gatorade instead of water at rest stations.  I do not go crazy consuming liquids...it is too easy to get water logged which will leave you with a very uncomfortable tummy (and possibly throwing it up).

3.  It is very important to practice fueling during training runs.  You do not want any surprises come race day.

4.  Breakfast is SO important...especially if you're doing a morning training run.  Whatever the distance, I run much better if I've eaten.  I typically eat a bowl of cereal if I have several hours before I run, or peanut butter toast/bagel if the run is less than an hour away.

5.  CARB LOADING! Runners love this.  An excuse to stuff yourself full of delicious pasta!  While most athletes eat pasta the night before, it is much better to do this two nights before your long run or race.  This allows your body to absorb all of the nutrients so you can use it come race time. The night before, try eat a typical dinner...something (or somewhere) that you've had many times so you know how your body will react.

I realize that many of you reading this are not planning on running a full marathon this year.  So what about the half marathon?  Generally speaking, if you're going to be running for over two hours it is a good idea to take in some extra calories.  It may or may not take you more than that for your half marathon, but I've found it to be helpful to take in a couple of gels regardless.  I will take one at mile 5 and one at mile 10.

Happy Running!