Running on Empty…Fueling Up For The Big Race
Posted by adminA well-trained athlete has about 2 hours of aerobic running before his or her glycogen reserves run out. Afterwards, the runner has to metabolize fats. This is more difficult for men than women, and gives rise to what is frequently called by marathon runners as “hitting the wall”. It is rather important, then, to adapt your training and diet to be able to complete the course to the best of your ability. Several decades ago, it was popular amongst top marathon athletes to adopt a dietary regime which replaced carbohydrates by protein a few weeks before a marathon. The diet would then switch to one high in carbohydrates for the few days before the big race. The body would then tend to over compensate for the carbohydrate loss by storing excess glycogen in the muscles. This is a risky strategy, since if you arrive at the start line underweight then you are in deep trouble. An alternative way of fueling up for the big race is simply to modify your diet to take in more complex carbohydrates in the form of fruits, bread and pasta starting after your longest run, which should be about 2 weeks before the big event.