Marathon training: What to eat before, during, and post-race for peak performance

After all the hours that have gone into training for a marathon, it would be a shame to fall at the last hurdle because you haven’t given your body the nutrients it needs.

Your body uses carbohydrates to fuel high-intensity exercise, including marathons. While the body stores some carbohydrates (in the form of glycogen) in the muscles and liver, unfortunately, it can’t store large amounts. So when we don’t have enough carbohydrates available to use as fuel during exercise, energy levels drop, and we start to fatigue. During a marathon, this fatigue might result in heavy legs or “hitting the wall.” It can also lead to low blood sugar, leaving you feeling light-headed and weak.

Hydration levels also will affect how you feel during the race and how well your body can cope with the race demands. Dehydration puts additional strain on your body, which makes racing feel harder, affects temperature regulation, and contributes to fatigue.

Since no one wants to feel this way during a race they’ve spent months training for, it’s important to make sure you’re fueling yourself properly — not just on race day but in the days leading up to it, too.

Pre-race meal prep

Before the race, you need to have enough glycogen stored in your body.

One way to boost glycogen stores before the race is through “carb loading.” This doesn’t mean eating as many carbs as you can the night before a race. Rather, it means increasing the amount of carbs you eat about two days before the race.

A carbohydrate intake of 7 to 12 grams per kilogram of body weight in each 24-hour period is recommended. So each meal, try to eat slightly more carbohydrates than usual and include two to three high-carb snacks between meals.

Pasta, rice, bagels, bread, potatoes, and cereal are all great carbs to include in your meals. For snacks, try pancakes, bananas, rice cakes with jam, or toast with honey. If you’re susceptible to an upset stomach, lower-fiber options (such as white bread or pasta) may be helpful.

Staying hydrated in the days before the race is also important. An easy way to judge if you’re hydrated is to check the color of your urine — it should be a pale straw color. Check the weather as well. If it’s hot leading up to the race, you may need to drink more than you normally would be hydrated.

Race day nutrition

On race day, make sure to arrive with a nutrition and hydration plan in place. On the days before the race, check what stops there are and what each station will have. This will help you know what you’ll need to carry during the race. Ideally, use this plan in training to get your gut used to the amount and the types of carbohydrates you will consume during the race.

Race day starts with breakfast. This meal tops up your liver glycogen stores, which deplete overnight, and helps to control blood sugar levels. Aim to eat breakfast two to four hours before the race, and keep it high in carbohydrates and low in fat, fiber, and protein to aid gut comfort. Toast with jam, cereal, or a bagel with honey and a chopped banana are good options.

Drink 5 to 7 milliliters per kilogram of body mass of fluid three to four hours before the race starts. After you warm up, have some more carbs to boost your fuel stores.

Since you’ll be running for more than two hours, you’ll still need to top up your glycogen stores during the marathon. Aim to consume 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrates per hour. While the body can use up to 90 grams of carbohydrates per hour during a marathon, you should only eat this amount if you’ve done it during training to avoid stomach problems.

Gels, chews, energy bars, bananas, jam sandwiches, and sports drinks are all great carb sources to eat during the race. Make sure only to consume products you’ve had before to reduce potential gut discomfort. Consume fluid regularly throughout the race in small amounts. Take care not to over-consume fluids, as this can cause exercise-induced hyponatremia, a potentially life-threatening condition caused by low sodium levels in the blood.

Post-race recovery meal

Once you’ve celebrated crossing the finish line, it’s time for the recovery process to begin.

Start by replenishing both fluid and carbs. Often it can be hard to eat straight after a marathon, so liquid options might be better, such as a sports drink, smoothie, milkshake, or even yogurt pouches. Milk is also an effective post-exercise rehydration drink, which has the added benefit of containing protein. This helps with muscle growth and repair.

Your celebratory, post-race meal should be high in carbs and protein. In the four hours post-race, aim to have 1 to 1.2 grams of carbs per kilogram of body weight each hour. Aim for 30 to 40 grams of protein to help your muscles recover. Though you might want to have some celebratory drinks, drinks with more than 4 percent alcohol content can negatively affect recovery.

To make sure all that hard training doesn’t go to waste, make sure to plan out your diet carefully in the days leading up to a marathon, so you’re properly fueled. And be sure to stick to familiar foods before and during race day to try to avoid any stomach problems that may jeopardize all your hard work.

This article was originally published on The Conversation by Lindsay Macnaughton at Durham University. Read the original article here.