Nutrition for Race Performance and Recovery

As we head into marathon season and you begin to taper your workouts to prepare for your race, it is a good time to think through your nutrition plan for the days leading up to your race as well as what you will eat during your race and afterwards to promote recovery.  Poor nutrition can hamper your performance, so some planning now will help you achieve your best performance.

Pre Race Nutrition:

 As you taper your workouts, you are burning fewer calories and will need to reduce your calorie intake in order to avoid gaining weight before the race.  Now is the time to focus on low-fat, high-carbohydrate foods including whole wheat bread and pasta, veggies and fruit.  Don’t forget to take your multivitamins as well.  During the week before your race, make sure you are extra diligent about eating regularly and drinking your full complement of water.

With just a couple of days to go, you can begin to increase your carbohydrate intake further and slightly decrease your fat and protein intake.  This is to ensure that your glycogen stores are saturated.  At this point, aim for 65% of your daily calories to be coming from carbohydrates. 

 If you are traveling to your race, now is the time to be especially vigilant!  When your routine changes, you may find it more difficult to eat regularly and to drink enough water.   Plan carefully! 

• Look into restaurants and grocery stores at your race location and determine what foods you need to pack from home. 
• If you are used to eating a certain breakfast cereal before your long runs – bring it with you! 
• Pack plenty of your favorite sports drinks, gels and bars as you may not be able to find them easily in another location.
• Especially if you have to fly to your race, focus on fluid intake.  Make sure you are well hydrated when you start your race (urine is pale or clear in color). 
• There are also a few foods to avoid or limit in the days before your race.  Alcohol will dehydrate you and will affect your carbohydrate metabolism and so should be avoided.  If you have digestive troubles on long runs, you should also avoid high fiber foods in the days before the race (beans, high fiber cereal, and fibrous veggies).

The day before the race should be spent resting up and hydrating.  Graze on foods that are appealing to you and you have eaten before without negative results.  If you will be spending some of the day at the race expo or sightseeing, make sure you bring a water bottle and snack foods with you.  Your evening meal should again be high in carbs and low in fat and protein.  This is not the time to experiment with new foods…stick with what you know.

Race Day Nutrition

 Hopefully, you have figured out your breakfast routine by now… stick with what you have been practicing.  You may feel nervous and not have much of an appetite, but your body will require the fuel, so eat as much as you can.  It is best to eat 2-4 hours before the race begins, so you may need to wake up early to eat.  If you can’t manage a solid meal, at least start drinking your sports drink of choice before the race begins.

During the race, it is vital that you keep well hydrated.  Plan to drink ½ cup to ¾ cup of fluids every 10-20 minutes as well as additional carbohydrate (in the form of sports drink, energy bars, gels, or fruit) as needed.  Again, do not try new foods during the race.  Your race website should list what foods and drinks will be available at each aid station.  If you don’t usually eat gummy bears when you run, don’t try them now!

Post Race Nutrition

The first hour after the race is key in replenishing the glycogen stores in your muscles, so take advantage of the foods and fluids available as soon as you cross the finish line.  Drink enough fluids so that your urine returns to pale or clear in color by the end of the day.

You have probably burned at least an entire days worth of calories in your marathon, so you have some catching up to do!  Now is the time to begin eating protein again – it helps with muscle recovery.  It may take your digestive system awhile to catch up with your brain, so you may not be able to manage a big greasy celebratory lunch.  Eat what sounds good to you and enjoy your accomplishment.