Carb-load, you say? Don’t mind if I do.*
*Warning: eating this much pasta at once might come closer to inspiring you to lie on the couch rather than replenishing you. There’s a difference between fueling and outright gluttony.
One thing I love about having a regular running practice is that I don’t necessarily monitor what I eat, but I end up eating better anyway. I tend to cut out soda, because running (walking…hiking…breathing) on days that I’ve had a Dr. Pepper is so much harder. I had a Cherry Coke today, and I thought that little hill back to the office was going to kill me. I am also not a fan of running when I’ve had a lot of dairy-intense food, regardless of how many pills I’ve taken to corral the lactose. I tend to stop doing things that make me feel extra exhausted or nauseated.
I also more readily notice food that gives me more energy. I eat pasta more often than usual, but instead of the ratio of pasta-to-vegetable pictured above, it reverses. Veggies become the stars of the dish. I tend to eat more fruit, and I tend to eat more eggs.
I have tried to follow several recommended diet plans for runners in the past. These are not bad plans. Most of them tell you to eat real food and stop eating junk, which is good advice for anyone, really. My focus would wane, though, after about the first couple of weeks (i.e., after the first round of groceries disappeared). I also found I had to tweak most plans too much to make them work for me. So I made my own plan. Running is probably what taught me to meal plan effectively.
What are your go-to snacks/meals when you are increasing your activity level?
M. Suzanne Terry 
Leave a Reply