Marathon Eating Plan

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preslyann50
preslyann50 Posts: 114 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hey! So I know what to eat to lose weight and how to eat healthy to lose weight. But now I am going to start training for a marathon and I am not sure how to eat to fuel my body for something like this. I was reading stuff online but I think I would do better having an actual "eat this for breakfast today" type of plan. I am GF but I'm used to having to substitute certain foods. I didn't know if there was a book or something online that I could follow.

Thanks!

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  • gdyment
    gdyment Posts: 299 Member
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    The biggest problem is people think they ran tons and so can eat what they want. I find it's even harder because some days you're 3000-4000 and others you're under 2000. So tracking is important.

    IF you want to shed some weight before the race, you want to do it way before - like 3+ months out. During the 12 or 18 week marathon training block you ideally want to net out and not be in a deficit.
  • preslyann50
    preslyann50 Posts: 114 Member
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    Thanks :) I know trying to lose weight during it is a bad idea. I"m just not sure what the best foods to eat to make sure my body has the energy it needs is. Was hoping someone out there made a meal guide or something :)
  • ekat120
    ekat120 Posts: 407 Member
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    Matt Fitzgerald's books (Racing Weight and New Rules of Marathon and Half Marathon Nutrition) are good. They're mostly about types of foods to eat, when, and why, but there are also some sample days.
  • preslyann50
    preslyann50 Posts: 114 Member
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    ekat120 wrote: »
    Matt Fitzgerald's books (Racing Weight and New Rules of Marathon and Half Marathon Nutrition) are good. They're mostly about types of foods to eat, when, and why, but there are also some sample days.

    Thank you!
  • kristinegift
    kristinegift Posts: 2,406 Member
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    I've managed to lose about 5 lbs during this training cycle (since July when I was base building and then official training which started in Sept for a November race). I basically just eat at a 200-300 cal/day deficit, which is pretty hard to notice when you're still getting 2000+ calories to eat per day. I eat basically the same things as I do when I'm not training, just more, and I keep an eye on my carbs and protein as well as micros like iron and calcium.

    The time that you definitely don't want to eat at a deficit is 2-3 weeks out from the race itself. And especially during carb-load week.

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