Short-term minimal inflammation/high protein diet?

heykatieben

Heya - I'm running my first marathon (eeeee!!), and I'm interested in eating, short term (during my taper and just before) a minimal-inflammation diet to lower my risk of injury.

Anyone have ideas, experience with this? Has anyone experienced a real difference with a low inflammation diet? I don't think I'd go on (for instance) a vegan-ish diet for life, but would it make a big difference in my running/recovery if I could do it for a few weeks?

Thanks for any thoughts!

rllewell

Define short term? 2 weeks? A month?

I am NOT a long distance runner but I do run 4-5 local 5K's every year and focus on decreasing inflammation by NOT eating things that cause it and eating A LOT of things that reduce it.

I will say you are on the right track in looking to raw fruits and vegetables as your answer. Over 4000 clinical studies show that eating the daily recommended amount of raw fruits and vegetables will lower the risk of chronic illness (cancer, heart disease, diabetes etc...) and deliver the vitamins and minerals your body needs daily for recovery.

So whatever goes into my mouth I ask these questions: Does it deliver key antioxidants and other phytonutrients that are absorbed by the body? Does it reduce oxidative stress? Does it support a healthy immune system? Does it help protect DNA? Does it positively impacts several key indicators of cardiovascular wellness? If the answer is yes, eat it!

heykatieben

Cool. I'm thinking about a month - 3 weeks taper, 1 week recovery. And all the better if I can get addicted to the diet. After all, I love me some papaya and pineapple.

rllewell

I would recommend to eat lots of plants, stay away from milk, whey, casein to reduce inflammation. Raw nuts and seeds, esp chia seeds should be added to your diet and healthy fats like avocado would help too.

Oxidative stress will increase with every mile you run. Chronic systemic inflammation can contribute to an increased risk for developing chronic health conditions so you really have to listen to your body under stress.

Antioxidants from fruits and vegetables fight oxidative stress and help you maintain optimal health. In addition to F & V I take a product called Juice Plus+ which is even more F & V in capsule form. What sold me on the JP+ were the numerous clinical studies reporting increased levels of key antioxidants in the bloodstream and significantly decreased levels of three key biomarkers of inflammation.

Good luck on your training and marathon.

shano25

I can't give you a direct answer however, I suggest checking out two of my favourite websites
www.mindbodygreen.com
www.youngandraw.com

There are always lots of articles there about eating to fight inflammation. They are great websites for getting information about how to get what you need from your food.