runner's diet

sheepiegail
sheepiegail Posts: 56 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have been training for a half marathon for the past 3 weeks and just read an article in the recent women's running magazine. They had examples of meals for training, race day and the day after. I started the training meal and have done that for 3 days so far. It is made for 1500 cal/day. I am having a hard time eating all of this food and have actually missed a snack or 2 on all of the days. These are usually an apple or the almonds. According the MFP I am still ok with my calorie intake and exercise but have not yet done one of my long runs. Weight wise the diet helped me break my plateau which is great so I would like to continue this. Any thoughts on being about 300 cal below the diet's recommended calorie intake? MFP has me set at a 1200 cal/day anyways. I think what is happening is that I am likely not eating back all my calories from workouts. Some have written here about a 500 cal deficit for weight loss. Thanks. hopefully you can see the meals on my log.

Replies

  • tisha_rae
    tisha_rae Posts: 216 Member
    If you really want to meet the calorie goal you can eat more calorie dense foods – the nuts, cheese, eggs.
    When I first start running I don’t start to notice a need to change my diet until I get up to about 5-8 miles – then I start craving the carbs – and I allow myself to eat them – just whole grain…that gets the calorie count up quick.

    Good Luck to you!
  • jadesign19
    jadesign19 Posts: 512 Member
    I have been training for a half marathon for the past 3 weeks and just read an article in the recent women's running magazine. They had examples of meals for training, race day and the day after. I started the training meal and have done that for 3 days so far. It is made for 1500 cal/day. I am having a hard time eating all of this food and have actually missed a snack or 2 on all of the days. These are usually an apple or the almonds. According the MFP I am still ok with my calorie intake and exercise but have not yet done one of my long runs. Weight wise the diet helped me break my plateau which is great so I would like to continue this. Any thoughts on being about 300 cal below the diet's recommended calorie intake? MFP has me set at a 1200 cal/day anyways. I think what is happening is that I am likely not eating back all my calories from workouts. Some have written here about a 500 cal deficit for weight loss. Thanks. hopefully you can see the meals on my log.
    I'm interested in replies as well. Great post
  • krystina_letitia9
    krystina_letitia9 Posts: 697 Member
    I would argue that for most people who are training for a half marathon, 1500 calories/day is probably not enough! So - no, 1200 calories when you're training for a half marathon is almost definitely not enough! :noway:
  • samanthasuereese
    samanthasuereese Posts: 8 Member
    I know this isn't going to answer your question, but I saw "half marathon diet" and needed to reply. I am also planning to run my first half this spring and have been looking for some good meal plans. I was actually wondering what your workout plan is? I've been following Hal Higdon's half marathon program but am always looking to see different one's. Also, do you have the copy of the meal plan?

    I would be careful to make sure you eat more once your long runs start. When I was running my 7-8 miles a day it's insane the amount of calories burned but seriously there was no way I was hungry to eat them all back. That's when my husband suggested protein shakes or bars to get some of those calories (fuel) back in your body.
  • tisha_rae
    tisha_rae Posts: 216 Member
    oh and 1200 is much to low if you are working out a lot.
    You might be interested in checking this out.

    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    Everyone is different but I truly do believe that eating too little will slow your metabolism and your process.
  • krystina_letitia9
    krystina_letitia9 Posts: 697 Member
    If you really want to meet the calorie goal you can eat more calorie dense foods – the nuts, cheese, eggs.
    When I first start running I don’t start to notice a need to change my diet until I get up to about 5-8 miles – then I start craving the carbs – and I allow myself to eat them – just whole grain…that gets the calorie count up quick.

    Good Luck to you!

    This is a good point. But you should still be eating your exercise calories back.

    ETA: this is in reference to OP :happy:
  • 76tech
    76tech Posts: 1,455 Member
    The diet needs to be adjusted to your caloric needs. If I had to train for a half on only 1500 calories, I wouldn't make it. Someone smaller than me would need less.
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
    While training it's important to get as close to your MFP target as possible so you have enough energy stored up for your next run. When you get to the longer runs, you might find you have split your exercise calories over the next day as you could have 800-1,000 burns.

    You don't have a lot to lose, so use MFP settings to lose no more than 1lb a week, and that should give you more than 1,200 anyhow. I run and I lose eating an average total of over 2,000 a day, if that's any help.
  • HypersonicFitNess
    HypersonicFitNess Posts: 1,219 Member
    MFP already has you set at a deficit to lose weight; if you are going to be running 13.11 miles, you'll need more than 1200 calories to do it. I am also training for a half marathon, but I'm already running my long runs; as my half is coming up in March.

    My diary is open, so you are welcome to look at it; I will tell you that I drove 11 hours on Saturday to take my son his car and ended up over by 1000 calories and yes I ran on Sunday (11 miles) and had a 1000 calorie deficit (that is not normal for me); the previous weekend is also not good because we were on the coast "seeing" our son for the first time in over a year...but the rest should be normal. :smile:
  • therapyruns
    therapyruns Posts: 164 Member
    I wouldn't force yourself to eat if you aren't hungry. I sometimes have very low nets due to a big race, such as a half marathon, and simply don't need to eat back all the calories. I go by how my body feels. If you feel as if you have enough energy to run well, then stay the course. If you feel weak or lack energy before/during the run, then you surely need to fuel more.

    You will be increasing mileage which will exert much more energy and require more fuel (food). Keep this mind as you continue to train. I wouldn't follow the diet per se, but rather look at it as a guide for nutrition ideas. Caloric intake varies vastly among runners. I'm 5'1 and weigh 109. I require a lot less fuel/energy than most of my running friends due to my petite stature.

    Since you are training for this type of endurance race, I would not focus so much on creating a calorie deficit, but rather on nutrition and how your body responds to a consistent prolonged cardio activity.
  • 3laine75
    3laine75 Posts: 3,069 Member
    probably unrelated to what your asking but i heard recently that tomato juice is great after a run for replacing electrolites etc.
  • Monkeymomma05
    Monkeymomma05 Posts: 116
    I have been training for a half marathon for the past 3 weeks and just read an article in the recent women's running magazine. They had examples of meals for training, race day and the day after. I started the training meal and have done that for 3 days so far. It is made for 1500 cal/day. I am having a hard time eating all of this food and have actually missed a snack or 2 on all of the days. These are usually an apple or the almonds. According the MFP I am still ok with my calorie intake and exercise but have not yet done one of my long runs. Weight wise the diet helped me break my plateau which is great so I would like to continue this. Any thoughts on being about 300 cal below the diet's recommended calorie intake? MFP has me set at a 1200 cal/day anyways. I think what is happening is that I am likely not eating back all my calories from workouts. Some have written here about a 500 cal deficit for weight loss. Thanks. hopefully you can see the meals on my log.

    A friend of mine is training for a half marathon too, what is the article you are talking about? She may be interested in it too. I have told her about MFP but she has yet to join.
  • MorganLeighRN
    MorganLeighRN Posts: 411 Member
    I have been training for a half marathon for the past 3 weeks and just read an article in the recent women's running magazine. They had examples of meals for training, race day and the day after. I started the training meal and have done that for 3 days so far. It is made for 1500 cal/day. I am having a hard time eating all of this food and have actually missed a snack or 2 on all of the days. These are usually an apple or the almonds. According the MFP I am still ok with my calorie intake and exercise but have not yet done one of my long runs. Weight wise the diet helped me break my plateau which is great so I would like to continue this. Any thoughts on being about 300 cal below the diet's recommended calorie intake? MFP has me set at a 1200 cal/day anyways. I think what is happening is that I am likely not eating back all my calories from workouts. Some have written here about a 500 cal deficit for weight loss. Thanks. hopefully you can see the meals on my log.

    I am training for a marathon (will do a half marathon as part of my training), on my long run days (8-20 miles) I will usually eat around 1500-2000 calories. If you only eat the 1200 calories that MFP has allotted you, you could be hurting your body. Play around with it. The more you run, the more you will end up eating, but make sure that it is nutritional food.
    I try to eat around 200 grams of carbs before my long runs. You need to make sure that you are fueling your body correctly. Here is a great website on diets for marathon runners http://www.marathon-training-program.com/diet-for-marathon-runners.html

    Good luck! Feel free to add me as a friend!
  • SRH7
    SRH7 Posts: 2,037 Member
    oh and 1200 is much to low if you are working out a lot.
    You might be interested in checking this out.

    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

    Everyone is different but I truly do believe that eating too little will slow your metabolism and your process.

    Agreed. You should be eating to at least your BMR plus exercise calories. Need those calories to fuel you through your training.

    If you are having trouble then get in extra calories through things like milk (best recovery drink - the protein will help prevent aches and pains), nut butters, a spoon of coconut oil in your coffee, nuts, snack on eggs etc. Even protein shakes might help to boost you closer to your numbers and help your muscles repair themselves while training.

    And I always eat more carbs when doing more than an hour's exercise (usually running or hiking) - so don't be afraid of having potatoes, rice, pasta, grains etc.

    Good luck with the training!
  • sevsmom
    sevsmom Posts: 1,172 Member
    Are you training as a part of a weight loss program or are you training to run competitively? Most articles in running magazines are geared toward the dedicated runner looking for any and all edges. However, if you are running in order to lose weight. . .you may find those articles less than helpful. I usually try to glean one food or recipe and try to incorporate into my weekly food rotation. But, each person is different and your current effort should determine your caloric intake. Once you start buring 700-1200 calories during your runs, you'll definitely need to figure out how to "eat all that food". (Sorry. . .foreign concept. I could eat 24 hours a day.) You can't eat 12-1500 calories and burn off 1200 and expect to stay healthy.

    Good luck at your first half. I ran mine last year in May @ age 40 with less than a year of running under my belt. I had NO idea what to expect. It was fun. . . hard, but fun! I'm gearing up for #3 this May and I'm looking at hitting a PR!!

    When you get closer to race time, I'd start practicing your pre and during race hydration and fueling. Don't wait until race day to try new things. It's entirely too awkward!

    Go get it!!
  • TinaDay1114
    TinaDay1114 Posts: 1,328 Member
    I wouldn't force yourself to eat if you aren't hungry. I sometimes have very low nets due to a big race, such as a half marathon, and simply don't need to eat back all the calories. I go by how my body feels. If you feel as if you have enough energy to run well, then stay the course. If you feel weak or lack energy before/during the run, then you surely need to fuel more.

    You will be increasing mileage which will exert much more energy and require more fuel (food). Keep this mind as you continue to train. I wouldn't follow the diet per se, but rather look at it as a guide for nutrition ideas. Caloric intake varies vastly among runners. I'm 5'1 and weigh 109. I require a lot less fuel/energy than most of my running friends due to my petite stature.

    Since you are training for this type of endurance race, I would not focus so much on creating a calorie deficit, but rather on nutrition and how your body responds to a consistent prolonged cardio activity.

    ^^ This. Other than eating more in a day, I really didn't change my eating habits much during my training last spring. I did have to add a protein/carb snack on my long runs (after an hour), and I used homemade "honey milk balls" (a combination of peanut butter, nonfat dry milk, oatmeal and honey), and one of those would get me through to the 12-13 mile marker.

    Just trust your body, and listen to it. It's scary to just "trust" when you've never trained before -- I was the same way. But you really do know what's right for you.
  • sheepiegail
    sheepiegail Posts: 56 Member
    I am only 5'3 so that is why MFP has me set at 1200 cal/day since I do also want to lose some lbs. I had been at a plateau for months now and that was with runs of 5-6 miles 3 times a week. I did a long run of 8 miles last Saturday before I started the runner's diet. I have to say I was not tired during the run just after which is normal since that was a 2 mile jump for me. I was not any hungrier after either. Runner's world has a book called the Runner's diet that I am going to get since the article only gave one days meal plan for the day which may get boring after a few weeks. I just don't think that I can physically eat more than I am. As of now I feel that I am eating all the time with these snacks which I have never done before. It is forcing me to eat when I am not really hungry.
  • SRH7
    SRH7 Posts: 2,037 Member
    I forgot to say - also consider ignoring what MFP says and set your own goals. MFP is notorious for setting calorie goals that are far too low for most people.

    Either try eating your TDEE-20% - see http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html

    Or have a look for more detail here: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12
  • SRH7
    SRH7 Posts: 2,037 Member
    I did have to add a protein/carb snack on my long runs (after an hour), and I used homemade "honey milk balls" (a combination of peanut butter, nonfat dry milk, oatmeal and honey), and one of those would get me through to the 12-13 mile marker.

    They sound amazing! Could be perfect for six-hour hikes - going to Google to find out how to make (or is it just try it and see?)
  • Codefox
    Codefox Posts: 308 Member
    I don't even try and eat back my calories as a runner. I eat when I'm hungry...but while I was building up for my marathon in January, there were days where I'd run deficits of over 1,000 calories. All that happened was I lost all the weight I wanted to lose fairly easily 8) Its actually hard to keep up with your caloric needs once you really start running a lot. I don't know where you are on your runs yet but on days where I do a long run on the weekend (11 or more miles) I just know I can eat pretty much what I want and not worry...and really that I should be eating a fair amount.

    I think when you're dong that much activity, tracking your food and weighing yourself often is the best way to evaluate if you need to eat more or less. I have never gained weight while training 8)
  • 32mandy1979
    32mandy1979 Posts: 4 Member
    I do have a question for you. How often do you run? and how far do you run? This is my issue. MFP has me at 1230 or something like that. I run anywhere between 3-4 days a week and distance ranges between 3-6 miles. There are times though too that I don't run at all (all depends on my husband and kids schedule) Some days I have problems getting in all of my calories, then other days I have a bottomless pit. Any suggestions?

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