How many miles will you go before you fuel midrun? Do you always carry water on shorter runs?
mkakids
Posts: 1,913 Member
Just curious what the average seems to be. I had a conversation with a running friend and we are on opposite ends of the spectrum.
She carries water for every run (even a 1 miler), eats before each run and fuels every 20 minutes regardless of the length of the run.
I don't carry water with me for anything under 5 miles. I also don't fuel mid run. If I'm running less than 4 miles, I go out in the morning fasted. If its more than 4 miles I generally eat a granola bar or banana before I leave.
I know everyone will differ - just wondering how other people do it!
She carries water for every run (even a 1 miler), eats before each run and fuels every 20 minutes regardless of the length of the run.
I don't carry water with me for anything under 5 miles. I also don't fuel mid run. If I'm running less than 4 miles, I go out in the morning fasted. If its more than 4 miles I generally eat a granola bar or banana before I leave.
I know everyone will differ - just wondering how other people do it!
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You're right. Answers are going to be all over the map on this one. For me, I rarely carry water on runs under 12 miles, unless it's very hot out. Fueling before runs, again, rarely for anything under 12 if it's a morning run. Longer AM runs, I usually eat a banana or an energy bar and always have a cup of coffee. As far as midrun fueling, I usually only do it during marathon training runs to test it out. I usually carry something with me in case of emergency, but I rarely use it. The "less is more" approach works better for me because I have digestive issues. Instead I try eat extra calories the day before.
However, I do fuel during a marathon, about every 45 minutes.0 -
I never fuel at all for any runs (not even 20+ miles), except 4 gels during a marathon, and one or two gels on a pre-marathon training run just to make sure they still agree with me. I sometimes have a sip of water in between reps during a track session. I don't bother drinking on any other runs, though, unless it is really hot. Which it never is, because I live in Scotland.
I think it depends on (a) what you're used to and (b) what your training goals are though. I used to only do short runs (3-5 miles) so never bothered fuelling, and by the time I decided to build up to longer distances it wasn't very hard to just add a mile or two at a time so I didn't need anything extra. I like not having to bother.0 -
I never fuel at all for any runs (not even 20+ miles), except 4 gels during a marathon, and one or two gels on a pre-marathon training run just to make sure they still agree with me. I sometimes have a sip of water in between reps during a track session. I don't bother drinking on any other runs, though, unless it is really hot. Which it never is, because I live in Scotland.
Exactly the same for me. We must be singing from the same hymn sheet.
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lporter229 wrote: »You're right. Answers are going to be all over the map on this one. For me, I rarely carry water on runs under 12 miles, unless it's very hot out. Fueling before runs, again, rarely for anything under 12 if it's a morning run. Longer AM runs, I usually eat a banana or an energy bar and always have a cup of coffee. As far as midrun fueling, I usually only do it during marathon training runs to test it out. I usually carry something with me in case of emergency, but I rarely use it. The "less is more" approach works better for me because I have digestive issues. Instead I try eat extra calories the day before.
However, I do fuel during a marathon, about every 45 minutes.
This is almost exactly how I do it.
Except lately I've been taking water on shorter runs because it's been really hot. I actually ran out of water on a 9 mile run this week and had to find a water fountain to refill my bottle. But normally 12 miles is when I start carrying water.0 -
Water totally depends on the temperatures and sun exposure, but for the most part none unless it's 12+ miles.
I only worry about fueling for my long runs. I'll have some cereal and yogurt that morning an hour or two before I start. Because my long runs these days are almost exclusively on the trails and there is little cover and can get hot, I always bring my pack with me with a bladder full of water, plus something like a Clif bar and 20oz (0.6L for those in the civilized world) of an endurance fuel with electrolytes.0 -
You live in Scotland too, Carson?!
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Oh, that really depends for me.
I HATE being thirsty..... but usually don't take water if the run is shorter than 7 miles. UNLESS I'm thirsty when I start out. If I'm thirsty and I'm like, "Oh I need to go for a run now but I also think I haven't had anything to drink in 4 hours, whoops!" I'll take a handheld out with me on a 4 miler.
If a run is more than 2 hours long, I'll take snacks. Then I eat at 1 hr, 1hr45, then whenever I'm hungry which after 2 hours of running is pretty much constantly. For the 2-hour runs, whether or not I take food depends on what I've eaten. If I'm heading out right after dinner, no way am I taking fuel. But if I haven't eaten in hours, I'll grab a granola bar.0 -
I recently moved to a hot humid climate and have been a bit more careful about taking water after getting into the dangerous zone.
I do take gels and water during tempo runs because I want to mimic marathon race conditions. running over 13 miles without food or water takes me too long to recover so I try to plan for that. It doesn't take long to discover water fountains on running routes in cities.
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I don't carry water for runs under 10 miles. On longer runs like 8-12 I'll just plan the route so that I stop by a library or park with a water fountain. The only times I've ever carried water were for 13 mile runs.
The only time I've ever eaten during a run was the full marathon I ran. Random bits of fruit or whatever people were handing out to runners. I regret grabbing the doughnut hole from that kid, nearly choked on it and it was sooo dry in my already dry mouth.0 -
In the winter I never carry water even on the long run. This summer we had days at 5:30 am that the temperature was 84 with 92% humidity. I tried a 14 miler one day and lost 7 lbs of water weight which was 4% of my body weight. It made me feel miserable all day so I just just got in the habit of drinking 16-20oz of water every 6 miles when the temp & humidity is really high. I typically never fuel mid-run unless it's my last 20 mile run where I'll treat it more as a dry run for the marathon and take 3 gels at 5, 10 & 15.0
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I don't carry water for less than 1 1/2 run. I just started following Racing Weight which suggests 30-60 carbs per hour for exercise longer than 2 hours. It was pretty much what I did during my half Ironman training. I did eat a lot more during a run than I would during that training because I would need to race day and really wanted to make sure my stomach could handle it.0
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On training runs of up to 20-25km I don't usually bring anything. If I'm running more than that I'll bring some water and maybe some food (depending how much more).
During ultras I start drinking fluids right away and sip just about every km; I eat 100-150 calories every 45 minutes.0 -
It depends. I rarely take water or anything to eat on runs less than 10 miles (unless the dewpoint is in the mid to high 70's and then I might take a small bottle if I'm going over 6 miles). I often run at lunchtime and so the temperature has been close to 90°F until just recently.
I realize I've been running without eating on runs up to 15 miles. Again, since I've typically running at lunch, I had breakfast around 6 AM and haven't eaten much of anything for the previous 6 hours. As I get closer to a marathon, I begin taking in gels at a rate that approximately fits my plan.0 -
I take water on my mid-week early morning 10 miler if the temps are mid-70s or higher, just a small 10 oz bottle. This is mostly because I'm so dehydrated in the morning, and I roll out of bed, into running clothes, and out the door for my mid-week runs, so I need a bit of water to keep myself from being dead Other than that, I only take water on my long runs on Sunday, and then I'll go through 2-3 10 oz bottles (I carefully route my runs to pass some drinking fountains).
As for fuel, I only fuel for my long runs. I do my mid-week long runs totally fasted. Before Sunday long runs of 14+ miles, I drink a cup of coffee beforehand and eat a piece of bread with jam and butter. On the run, I drink water and eat dried pineapple and cranberries, and add a gel or two for 18-20 mile runs. I don't eat anything til 5.5-6 miles into the run (~45-55 minutes). I'll eat the dried fruit every 2 or 2.5 miles because it's only about 25-50 calories at a time. I'll take a gel after 1:30 or 1:45 and another around 2:30 (still eating fruit in between). It sounds complicated, but the fruit is yummy so I never forget to eat it, and it's nice not to lug a bunch of gels around anymore. So over the course of, say, 20 miles (because I did 20 today), I'll eat ~400 calories but eating them in smaller amounts throughout the run (rather than in 100 cal chunks every ~45 mins) helps keep me from bonking after 2.5 hours.0 -
Totally depends - on heat, distance, and time of day.
Unless it's super hot and/or humid I generally don't take water unless I'm running more than 10 miles. And even then, I often bring it but don't drink it. But I guess I feel like I should have it just in case.
Morning runs I typically just get out of bed and run unless I'm going more than 6 miles, especially on a weekday. If it's a weekend I might have a cup of coffee first. If I feel hungry when I wake up I'll eat a banana or a nutrigrain bar. If I'm running 10 miles or more I will try to get up early enough for a small breakfast a couple of hours before running. If time doesn't allow that, I'll eat a banana and plan a gu for around mile 5-6.
During runs 12 miles or more, I'll plan for a gu around mile 9 or 10. I'm not sure I really need it, but I think it's a mental pick-me-up. This is usually the only time I drink, unless it's wicked hot.0 -
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Just curious what the average seems to be. I had a conversation with a running friend and we are on opposite ends of the spectrum.
She carries water for every run (even a 1 miler), eats before each run and fuels every 20 minutes regardless of the length of the run.
I don't carry water with me for anything under 5 miles. I also don't fuel mid run. If I'm running less than 4 miles, I go out in the morning fasted. If its more than 4 miles I generally eat a granola bar or banana before I leave.
I know everyone will differ - just wondering how other people do it!
I generally don't carry water for anything under 6 - 8 miles even in the summer when it's 82 - 84 degrees in the morning. When it's cool outside ( 55 and lower) I probably won't carry water unless it's over 13 miles. I have a fuel belt that has two 6 oz water bottles and that's generally enough.
I always start my runs fasted and I typically only have fuel mid run if it's 16 miles or more. Even then I wait till mile 8 - 10 to have a gel. I only take a gel occasionally on longer runs just to practice for a race and make sure it still feels good while running. Half the time I'll only take one for the caffeine kick. My favorite has 100 mg of caffeine and I can tell a real difference about 15 minutes after taking one.0 -
Just curious what the average seems to be. I had a conversation with a running friend and we are on opposite ends of the spectrum.
She carries water for every run (even a 1 miler), eats before each run and fuels every 20 minutes regardless of the length of the run.
I don't carry water with me for anything under 5 miles. I also don't fuel mid run. If I'm running less than 4 miles, I go out in the morning fasted. If its more than 4 miles I generally eat a granola bar or banana before I leave.
I know everyone will differ - just wondering how other people do it!
I generally don't carry water for anything under 6 - 8 miles even in the summer when it's 82 - 84 degrees in the morning. When it's cool outside ( 55 and lower) I probably won't carry water unless it's over 13 miles. I have a fuel belt that has two 6 oz water bottles and that's generally enough.
I always start my runs fasted and I typically only have fuel mid run if it's 16 miles or more. Even then I wait till mile 8 - 10 to have a gel. I only take a gel occasionally on longer runs just to practice for a race and make sure it still feels good while running. Half the time I'll only take one for the caffeine kick. My favorite has 100 mg of caffeine and I can tell a real difference about 15 minutes after taking one.
Word for word, I could have made this post.0 -
I'm a noob atthe this running business (less than 5 months) so I'm still figuring it out. When I started I would bring water on every run until I read runners say they did bring water until it was a 10 miler or more. I tried that and realized I could also go without on the short runs.
Assuming no heat issues I won't bring water unless it's a 9 or 10 mile run or more. Actually what I do is take a 20 bottle of ice and I generally get cold water until it's gone. I love that! I go as long as I can without then sips every so often. When I run with my dog I bring water on every run for him and he always drinks first.
For food, if I remember, I start bringing something starting at 10 miles as well, mostly as practice for my upcoming half. Start with something around the 6 to 8 mile mark then every 3 or 4 miles after that. If found I don't like the chews but I do like the goo.
For some reason I can't explain, I also eat 5 whoppers (malted milk balls) before every run. Probably just a excuse to eat them.
Sunday I'll be doing 15 miles and taking 3 goo's.0 -
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Reading everyone else's methods, I feel a little pathetic. I bring some sort of fuel for 10+ mi runs, mainly since I'm still trying things out to find my optimal fuel for races. I eat before most Saturday runs which are my long runs and also my only morning runs. If it's less than 5 miles I won't eat but if it's more I'll have something.
I'll bring water for anything over 5 miles. I'm also relatively new to distance running (9 months) so maybe that's part of it? The water isn't really to drink but to mainly rinse my mouth, I'll bring drinking water for over 8 miles.0 -
FitFitzy - I'm similar to you but worse. I bring water on all runs over 4 miles and I actually drink the water. I'm a very salty sweater and I sweat a ton. I bring fuel on my long runs only 12+ miles, but I had a really bad midweek 10 mile run this week that made me think I might want to bring stuff with me on 10 mile runs as well.0
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Can i just say one thing: I am terrible about hydrating. I run 10 miles in the heat without drinking. I play tennis for hours and take a few sips on a few change-overs.
I got a kidney stone.
Now, I know they say that the development of kidney stones has more to do with what you take in (foods rich in oxalate, such as spinach) than what you do not take in (water). But I have very little family history and I am quite healthy. So, I cannot help but be a little suspicious that maybe my lizard tendencies had something to do with it.
Trust me, you do not want a kidney stone. Mine struck in the middle of the night. I felt what I thought was a cramp in my side. I figured cramps equal dehydrated. So I got out of bed and went downstairs for a drink.
By the time I got back up stairs, I could hardly move and I was vomiting. It was so painful, I thought it was the pain causing me to vomit. (Turns out, it is just another symptom, for another reason altogether) I knew what it was because of where I felt it, and so I called feebly to the wife to get up and help me to the hospital.
She looked at me, pitiful lump that I was on the bathroom floor, and basically accused me of being a wimp.
"You know," she says, "Jimmy-Lee [her coworker] had a kidney stone in the middle of the night. I think he drove himself to the hospital."
Fortunately, when I started to sob aloud, she relented.
The next day, she comes back and she says: "My bad. Turns out Jimmy was in such pain he could not even walk. So he crawled down the hallway of his apartment building, and down the stairs, and he knocked on the door of a complete stranger -- in the middle of the night -- and begged them to drive him to the hospital."
I know that, for myself, I try to stay quite hydrated, now.0 -
I have been experimenting with many different foods lately while running and just before running in order to see how my stomach handles it. I have also been running with 40 oz of water on all my runs but only because I am training for an ultra and will be carrying them during the race. Before this, I would not carry or eat anything on a run of under 90 minutes.0
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I don't take any water for runs less than 10 miles. For 10 - 20 miles, I take a 10 oz bottle, which I can refill. For +20 miles, I break out the hydration pack.
I don't generally carry gels for runs less than a half marathon. If I'm doing 15 miles or more, I take one gel after the first hour and one every 4 miles after that. If I'm doing a long, slow, training run on the weekend, I usually eat a bagel or toast while I'm running the first few miles (not for everyone, I know, but that's how I roll. And, if I could keep coffee warm in my water bottle, I'd probably take that, too.)0 -
I don't refuel until around the 10 mile mark. I could do a full half without refueling but it's just my preference to give me a little kick that last couple of miles. As to water. I take water on EVERY run. EVERY jog. EVERY walk around the corner. At 95 degrees and 85% humidity it is a must. I'm sweating before I even get out the door most days.0
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lporter229 wrote: »
lol, that's exactly what I thought!0 -
I don't bring water or plan on water stops unless I run over 13 miles. If I find a drinking fountain, that is always a plus. I usually won't stop unless I'm running over an hour. I've done 19 milers with no water before- it was cooler outside in the later fall/winter. I don't use any sort of "fuel" (to eat) on any training runs. During a race, I will drink water and/or gaterade every 2-4 miles.
I like to eat before runs over 2 hours 0 -
I experimented with a little snack on a recent long-ish run (for me) - 9 miles. I really don't like gels, etc., so I chose dried cranberries. It was awful. I can't handle chewing and running... I'm starting to reconsider gels.
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I experimented with a little snack on a recent long-ish run (for me) - 9 miles. I really don't like gels, etc., so I chose dried cranberries. It was awful. I can't handle chewing and running... I'm starting to reconsider gels.
Most gels are truly awful when you take them 15 minutes before a race. They taste a whole lot better 5 miles into a run, when my body really needs them.0
