half marathon

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tabithamonson
tabithamonson Posts: 1 Member
in Introduce Yourself
Hi! I am a 25 year old woman, and I have just started training for a half marathon. Has anyone else run one, and if so do you have any advice as to what I should eat while training? Thank you!

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  • ChrissiJ98
    ChrissiJ98 Posts: 7
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    I just did one last weekend (yay!) and it kind of depends on how competitively you are running. If you are taking it easy and not trying to shave time off of your best, it's not actually THAT important. However, make sure that you eat plenty of complex carbs the day before a long run so that you have enough energy to get through. I think one of the best pre-run foods is quinoa if you like it.

    If you're talking what to eat the day OF your long runs, that just depends on what you like and what your stomach can handle. I always ate oatmeal (and not always the whole bowl). My sister always eats one slice of whole grain bread with peanut butter on it.

    Also, don't forget to hydrate! I would drink gatorade the day before my runs, but that's partially because I have weird electrolyte imbalance issues. If you do fine with hydration and all that, it's not necessary.

    Good luck and congratulations!!!
  • azgoneca
    azgoneca Posts: 1
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    Hi! I've done six half marathons and didn't eat right for the first couple. I thought I could eat what I wanted and it ended up hurting my training. Continue to eat healthy and be careful not to consume more than you need. I recommend reading a running magazine or going to active.com to research. Good luck! You will feel so proud of yourself when you finish!
  • hottramp69
    hottramp69 Posts: 3 Member
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    Hi!

    Generally you will be running shorter runs in the week and then saving the longer runs for the weekend. In the week i would probably just snack a sensible time before your run on high carb low fat snacks such as dry breakfast cereal, low fat crisp breads, bananas etc. For your longer runs you may need to carb load to ensure that you have enough energy to complete your run. pasta is the obvious choice but stuff like baked potatoes and lentils are good to.

    How many carbs / calories you take on really depends on on how competitive you are planning to be however remember that although you may not cover the 13.1 mile distance whilst training you cant expect to be able to run 10 miles without putting the right stuff in your tummy!

    Hydration is really important to get right aim to drink throughout the day to keep your water levels up. whether you drink energy drinks or just water is up to you. my personal preference is just water.

    Distance running is the most rewarding thing i have done and i wish you all the best, Full marathon next??

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