Managing Hunger While Marathon Training

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mrsher2
mrsher2 Posts: 14 Member
in Food and Nutrition
It's that time in my marathon training where I am hungry all the time (last long run was 15 miles). I don't eat well so I know I need to eat more protein and fiber (fruits, veggies, etc). But I am hungry ALL THE TIME. I eat a meal, get full, and am hungry an hour or two later. Any runners have suggestions with how to cope?

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  • sjtreely
    sjtreely Posts: 1,014 Member
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    I wasn't hungry all the time like you're describing, but I was certainly hungry the day after my long run when I was training for my full marathon.

    Best I can suggest is stagger proteins throughout your day. Drink some chocolate milk when you're done with your long run and some meat and/or cheese. Of course the long run pizza was in there a few times, too.
  • getsveltEagain
    getsveltEagain Posts: 1,063 Member
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    Bump.... the day I do my long runs I am hungry every two hours!? :grumble:
  • calderst
    calderst Posts: 222 Member
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    I don't have any answers for you-- my marathon is Saturday and I didn't figure it out for myself but I didn't gain. I actually stopped keeping the journal for a little while because I was obsessing way too much about the numbers and the more I obsessed, the more I wanted to eat because I was thinking about it. It's an awful cycle to get sucked into. I would also think "I burned 2000+ calories yesterday and didn't eat them all so I can eat all this stuff today...." This led to me indorporating junk food back into my life. Not good.

    You MUST listen to your body. If you are legitimately hungry, feed yourself. If you aren't hungry and have extra calories, don't stress about it.

    1 thing I found was that having plenty of protein right after the run (I'm usually not hungry right away and then I get a little nauseous, so this took some experimenting). I tried a protein shake once and it kept me from feeling like I was starving the next day but I have trouble digesting the powders. Cottage Cheese became my go-to snack. I would eat a serving as I was rehydrating and then have a meal a little while later when my tummy recovered from the jostling.

    When I began my "taper," I started tracking again. I'm probably not going to track this weekend (I don't want to feel guilty for my traditional pre-race peanut butter pancakes) but I will pick it back up on Sunday and plan on staying the course.

    Best of luck to you with your training and your event!
  • CoraGregoryCPA
    CoraGregoryCPA Posts: 1,087 Member
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    I would think you need to eat. Drink protein shakes (EAS Myoplex RTD shake-300 calories and 42 grams of protein) or complex carbs (?). If you are running very long distances and hungry, then eat. You obviously aren't eating because you are bored. You're hungry because your body needs fooooooood! Give it to your body.

    I prefer blueberries and bananas to help after long runs, however marathon training provides a lot more than just that! Good Luck and very nice job!!!!!!

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