Top 5 Nutrition Tips for New Marathoners
I remember when I trained for my first marathon, back in 2013, nearly 10 years ago! I chose the Las Vegas Rock ’n Roll Marathon as my debut race because I thought, “Well, I’ll probably only do one marathon in my life, why not make it a fun one!?”
As a new marathoner, everything thing was new to me. The distance, the food, the terminology, the clothes, the shoes, literally everything, but I love learning and I believe it’s important to continue to be “new” at something throughout your life.
I joined a running group held out of a local running store because I knew I had a lot to learn. I was fortunate to have a special woman take me under her wing and impart a lot of her knowledge on me. I am forever grateful to her because there weren’t many other people running at the “back of the pack” to answer all my questions. I learned a lot that summer and every training cycle since.
That year every Sunday was a new distance milestone I had never run before. Every gel I tried was equally gross and nauseating. Every outfit I tried ended with some form of chafing in some of the strangest places! With those distances, summer training and inexperience, it all equaled to painful, stinging showers and crawling into bed so exhausted I could never make plans on a Sunday!
I’ve now run consistently for over 10 years. It has also been the reason I embarked on my nutrition education journey. I wanted to better understand what I could be doing to optimize my training so that I can continue to run into old age.
What I recognized over these last few years, is the number of people picking up distance running, which is so amazing! Running is one of the more accessible sports, can be fairly inexpensive and COVID-friendly (meaning it’s easy to do alone).
However, with all that time spent running alone and for a new runner, there are less run-groups and clubs to interact with and ask questions to.
Biggest nutrition lessons for those embarking on their first marathon or half marathon journeys.
Long runs are fuelled runs
Most people would never take their car on a long road trip with a quarter of a tank of gas, so why people believe they can run optimally without eating before a workout, is lost on me! Like cars, we need fuel in our tanks too! It’s just that our fuel comes in the form of food and the more nutrient dense, the better!
Eat enough
While I’m not generally a proponent for counting calories and macronutrient, I do believe it’s important to have an idea of what you need. Most people don’t know what they need to simply be a functioning human, let alone a fuelled athlete! Understanding your caloric intake to just stay alive and then observing if the food you’re eating is meeting those needs. If it’s not, it’s time to rethink and revisit your eating habits. Under-fuelling can result in cramping, fatigue, injury and illness, all of which are a sure way to DNF your way to the finish line. Working with a nutritionist can help you with this and provide personal guidance to ensure you’re meeting your needs no matter what the training plan has in store.
There are alternatives to “gels” to fuel your runs
To this day I cannot eat a gel without gagging and so I stay away. The sports nutrition world has come a long way in offering a variety, that is no longer in gel form. There are many other forms of easy foods that are not in gel form that you can experiment with on those long runs.
Carbs are your friend dear runner!
Carbohydrates are our main fuel source! Don’t restrict, make better choices in the form of complex carbs like sweet potatoes, brown rice, fruits and veggies, but know there is also a time and a place for breads, pasta and potatoes!
Hydration is the most important nutrition factor
Always be drinking, primarily in the form of H2O, but do not forget those electrolytes!!
If you’re serious about really understanding how nutrition can make your break your marathon or half training and race, day I invite you to join me in a free discovery call to discuss how I can help you achieve your goals!
Ps. If you didn’t already figure it out, Las Vegas isn’t the best place to run a “fun” full marathon…most of it is spent in the dark on the outskirts of Vegas, but I would recommend the half marathon where you finish on the strip being cheered on like the rock start you are!
