“To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art.”
- La Rochefoucauld

Well-said, French guy. I couldn’t agree more. One of the things I didn’t expect to be such an issue when I first started training was nutrition. I don’t want to get into the specifics of which foods are scientifically proven to do what, mainly because I’d be out of my depth after letting you know that Belushi lied – chocolate donuts and cigarettes aren’t the breakfast of champions.

Instead I’ll just tell you what has and hasn’t worked for me, as well as how I eat before and during a run.

I’ve tried to maintain a fairly low-carbohydrate diet for a while. This means that I eat a lot of poultry, seafood, lean meats, beans, vegetables, some whole grains and low-fat dairy. I try to avoid sugary foods, potatoes and breads that aren’t 100 percent whole grain. That’s not to say that I don’t enjoy pasta or a pizza every now and then, but those instances are the exceptions to my rule. I still have to satisfy those cravings once in a while. Plus, my wife is half Italian, which means she would consider the elimination of pasta and pizza from my diet as legitimate grounds for divorce.

In the weeks leading up to the start of my training program, I adjusted my diet to include eating some more carbohydrates – primarily fruits with some more whole grains mixed in there every few days – but the bulk of what I ate was still proteins. I knew I was going to need some carbohydrates for energy and to replenish myself after grueling training sessions, but I completely underestimated what it would take to train. During my very first weekend distance run, I found out the hard way that having a low-carbohydrate diet when you’re in training is as good an idea as trying to ride a bicycle blindfolded. Three miles into my four-mile run, I completely bonked. I just didn’t have the carbohydrate reserves I needed. I felt like Superman after Lex Luthor put the kryptonite necklace on him (and yes, I realize that I just compared myself to Superman… I promise it won’t happen again). In order to finish the distance, I had to grab a couple spoonfuls (ok, fingerfuls) of peanut butter and a granola bar, and even then I had to walk more than half of that last mile.

Some research and a quick poll of a few of my runner friends confirmed that I was a complete moron and had absolutely no clue what I was doing. They all told me I needed to load up on carbs, and they all said it in a disappointed and condescending tone that indicated I frankly should’ve known better. After the bonking debacle I tried to maintain a low-carbohydrate diet through the week and then compensate for it during my training runs. That was a little better but still presented some challenges. I would eat three Power Bars over the course of six miles and have a full stomach by the time I was done. Too heavy. Then I tried eating a piece of fruit during a run. Not enough nourishment. Then I switched from three Power Bars to two Clif Bars. Too heavy again… After a few weeks of trial and error, I figured out how to adjust my diet to have the energy to complete the mileage on my training plan without feeling heavy or sluggish. Here’s what works for me:

• Cross-training days: My cross-training is lower-impact and is pretty much always on my bicycle rather than in a pool, so I’m okay with my regular low-carbohydrate diet. But I do try to have fruit and/or a Clif Bar about an hour before getting on the bike.
• Tempo run days: For me it’s as simple as eating the right amount of carbohydrates in the hours leading up to the tempo runs. If my run is going to be early in the morning then I’ll have a plate of whole wheat pasta the night before. If my run is going to be in the evening then I’ll have whole wheat pasta for lunch that same day. If the distance is going to be more than a few miles then I’ll carbo-load for two meals. I also always have a Clif Bar about an hour before any run longer than four miles.
• Distance run days: My pre-run diet for distance runs is exactly the same as it is for tempo runs. But when I got up to the 8-mile and 10-mile runs, I had a new issue…  I would feel like Steve Prefontaine (the next best comparison I could think of was Bruce Jenner, but I don’t wanna go there) for the first six or seven miles, but after that it was difficult to maintain my energy level. It seems that my carb-loading had gotten me to the point where I was well-prepared for the intermediate distances, but for anything more than that I was hitting the wall again.

I needed to know what I should be eating during the long runs and I needed to figure it out quickly. This was no time for further experimentation, so I called on three of my runner friends for some expert advice. Randy, Kara and Christa all said the same thing: buy some GU. For those who don’t know, GU is an energy gel. One packet contains only 100 calories but has ingredients that prevent “bonkage” (that term is trademarked and is not to be used without express written permission of Eric Motter, Inc.).

The general consensus was that GU was the best thing out there because a pouch of it would fit in my pocket, it would be light in my stomach once ingested, and it would give me the energy boost to avoid future bonks. According to my friends, the only downside of GU was that it tasted like liquid evil. One told me to have Gatorade handy to wash the taste out of my mouth as quickly as possible. Another told me to mentally go to my happy place before opening a packet. I was picturing myself as one of those people on Survivor who has to eat a huge live insect without spitting it out, but I was desperate so I was willing to try it.

I went to Second Sole and started asking questions. I learned I could choose between several caffeinated or decaffeinated flavors. I like my caffeine, but there’s a limit. A few years ago I didn’t drink coffee at all. Then I started drinking it with tons of cream and sugar. Then I started drinking it black. Now I’m to the point where if I didn’t have water I could probably just chew coffee grounds and be happy. That said, I didn’t think it would be good for me to ingest caffeine during a long run. Early on in my training, I tried having a cup of coffee a couple hours before a run and felt too jittery to finish. I ended up leaving Second Sole with a couple packets of Lemon Sublime GU without caffeine.

A few days later, at the 4-mile mark on my next 8-mile run, I pulled out a packet, ripped the top off, squeezed the contents into my mouth and focused all of my Chi on not throwing up… no problem. Fortunately my friends were right about the energy boost but wrong about the taste. If you like the filling in Hostess fruit pies, then you’ll like GU. And those pouches really work. My energy level didn’t drop through the entire run. Over a few weeks of training, I got comfortable with having a GU packet about every four miles or so, and went through 4 packets in my first half-mary. I’ll probably go through three or four packets for the Nationwide Better Health Columbus Half Marathon.

Question for you readers – How do you adjust your diet when you’re training?  Does it change for long runs relative to short runs?  What do you eat during a race?