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What do marathon runners eat?



I'm training for the Chicago Marathon right now. My life is eating, sleeping and breathing marathon training and depending on when you ask me about it, I'm either lovin' it or hatin' it. It has been a brutally hot summer and that has made training feel really hard. I feel like I haven't gained ANY fitness since I started training which is obviously not true, but that's what heat will do to ya.

The other thing heat will do to ya is kill your appetite. It is HARD to feel adequate hunger cues when you've just finished a run in 90*F heat. But let me tell ya something about marathon training - you NEED the calories to survive it without injury & if you're trying to make true progression in how fast you run.


So what do marathon runners eat anyway??


Marathon runners need protein, fiber rich carbs, and plenty of healthy fats to keep their body in tip top shape throughout training.


Example of what I eat in a day as a marathon training dietitian


Breakfast- High fiber cereal with raisins, chia seeds, whey protein powder and milk
Lunch - Crackers, bean salad, cheese and baby carrots
Snack- Protein shake and grapes
Sometimes another snack - Greek yogurt & a scoop of nutella or almond butter
Dinner- This changes up a lot, but tonight for dinner we are having cannelini beans with broccoli rabe and lots of olive oil & parm cheese

You see I eat a lot of high fiber and high protein foods. I did not include in that little summary by pre- or mid workout fuel or sports drinks which I'll take on days I am doing hard workouts or long runs.


I eat a lot. And while my fiance eats even more than I do, all 5'2" of me was KNOWN for eating more than some of the men I dated before I met by fiance. I eat a lot. Gender norms be damned.


As a dietitian specializing in running nutrition for women, I realized that the biggest barrier for many women was getting over the FEAR of eating a lot.


So many women are ashamed to eat more than their partner or to eat more than a salad for lunch. SO MANY WOMEN want to run faster but their afraid carbs will make them fat. So MANY women want to run longer and have AWESOME energy, but they won't give themselves permission to eat the food they need to HAVE AWESOME ENERGY while running all the miles.


Are you that woman?!


Because if you are. I encourage you to set up a time to chat with me on the phone. Let's just talk about your goals & how I can help you give yourself permission to fuel your body the way it deserves to be fueled.


If you're curious - then set up a call with me here.

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