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First afternoon race - not sure how to fuel


javajane3

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I am running my first 10K this weekend and the race is at 5:00pm. I have never run in the afternoon - I always run first thing in the morning on an empty stomach (no matter the distance) because that is what works for me. I am trying to figure out if I should just eat normally and by 5:00 my stomach will be empty or if I should fuel with a protein and fat before the race? Wondering if anyone has had a similar experience and can share their advice....TIA

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For my afternoon training and racing I eat a bigger M1, then a veggie-lite M2 with a small serve of starch. Skip fibrous veggies so they aren't digesting while you run. I tend to eat M2 around 1-2pm, and my stomach is pretty empty by 5pm.

 

As for a preWO fuel, I go by feel. If I'm in a long training week I'll add some carbs before the run to be sure the glycogen is topped off. But if I'm rested I can run OK without eating. It's key to take into account the fact that you will be doing race effort, so you might want some carbs right before the race to have that ready energy, as fat burning is not ideal for race efforts. For me, it's a banana or small potato. For you, it's what you like for carbs. This is an individual choice based on your running experience so far. 

 

Then be sure to pack a protein-rich postWO for after the race because race efforts can be muscle damaging. Then have a great post race M3. Plan and if possible pack these ahead of time so you don't have to rest, shower, recover, celebrate, AND prepare a perfect recovery meal. 

 

When I ran track in high school, my mom would pack foods for me to bring on the bus ride. It had to be able to survive being in a locker and un-refrigerated all day. It was typically a Cool Whip container of animal cookies, and a Nutrigrain cereal bar or Poptarts. Tells you a lot about how we ate back in those days. I had terrible energy and stomach cramps, I started to hate track because I thought it was from running! Now I know better, it was the food :)

 

Best of luck on the 10K, and I hope this helps!!

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