Carb Loading

One aspect of running marathons that I had trouble with early on was nutrition. My first marathon was a total disaster. I thought that carb-loading was simply having a big dinner the night before the race. I ate a big burger with fries the night before the race and by mile 18 the next day I was sick to my stomach and run-walking.

Eventually, I learned what carb-loading was and how to do it properly. Each race allowed me to fine-tune my nutrition strategy for the day before the race and during the race. My 7th marathon was the turning point where it finally started to work. Last weekend I ran my 9th marathon and it could not have been more successful nutrition-wise. No feeling of starving and no feeling sick even though it was my 3rd fastest marathon.

Here is what I did. The plan was to consume over 600 grams of carbs and minimize everything else. Especially fiber. Every meal was planned out before hand in a spreadsheet. This allowed me to plugin and calculate various foods and see the nutrition details.

The Day Before The Race

The first food everyone mentions for carb-loading and there is a good reason for that. The ratio of carbs to fiber is 10 to 1! However, flour tortillas and rice both have an even higher ratio. Thus, I employed all of these in my plan. In fact, these are the keystones of each meal.

The gin and tonic will obviously raise some eyebrows but it totally fits in with the plan and helped me get to bed early. Also, (warning, this may be TMI) a little alcohol in the evening helps speed up certain functions in the morning. This is important so you do not spend vital minutes during the race dealing with it.

	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Fiber	Calcium
	kcal	g	g	g	g	%
Breakfast
Black coffee, 3 cup	7	0	0	1	0	14
Smucker’s – Natural Peanut Butter, 4 Tbs	380	14	32	16	6	4
Smuckers – Strawberry Jelly, 4 Tbsp (20g)	200	52	0	0	0	0
Sara Lee – Whole Wheat Toast, 4 slice	240	48	2	12	8	8
Spaghetti, Cooked, 2 cup	440	56	3	16	5	2
Simply Balanced – Spaghetti sauce, 248 g	140	22	4	4	6	0
	827	114	34	29	14	26
Lunch
Spaghetti, Cooked, 2 cup	440	56	2	16	5	2
Simply Balanced – Spaghetti sauce, 248 g	140	22	4	4	6	0
	1,160	216	13	40	22	4
Dinner
Chipotle – 13″ Tortilla, 2 Serving	580	88	18	14	4	40
Chipotle – White Cilantro Rice, 16 oz	740	136	16	14	4	8
Chipotle – Hot Salsa, 4 fl oz	60	8	0	0	2	0
Chipotle – Romanie Lettuce, 5 oz	20	4	0	2	2	4
	1,400	236	34	30	12	52
Night Cap
Bombay Sapphire Gin & Tonic, 12 z glass	338	64	28	0	0	0
Silk – Almond Milk Light, 1.5 cup	60	8	3	2	0	68
Cheerios – Honey Nut Cherrios, 1.5 cup	220	44	3	4	4	20
	618	116	34	6	4	88

Totals	4,005	682	115	105	52	170
Your Daily Goal	2,318	348	65	87	30	100
Remaining	-1,687	-334	-50	-18	-22	-70

	Calories	Carbs	Fat	Protein	Fiber	Calcium
	kcal	g	g	g	g	%

The Morning Before The Race

The only thing that I can eat before running is toast with peanut butter and jelly. It is the only thing I have found that does not cause a side ache. So, I started the day with 4 slices of toast with jelly. No peanut butter.

During The Race

I packed a Spi-Belt with 3 normal GU gels and 2 GU Roctane gels which offer a caffeine boost. I save the Roctanes for the late miles. I ate the regular gels at mile 9, 14 and 17. I also picked up another gel at the 18 mile aid station. I ate the Roctane gels at miles 20 and 23. I crossed the finish line with two regular gels left over. In addition to the gels, I also drank Gatorade at every single aid station. At the finish, I grabbed a fruit cup, a banana and a bottle of Gatorade.

That was it. The strategy worked flawlessly. I might experiment with planning meals for TWO days prior to the race instead of just one but I really do not think it would provide much benefit.

I did not have to eat right away after the race but a few hours later, I went to a brewery and had an Impossible burger with fries and a couple beers.