Issue link: http://savannah.uberflip.com/i/1512281
26 Andrea Manley, RD Clinical Dietitian at St. Joseph's/Candler Ultra Marathoner Nutrition and running: choosing the appropriate balance of carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fluid can take an athlete from second place to first or just improve a beginning runner's time by minutes. Pre-race and post-race day nutrition are just as important as pre-race day training. Here's what every runner needs to know about fueling so they can run their race fully fueled and ready to go. Carbohydrates can play an important role in preparation for competition. Carbohydrate intake in the days before competition mainly replenishes muscle glycogen stores, where carbohydrate intake in the hours before competition optimizes liver glycogen stores. When you eat a bowl of spaghetti, most of the carbohydrates are stored as glycogen in your body's most easily accessible form of energy, but it's not the only source. During longer runs you burn both glycogen and fat. But fat is not as efficient, which means your body has to work harder to convert into fuel. In other words, eating adequate amount of carbohydrates prior to a race can give you adequate energy to reach goals. The goal is to top off glycogen stores for race day. However, "carb loading" and overeating carbohydrates, especially high fiber carbohydrates, can cause bloating and GI upset on race day. I would recommend not skipping carbohydrates throughout your race week, however, you do not need to eat a large dinner of high fiber carbohydrates the night before a race. If you include adequate carbohydrates daily the week before a race and taper off your training days before the race your glycogen stores should be adequate. The night prior to a race, yes, it is good to eat a dinner higher in complex carbohydrates, however, don't eat so much that you have GI distress on race day. High heat and humidity caused problems for runners at the Savannah Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, so hydration may be a very good area of focus. December is usually a cooler month; however, you never know here in Savannah. High temperatures and high humidity can cause some very risky running conditions. The body may lose up to five pounds of fluid in one race. If the body becomes severely dehydrated your body can go through kidney failure, severe muscle damage, and even death. Adequate hydration, without over-hydration is crucial. Overhydrating your body can also cause hyponatremia (low blood sodium levels) and in extreme cases has caused death in some marathons. People running longer distances (such as the Double Pump) may want to alternate their fluid of choice from water to an electrolyte-containing drink to be sure they are getting adequate electrolytes as well as hydration if it is a hot day. NUTRITION AND RUNNING