Food Friday: Refuel After a Run or Workout

It’s Food Friday and we’re talking about refueling after your run or workout.  This post could easily be a Tuesday Training Tip, too!  I recently participated in the Grand Teton Relay 2015, running three five-mile legs with approximately eight hours to refuel and rest in between runs. With short recovery times it becomes important to make wise use of your food options. What works on the relay can also work well for refueling after your everyday workouts.

Here are a few of my favorite post run or workout options:

Hydrate: Cold water is always a great option. If you are looking to refuel while you hydrate, try a glass of cold chocolate milk. It quickly provides protein and carbohydrates – and it tastes like chocolate!

Bananas and Nuts:  Whether you spread peanut butter on a banana or dip it in sunflower seeds or chopped nuts, this quick snack provides potassium, carbohydrates, and protein.

Chocolate Berry Breakfast Smoothie: This cold smoothie tastes like a milkshake!  It’s packed with antioxidants and protein. Add a frozen banana to really power it up.  Find the recipe HERE.

Homemade Trail Mix:  I prefer almonds, dried cranberries, and chocolate chips.  Making your own trail mix allows you to customize it to suit your tastes and pocketbook.

Peanut Butter Energy Bites:  Okay, anything with peanut butter sounds good to me, but these simple to make energy bites may have saved me on the relay. Easy to store and easy to digest, they provided a quick source of fuel that tasted like a treat!

You don’t have to be participating in a relay or other endurance challenge to benefit from a healthy post run or workout snack.  Refueling is a key part of any healthy lifestyle. Find more healthy snack ideas on this page from NUTS.com.

Have a happy Food Friday!

Do you have a favorite healthy snack you would like to share?  Post it in the comments below!

Happy Running!

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Tuesday's Training Tip: Eat on the Run

This Tuesday Training Tip discusses fuel and the importance of learning to eat on the run.  When I began running at the age of 47, I could not drink within 45 minutes of a run. I ran first thing in the morning. I certainly couldn’t eat before a run and I never dreamed of eating during a run! Experience has taught me a few things.

As I began to embrace fun run opportunities, I learned that it was important to fuel before a race if you had any hopes of completing the race. Longer races require fueling during the run.  I would suggest practicing or training to eat on the run by fueling during your long run workouts. 

·         Try fueling on runs or workouts longer than an hour.  Eat something every 20-30 minutes.

·         Mimic race day water stops and fueling opportunities by studying the course and mapping your workout accordingly.

·         Try different fueling options on several long runs to find what works best for you. Experiment with gels, chews, and granola or dried fruits to discover your personal preference.

·         The best fuel is the one that agrees with you. Here are some of my favorites.

It will be tricky at first, but with practice you can learn to eat on the run and avoid hitting the wall or bonking on race day.


Tune in every Tuesday for more training tips and visit my Training Tips page to find all the tips you may have missed.

Question: Do you have a favorite workout fuel you would like to share?

 

Happy Running!

 

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Tuesday's Training Tip: Calories count!

Chocolate Berry Smoothie

If you are like me you often feel famished after a hard run or workout. You might even think that you have burned more calories than you actually did.  Don't make the mistake of overcompensating for calories burned.

The question is: How do you measure calories in vs. calories out?

The answer?  Use an app! 

My Fitness Pal has a calorie burn calculator that is easy to use.  Just plug in your activity, weight (I know, but it's a critical factor), and duration.  The calculator delivers calories burned.

If you want to get a little more involved, try Map My Run.  You can log in your food and activity and have a running total for the day.

Beyond being aware of your actual calorie burn, you can try hydrating after a workout and before emptying the snack drawer. DO NOT tell yourself, "I worked out. I deserve this ... slice of cake, ice cream cone, or chocolate bar." On the flip side, better to have burned a few calories before indulging than not at all!

Give calorie counting a try, at least until you get a feel for how many calories you really need for refueling. Let me know how it works for you!

Tune in every Tuesday for more training tips and visit my Training Tips page to find all the tips you may have missed.

Question: Do you have a training tip you would like to share?

Running Granny Green encourages women, especially grandmothers, to gain greater fitness by providing tips and inspiration to insure long years of joyful grand-parenting. The cookie recipes are a bonus!

Happy Running!

Carol - aka Running Granny Green

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Eating on the run

We all know that it is rude to just eat and run, but in the world of runners, eating while running is a must. When I began running six years ago I could eat nothing prior to a run and my stomach took some time to settle down after a run.  Even drinking water before a run was flirting with danger.  If it went down too close to run time it would most surely come back up.  I eventually learned to sip water mid-run and live.

While training for my first half marathon (read about it here) I learned that I had to eat something during longer workouts.  If I did not, my legs would quit on me.  So began the experimentation with gels and fruit snacks, protein bars and peppermint candy, and gum.  I settled on a combination of gels and fruit snacks. (Yes, regular kid tested by them at the grocery store fruit snacks.)

I have been training with a new running buddy for the Fit for Life Half in Boise on July 12. I convinced her to try eating on the run and we began experimenting again.  We’ve come to this conclusion:

Jelly Belly® Sport Beans are the best mid-run fuel because …

• They taste good.

• The packaging is easy to open.

• You can carry them in one hand and pop two or three at a time rather than consuming the whole package at a water stop.

Gatorade®Prime Energy Chews are a close second because …

• They taste good.

• They are soft and go down quickly, but …

• The packaging is difficult to open. I would recommend repackaging these before the race in snack size zipper bags.

I am still sticking with Power Bar® Protein Bars before and after the run.  My favorite?  Caramel Peanut Fusion.  Yum!

With any luck the mid-run fuel will help to carry us through on Saturday. Oh, and gum.  I can’t run without my peppermint gum!

Happy Running!

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