In my first newsletter I alluded to more carb talk, so here we go. I love carbohydrates. The day there is a collective realization that carbs are our friends will be a happy day for me (and probably many other sports RDs). Diet culture continues to hammer away at the messaging that carbs are bad, and should be avoided, limited or substituted at all costs. This is unnecessary for all humans, but for runners can also be detrimental to performance. Carbs are what the body uses for its main source of energy, and endurance athletes not eating enough can end up feeling sluggish, slow and perpetually hungry. I've found in my practice that female runners tend to fall short of their carbohydrate needs, either intentionally because of restrictive eating or totally unintentionally due in part to how “normal” it is to consume low carbohydrate substitutions for things like bread, pasta and rice, or follow generally low carb diets in today’s society.
(this is a Melissa Clark pasta recipe from her cookbook “Dinner”)
Ok, so how many carbs do I really need?
This might blow your mind. Runners running for 1-3 hours per day should be getting 6-10 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram body weight per day (to get your weight in kilograms, divide your weight in pounds by 2.2). So, a 130lb (59kg) female runner should be eating at least 354 grams of carbohydrate if she's running an hour or more per day, and likely longer on weekends. That means carbs at every meal and a snack or two. It can seem like a lot, especially if you have a history of restricting carbs or disordered eating, but it's necessary for your body to be able to run as long as you want it to and to perform every day, important activities (like breathing, digesting food, and thinking). Here's how it could look on a typical day:
Pre-run: banana with 1 tbsp peanut butter (~20 grams of carb)
Breakfast: 3/4 cup oats with 1 cup almond milk, 1/2 cup berries, 2 tbsp nut butter (~70 grams of carb)
Snack: Picky bar (27 grams of carb)
Lunch: turkey sandwich on sourdough bread with lettuce, tomato and avocado, apple, pita chips and a chocolate peanut butter cup (~90 grams of carb)
Snack: 1 container flavored Skyr yogurt with 1/4 cup chopped pear and 1/4 cup granola (~35 grams of carb)
Dinner: 2 cups pasta, approximately 1-2 cups sauteed peppers, broccoli and garlic, 3 ounces chicken sausage or tofu, parmesan cheese (~95 grams of carb)
Dessert: 2 chocolate chip cookies (~20 grams of carb)
All of these numbers added up are about 357 grams of carbohydrate, on the low end of the range I mention above for an active, daily runner. This number will vary if you’re running less or more than the example, but a lot of runners I know and work with fall into this 60+ minutes of running daily category. If this seems absolutely insane to you, don't panic. In doing these calculations, I realized that even I fall a little short of this range from time to time (and I run around 40-50 miles per week). You don’t have to be exact every day, but knowing where and when to add some quality carbs into meals and snacks can make a world of difference in how you feel on the run.
How to add quality carbs
This is the fun part! First, identify large time gaps in the diet and add something in. I encourage clients to avoid going any longer than 3-4 hours without eating anything, because this can result in a blood sugar dip, zap energy and leave you starving by your next meal. Carbohydrate rich snacks can look like:
Toast with peanut butter and sliced strawberries
Greek yogurt with granola and blueberries
Whole grain crackers with cheese
Piece of fruit with nuts or nut butter
Bowl of cereal
Baked good like banana bread or superhero muffin (I am loving the lemon blueberry chia ones from Rise and Run)
Half a turkey or tuna sandwich
More help
Adding more carbs into the diet, and addressing why they may be missing, can often bring up eating behaviors past and present that are important to work through in order to have you running and feeling your best. Working with a professional for more guidance can be a game-changer both on and off the roads.
For information about working with me, please visit my website!
What kind of cereal is good for a snack?