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Paris Marathon 2015
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He wasn't suggesting that we didn't have to have breakfast, more that if we think that our pre-race breakfast is vital for energy during the race then we are mistaken. Obviously we'd be starving if we didn't have anything to eat until after the race, it'd be like 2pm or something without any food, but we don't need to have breakfast to fuel our race ergo we don't have to cram in a load of carbs, we could actually have other things and it wouldn't make a difference to our run, just as long as it doesn't make us ill!
Does anyone actually cram in loads of carbs that morning? I don't. My breakfast on marathon day is a small porridge pot, an apple and a banana. It's barely more than I'd normally eat for breakfast.
I'd agree that I doubt the breakfast that morning makes much difference if any. I think how you eat, sleep and rest the week leading up to a marathon is a bigger factor.
I have a decent breakfast (about 600 calories max) around 6am. If starting at 9 and finishing at 1(ish) I'd be famished by then without running 26.2 miles!
Would agree, it's the days preceding the race which count, especially sleep.
I'm with you Eggy on the Breakfast menu. Works for me without any discomfort. If my opinion counts for anything, which is debatable !, we're all different so we probably all fuel differently. Find what works for you and stick with it. I use gels on LSR's & Every 30 mins during races.
As long as you're enjoying yourselves kick on
I kind of have to agree with the sleep thing as it's accepted as fact...... however !
For my two most recent Marathons I've had rubbish sleep in the week leading up to race day, have subsequently worried about its effect, and then done ok.
I must be a freak. :-S
No I don't expect anyone literally crams carbs in Eggy, but what I mean is that you wouldn't actually need to have any carbs as part of breakfast, it could actually be eggs, bacon and mushrooms for instance not porridge and a banana, which have possibly been chosen for their carb content as much as any other reason. Certainly I have chosen a bagel and banana for my pre-race breakfast purely for carbs, I don't have that for my normal breakfast!!
I don't really need an excuse to stuff porridge and malt loaf down me at any time! Yum.
I have to disagree. Glycogen stores drop overnight. Carbs are necessary in the morning if you want to perform your best. The current trend to low carb eating as part of an active lifestyle (i.e. not weight loss) comes mostly from Tim Noakes, and the people who think he is the demi God he professes to be. The science is scant, and almost all "evidence" is anecdotal. I am confident the tide will turn again to carbs, in much the same way it turned away from barefoot running and back to a more cushioned shoe.
I guess the message is, a bit like me and my numerous Plans - what works for you, works for you, and sometimes it doesn't work for you!
For example. I know people who like a bit of toast and PB before a run. I've tried that a couple of times with almost instant and...interesting side effects. On the other hand, I had a PB and jam sandwich about 90 minutes before a half marathon and I was indestructible, knocking more than four minutes off my previous PB.
I've been experimenting with a bit of protein supplement before a run of less than 10 miles, in the evening. I'll eat a balanced diet during the day and instead of a bit of soreen or toast and jam, I'll have a protein shake instead. I feel that it works much better for me, I'm not hungry or uncomfortable during a run and feel so much more energetic. I will still have carbs before a long run on Sundays, though.
I had eggs once before running and never again!
Got to agree with Dannii on the Paleo diet promotion that is trendy right now.
Yeah I'm not particularly sold on the paleo thing, although I know that for weight loss it does seem to work, but then cutting out food groups means that you cut calories and therefore you are going to lose weight, you don't have to eat like a caveman to do that though. Certainly I have found that eating a high carb diet makes me feel very bloated and listless in daily life and I'm falling asleep at my desk after lunch, cut out all the bad foods and lunchtime sarnies and I feel so much more productive and am definitely less bloated. It makes me feel more energised during runs too. I'm not really sure about the whole fat-burning thing during a marathon, I spent all night reading about it and it does look like it could benefit ultra runners doing mega-long distances but not so much for 26.2. I'd love to know exactly what the elite athletes have in their bottles!!
Elites will always say it's whoever sponsors them brand of drink. I'd bet that nine out of ten times it not though.
Same with cyclists. It's well known in that many famous cyclists have ridden other brands of bike made to look like the sponsors bike, as they preferred it. It's all bloody marketing.
I have no doubt that many elite athletes take a different kind of 'juice' at times
Eggy - I thought maybe they have their own concoctions in their bottles, I had a little daydream that they are there blitzing it all up the night before the race!
Kenno - There will indeed be some elites that get caught cheating, such a shame, I just hope it's none that have actually won anything, I always feel so deflated when I hear that people you believed to be truly great runners were just cheating b@st@rds!.
Gels are made to be easily digestible and an almost instant hit, just the fact that they are in liquid form instantly makes it a much quicker way of getting energy into your body. What is being disputed is whether eating solid carbs 3 hours before a race gives the body enough time to break the food down and convert the energy during the race. The muscles use glycogen stored within them for most of the energy during a race, certainly the carbs eaten at breakfast wouldn't have time to get to the muscles in just 3 hours, but carbs eaten in the days leading up to the race certainly would. This is my (very basic) understanding of it.
Gels - I've taken them while cycling long distances (200 miles) and I suppose they have helped, but I can't say I've ever noticed any kind of hit.
I've had one once in a half at 7 miles and again didn't notice anything happen, apart from speeding up my digestion . Never tried one before in a half and don't think I will again.
I took a number in a duathlon that was going to take more than 4 hours, but again didn't notice anything - and it was the Ballbuster on Box Hill which is bloody tough! Is this normal, do you actually 'notice anything?
I guess taking gels is something I will need to start doing as I train for a marathon, but I sometimes wonder how much difference they really make to me.
Why wife is doing very well with Paleo, but she isn't a marathon runner. The "experts" from whom where she got her advice aren't advocates of long distance running, so I'm not sure they'd be able to provide me with sound nutritional advice that meets my needs. So, with my dietary habits, my wife's, and my two fussy daughters it's like a bleedin' café in this place!
In August I will experiment with mid-race marathon fuelling composed of carbs ingested in the form of red wine and white wine and protein in the form of oysters. There appears to be very little scientific study to let me know what to expect
Actually the P&D book that arrived at my house today has a paragraph recommending a carb heavy breakfast 3 to 4 hours before the race.
BM sounds delightful.....will look forward to a full report post race
oh behave!
and diagrams, charts, graphs and polaroids
BM, preferably your data will be cross referenced with your previous marathon's information in order to provide a comparison - sans and avec oysters!
Am on a run streak at the moment of... six days! Cycled to work and back yesterday as well, and am hoping to go swimming tonight. Go karting tomorrow then a wedding reception (which I am driving to, so no fizz for me) followed by a 22M on Sunday. Fun!
People who are advocating a fat adapted fueling plan for endurance activities - like Tim Noakes and his followers - avoid gels and carbs during the run/cycle too. They use fat heavy fuel sources like cheese, and dried meat.
Sounds like they're having a flipping picnic Dannirr!
I love cheese, but the thought of cheese on the run doesn't thrill me!
I'm just going for a swim. The last time I swam was just after Loch Ness in September. Before that it was about a decade. If I don't make it back please know that you guys have been a constant source of information, amusement and encouragement. And please learn from my plight - cross training is evil and shouldn't be trusted!!