New Dietitian - New Outlook

Last week I had my first meeting with my new dietitian and she is amazing. She is certified with the International Olympic Committee Diploma in Sports Nutrition and she is also a marathon runner so I thought that she would be perfect for me and after sitting down at our first meeting I realized that she was more than perfect for me she is exactly what I am looking for in a dietitian.

It is no secret of mine that I have suffered from Eating Disorders in the past. Not just anorexia but also binge eating disorders. That is one thing that my dietitian picked up on right away. Sometimes that it is something that dietitians miss about me because I don't look withered away.

Along with wanting to create better eating habits for myself I also want to be able to fuel properly for my long runs. I tend to crash about 8 miles into my run and my runs get harder and harder after that point. I am training to qualify for Boston and this crashing that occurs to me is hindering my runs.

One thing that she explained to me in detail was the need for carbs in our bodies!! I have an irrational fear of carbs I think they make me fat! However, yes they can make you fat but anything that is overeaten can make you fat.

Our brain – just our brains – require 130g of glucose a day to function when we don’t get enough of this our bodies go into what is called control fatigue. This hinders our decision making – reaching for the cookie instead of the apple – our concentration and our moods.

Glucose from carbs just doesn't go to our brains it also goes to our muscles creating muscle glycogen. If we are low in muscle glycogen it will have a negative effect on the quality of the workout – ever wonder why one day you can pump out 20 reps of push-ups and one day only do 6? Yeah you are lacking muscle glycogen – it also has a negative effect on our running. I know I have had days where my legs feel heavy, like lead heavy well this is because the body is going into principal fatigue from not having enough glycogen.

You often hear people talking about their breakfast helping them through their run. I always thought that if I had a decent supper and a good breakfast it would get me through my run, but I was wrong! It takes your body 20 – 24 hours to make muscle glycogen, so what you are eating 20 – 24 hours before your run is what will get your body through those long distances. Don't get me wrong, you still need a carb fueled breakfast but you also need a good lunch and supper the day before.

I decided to take what my dietitian is saying to heart. I mean I am paying her enough I should listen. I had a nice carb, protein, nutrient dense lunch and supper and the next day I didn't head out for a run until 11am. It had been 22 hours since I had my lunch and well I had my BEST run EVER!!

I ran a 1:34:43 half marathon, my best half yet. Was my body hurting through my run, obviously I was running an average 7’17”/mile, did I feel awesome, not really I was hurting on my run but was it my fastest, that it was!! It was the fastest long run I had run EVER.

Now I am learning to eat a proper amount of carbs and I am learning to eat a proper amount of food. I have been eating around 1,500 – 1,700 calories and my dietitian said that isn't enough for me because that is 1,500 – 1,700 not including what I burn off exercising and we determined this weekend that at rest I burn 2,300 calories so eating 1,500 – 1,700 isn't even enough to fuel me at rest. Now I am focusing on getting my calories to the 2,300 point with healthy food and making sure I have enough carbs to fuel me through my workouts. 

She gave me a chart of what carbs, nutrient dense food, and protein I should be eating with each of my meals and my goal is to follow this from now until my Marathon, she said if I follow this I should see weight come off, muscle gained and I should see my runs get faster. Two of my mail goals are to run a sub 6 marathon by next year and have abs before the summer, and she feels that both of these goals are do-able.

I believe that any serious athlete should hire a dietitian even if it is just for a few session, athletic needs are different from the average person and what works for me isn't necessarily going to work for you.

Ignite~Perspire~Inspire

Everyone one of us are on a diet.

I have a pet peeve and when people look at me and say they are NOT on a diet, I actually find this most often with people who are on fad diets such as: Paleo, South Beach and Atkins; guess what we are all on a diet!! Yes you, and you, and even you and even the entire cast of Pretty Little Liars are on a diet.
 

How can I be so sure about this? Well a “diet” isn’t something you go on and go off of, like a prescription. A diet is what you eat, day in and day out, whether you planned to eat that way or not. So when people ask me what kind of “diet” I am on, or what diet helped me lose weight, I always tell them I eat food, real food.

Starting early on in my life I started to fad diet-- once I started lose the weight I wanted, I was "off the diet," and back to eating whatever I wanted. But about a year ago I realized that it's not about being "on a diet," rather, it's more important to "have a healthy diet," consisting of nutritious foods from all the food groups.

I know some people are lactose intolerant and can’t consume dairy but you can get those nutrients from other places. Also like my boyfriend’s dad there are some people out there who are celiacs and have a severe allergy to gluten but even these people can get nutrients from other places. I do not agree with cutting out entire food groups I think this makes the difference from making a healthy lifestyle change to harming your body.

Men'sHealth makes a great list of lifestyle changes to lose weight, and keep it off forever: 

1. Drink coffee or tea - it may lower the risk of adult-on-set diabetes according to an American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

2. Take out sweetened drinks - (did you know the average person drinks more than 400 calories a day & gets around 10 teaspoons of added sugar every day from soft drinks?) 

3. Think about the last meal you ate - scientists found that people who thought about their last meal before snacking ate 30 percent fewer calories

4. More protein - jumpstart your metabolism, squash your appetite, and eat less at later meals!

5. Put your fork down while you chew - eating slowly can boost levels of two hormones that make you feel fuller, Greek researchers found.

Honestly, don’t deprive yourself. I always found I yo-yo’ed back to my original weight when I deprived my body of food I enjoy. We only live once and if we consume that which we enjoy in moderation we will have no problems having it affect our weight, but it must be consumed in moderation. 

The other day I really wanted cake I split a piece with my boyfriend. Did it satisfy my craving? Totally. Do I crave it today? No. Do I always give into my cravings? Of course not, but there are the times when I know I have been really good and having a small piece of cake isn't going to set me off on a wild spiral, but 100% saying to myself NO I can never have that ever again tends to set me up for failure. Enjoy that piece of cake, just not every day.

Day 22 - 30 Day Run Challenge

What’s your favorite pre-run snack or meal?

For running I usually like something small but enough to keep me going but not enough that I am going to be weighed down by the food or feel sick at the beginning of my run. I don't usually have much of an appetite after I run so I like to have something easy to digest.

For a pre-run snack I normally like a banana with peanut butter I take a tablespoon of peanut butter and put it on my banana it is so yummy and gives me the energy to get through a run.

For a post–run meal I like having chocolate milk. Usually after a run I can’t stomach much for about 2 hours, chocolate milk is easy to digest and it is in liquid form so it is easy to take in. I also like to make myself a smoothie with an apple, almond milk, almonds and protein powder.

For a night before pre-race meal I like to have thin crust whole wheat pizza with very little cheese. It allows me to have energy for a race without being too heavy. Pizza is the perfect mixture of carbs and protein that allows me to push to the finish line.

Training and Nutrition

Your pre-training nutrition is important to top up your energy for the workout ahead, it doesn't matter if that is a short track workout, a long run even a gym weight workout you need to make sure you have proper nutrition while training. 

There are several important considerations for the pre-workout meal:

Hydrate: Drink fluids throughout your day and be sure to drink at least a half liter to a full liter (two to four cups) of fluid starting four hours before your workout. You want to make sure that dehydration doesn't set in. Even being a little dehydrated could have a negative effect on your workout.

Choose carbohydrate rich foods: Carbohydrates should comprise the main part of your pre-training meal. Carbohydrates found in foods such as grains, cereals, breads, fruits and veggies are easy to digest, provide energy for your working muscles and top up your blood sugar.

Small amount of protein 2-4 hours before training: In order to sustain energy and fullness, add a source of protein such as meat, poultry, seafood; peanut butter; yogurt/milk, cottage cheese or eggs. Be cautious with the amount of protein you intake before a workout excessive amounts of protein are not ideal if you only have a short amount of time before your workout since protein is slow to digest and may feel heavy in your stomach or cause cramping or bloating. In taking large amounts of protein before your race wouldn't be a good idea.

Avoid high-fat foods: Fat is very slow to digest and won't top up your muscle fuel. In your pre-training meal skip high-fat foods such as chocolate, chips, fries, greasy burgers, and cream soups. These probably aren't the best for you anyways so my advice is to stay away from these all together as they don't do anything for your body.

Watch high-fiber foods: While small amounts of fiber are ok, be aware that fiber is slow to digest and may cause stomach upset during a workout without enough time to properly digest. My rule of thumb with fiber is the same as protein 2-4 hours before I workout I will intake fiber but any closer and I stear away from it.

Timing before your workout: The less time you have, the smaller the amount of food you should take in. If you have two or more hours before exercising eat a high carbohydrate meal that is low in fat and has a small amount of protein. If you have less than an hour before your workout stick with a small snack that is mostly carbohydrate. Normally I try to eat 6 small meals a day and this helps with my workouts. 

Sample meal ideas for 2 or more hours before training

• Smoothie with fruit, unsweetened juice and yogurt, milk or protein powder.
• Hot/cold cereal, milk/yogurt and fruit.
• Toast, banana, and peanut butter.
• Toast, egg(s) and juice.
• Sports bar - my favorite are Luna Bars or Macrobars and .
• Sandwich with turkey/roast beef/ham and veggies.
• Pasta with tomato sauce and a small amount of meat.
• Chicken noodle or vegetable soup with crackers and flavoured tuna.
• Cottage cheese and canned fruit with a bowl of oatmeal.
• Pasta salad with low-fat dressing, chicken breast and veggies.

Happy Training!!