I love food as much as the next guy, and this is a struggle as a runner. What to eat, when to eat, how much to eat? These questions consume any athlete. Hop online and do the research for diet and you come up with a cluster of contradicting information. Ultra runners are unique in that many are vegans, with their sole diet consisting of fruit and veggies. Some runners drink soda, some ultra's hand it out. Some runners load up on carbs, protein, etc. Some runners just don't care. I tend to align with the last one of these. I'll explain why.
Runner's Need Fuel
I am a strong believer that, depending on how much you are running, it doesn't matter a whole lot what you are putting in your body as long as you are burning it off. Now I am not a dietician or health fanatic and I'm sure most people most people will discount what I have to say, but in my first post I said most of this blog will develop from personal experience. I read the book Once a Runner and it gave a great analogy for runners, "if the furnace burns hot enough, it can burn through anything." Now, I'm not saying to go out and binge eat junk food, soda, and big macs. What I am saying is, don't spend so much time wondering and worrying about what you are putting in your body, which brings me to number 2.
Eating is a Mental Game
I often have the conversation/lecture with the kids I coach about eating the right foods, drinking the right drinks, and being careful about how much they eat. Then paranoia sets in and they start over thinking everything. It becomes a mental game, if you tell yourself you are going to cramp because you eat something, chances are you will. If you tell yourself you might run poorly if you eat something, chances are you will. Before every race I ran in high school I always had a Red Bull and banana. I always ran fine, arguably well, because I told myself I wouldn't do well without those things. Red Bull is horrible for you, but my mind took control of the situation. Now I take a different approach, I don't focus on what I put in my body, I focus on running. I tell myself I am going to run well, and feel fine no matter what. It works.
Now it's time for the Contradiction
In the first part I basically said it doesn't matter what you eat/drink. That's not true. Scientifically your body will perform better with/without certain things. Cut out the bad things from your diet. It's ok to have junk food here and there, just don't live on it. It's ok to stop at McDonalds once in a blue moon, just don't live on it. I don't drink soda, I don't drink alcohol, and I rarely eat fast food. I know these things are harming my body and they don't really do much for me so I cut them out. The point of this is bad foods are ok in moderation, and a few oreos probably won't make you a worse runner. One big mac won't ruin you as a runner.
Set Goals For Yourself
You do it with your running, why not apply goal setting to your diet. Seven weeks ago I decided to stop drinking soda, mainly because of this article. I have had the urge to pick one up, but have not because I know it would be detrimental to my goal. I was drinking at least 1 or 2 bottles of soda a day, and I needed a change. I drink more water and juice now and feel a lot better about myself because of it. I also sleep better at night, and save a lot of money. Along with this I stopped eating fast food. I started running down 5th Avenue South in Fort Dodge, which is lined with fast food establishments. I was so disgusted by the smell that I decided if I can barely stand running by these places because of the smell, why should I eat at those places. Once again I feel a lot better about myself because I have stuck with the goal. Maybe start small, "I will eat more fruit and veggies" or "I will cut back on candy, cookies, and chips." It's a lifestyle choice that you have to make and if you set your mind to it great things will happen.
Don't Lie to Yourself
Just because a poptart says it is made with real fruit, does not make it healthy. Just because a bag of potato chips says it has 40% less fat, does not make it healthy. Don't become that person who makes up those lies and excuses. If you give up soda, give it up. Don't reward yourself with the initial thing you gave up. DO NOT ever say "It's just one." You have just given up, if that's the case.
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