As you train for a marathon, your primary focus may be on the running workouts, but nutrition is equally as important. For proper nutrition, you must consume an adequate amount of calories every day to support a healthy body weight with sustained energy levels that also promotes quick recovery between training runs. You must also consume quality foods that supply essential nutrients and carbohydrates, fat and protein every day.
Macronutrient Breakdown
Carbohydrates, fat and protein all play an important role in your overall nutrition and marathon training program. Carbohydrates and fat, for example, provide an energy source while protein supports muscle development and recovery. During the bulk of your training schedule, carbohydrates will provide about 50 percent of your total calories. This amount includes a combination of complex and simple carbohydrates from food sources such as fruits and vegetables. Fat content is about 30 percent of the total calories and comes from nuts and seeds such as almonds, sunflower seeds and peanut butter. Protein content is about 20 to 25 percent of the total calories from lean meats including chicken and beef.
Pre-Workout
The running workouts are an important component to your marathon training program, and the preworkout meal provides the nutrients and energy to maximize your performance. Consume 200 to 300 calories about two hours before running consisting primarily of low to moderate glycemic carbohydrates. The preworkout meal is a perfect time to practice your premarathon nutrition for race day. A sample preworkout meal includes oatmeal, banana and protein powder.
Recovery
Postworkout nutrition and calories helps to replenish glycogen stores while promoting healthy recovery of the skeletal muscles. The overall goal of postworkout nutrition is to recover as quickly as possible before the next training run. Consume a combination of carbohydrates and protein at a ratio of 4:1 within 30 minutes of the workout. For example, if you consume 80 g of carbohydrates, consume 20 g of protein. A sample postworkout meal includes 16 oz. of fruit juice with a banana and protein powder.
Carb Loading
Carbohydrate-loading is a common nutrition practice leading up to the marathon. The goal of carbohydrate-loading is to maximize the amount of fuel stored in the muscles so your body can tap into those energy stores during the race. Start the carbohydrate-loading one week before the marathon by increasing carbohydrate intake to about 50 to 55 percent of your total calories and decreasing fat and protein intake about five percent each. With three to four days before the race, increase the carbohydrate intake to about 70 percent of the total calories.
References
- MayoClinic.com; Carbohydrate-Loading Diet; Mayo Clinic Staff; November 2010
- Colorado State University; Nutrition for the Athlete; J. Anderson, L. Young and S. Prior; December 2010
- Competitor; Burning Runner: The Paleo-Zone 2-Week Challenge; T.J. Murphy; March 2011
- Training Bible; A Quick Guide to "The Paleo Diet for Athletes"; Loren Cordain and Joe Friel; 2005
- Run the Planet: Food and Performance
- McMillan Running; Runner's Guide to Nutrition - Part 3; Greg McMillan
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