Clean Food for Runners: How to Fuel the Healthy Way

Ok, let’s be real – you like food, right? Because I like food. A lot.

I also like running. And I like running much better when my body feels good.

You too? Great, we’re on the same page.

Clean eating is not a fad diet. The principles behind clean eating align incredibly well with how runners should eat anyway.

So here is the BEST clean food for runners  so you have energy and can train right (and perform your best!)

Find out exactly what clean eating is, why runners like eating clean, and get a list of popular clean food for runners.

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What is Clean Eating?

You’ve probably heard people talking about clean eating before.

It’s not a new concept, but it is experiencing a resurgence over the last couple of years.

So what is clean eating?

Clean eating is the belief that our bodies perform best when we eat unprocessed, unrefined, whole foods that are free of additives and preservatives or other added icky ingredients.

As with any diet or nutritional plan, there are varying degrees of adherence.

Some people are very restrictive while others use the principles of clean eating as a guide and not a restriction.

So you’ll need to decide how stringent you are when choosing to eat clean.

Sometimes runners’ training impacts this decision.

For example, some runners can only stomach engineered fuel like GU or other energy products during long runs, while other runners prefer whole foods. Read on for more info.

Why do Runners Eat Clean?

Clean food for runners improves running performance because your body can focus on digesting and converting whole foods to fuel instead of dealing with crappy processed foods or fats it can’t process.

Nutrition is comprised of macro-nutrients and micro-nutrients. Learn more about nutrition for runners in the Runners Food 101: The Ultimate Guide to Nutrition for Runners.

Runners require the right combination of carbs, protein and good fats (macro-nutrients) in order to fuel their body for training.

Clean eating not only allows this but it’s the basis of it. Perfect, right?

I know a lot of runners that follow the 80/20 rule – 80% of the time they eat clean and the other 20% they let loose.

I do this. I prefer guidelines over rules.

But obviously there are runners that eat 100% clean. And runners who eat only 50% clean.

You have to decide what’s right for you.

There may be times when it’s easy to choose clean food for runners and other times when it’s not.

Or sometimes circumstances require a non-clean food alternative – like if you can only do your long run with 2 packets of glorious caffeinated Salted Watermelon GU and the thought of chewing actual food while running is scary…like for me…

So what are some pre-run and mid-run clean food options? What if you’re a die-hard energy product fan? How do you convert to clean food for runners?

Read on and you shall find out.

Run-Fueling Clean Food for Runners

As I said before, running requires the right combination of carbs, good fats, and protein.

It’s actually fairly simple to choose clean foods for before, during, and after your run, but I recommend testing any new food before a race to make sure your body likes it.

Here are some top tasty, energy-boosting clean food for runners for before, during and after a long run:

Pre-Run Clean Foods:

• Low-fat yogurt (optional add-on: granola or fruit or whole roasted pumpkin seeds or cashews)
• Banana (optional add-on: nut butter with no added ingredients)
• 100% Whole wheat bread slice with natural almond butter
• Half a 100% whole wheat bagel with honey
• Tangerine or orange with a handful of cashews
• 1/4-1/2 cup of oatmeal (depending on toppings) with optional honey or 100% maple syrup sweetener

Mid-Run Clean Foods:

• Honey (in a plastic baggy, just rip a corner off as you’re running to eat it)
• Whole unsalted roasted Cashews
• Medjool dates
• Raisins
• Applesauce (all natural with no added ingredients…try one of those organic squeezey packets)
• Grapes (frozen ones travel well and are refreshing on hot days)
• Banana (try putting a piece in a plastic bag and placing it in your running belt)

Post-Run Clean Foods:

• Avocado Egg Toast (avocado + 100% whole grain bread + hard boiled egg)
• Bagel + all-natural nut butter + banana slices
• Yogurt + berries + granola
• Whole grain rice + grilled chicken + spinach + roasted sweet potato bowl
• Quinoa + egg + crushed cashews + kale bowl
• Lemony Arugula Scallop Salad (add a slice of 100% whole grain bread on the side)
• Healthy Oatmeal Breakfast Bowls (I love breakfast for dinner! there are 5 recipes in that post!)

Big, Helpful List of Delicious Clean Food for Runners

Runners need the right nutrition to perform optimally and clean eating offers that opportunity because there are so many delicious food options.

Clean food for runners is easy to incorporate the right mix of complex carbs, proteins and unsaturated fats.

Looking for clean eating inspiration? Here’s a list of popular clean food for runners.

Carbs:

• Whole grains:
  • Whole grain rice
  • 100% whole grain bread (natural with no preservatives or additives)
  • Oatmeal (I live off of oatmeal, it’s so versatile)
  • Quinoa (also provides protein!)
  • Corn tortillas (organic, no preservatives added)
  • Beans such as black beans, lentils, soybeans (bonus: legumes also has plenty of protein and some healthy fat too!)
• Fruits:
  • Dates (medjool)
  • Banana
  • Berries (raspberries, strawberries, blueberries)
  • Apples
  • Oranges
• Vegetables
  • Broccoli
  • Leafy greens like spinach, kale, arugula, cabbage, etc
  • Asparagus
  • Artichokes
  • Scallions (a delicious flavor-addition to salads, similar to onion)
  • Zucchini
  • Green beans
  • Brussel sprouts

Proteins:

• Meat
  • Turkey
  • Chicken
  • Lean steak
  • Bison (aka buffalo)
  • Eggs
• Fish – buy wild caught and not farm raised
  • Salmon
  • Tilapia
  • Cod
  • Sole
  • Haddock
  • Scallops
• Vegetarian Options
  • Organic Tofu
  • Quinoa
  • Chickpeas
  • Greek yogurt often contains over 20 grams of protein (be careful with sugar content and additives though)
  • Vegetarian protein powder like Nutiva Hemp protein powder

Healthy (Unsaturated) Fats:

• Olive oil
• Coconut oil
• Avocado
• Nuts (raw or roasted but try for unsalted) like:
  • Almonds
  • Peanuts
  • Cashews
  • Walnuts
  • Pecans
• Seeds
  • Sunflower seeds
  • Pumpkin seeds
  • Chia seeds (these are also a source of a bit of protein and fiber too!)
  • Hemp seed

What NOT To Eat While Eating Clean

We talked about clean food for runners we haven’t discussed what NOT to eat yet.

Knowing what not to eat is equally important so you can avoid these foods.

Here’s food to avoid if you’re eating clean:

• Refined sugar – replace with natural sweeteners like honey, 100% maple syrup, agave nectar
• Trans fat- our bodies can’t process trans fat. Some fried fast food still uses trans fats (not all though)
• Saturated fat –
• Processed Foods
  • Many fast food items fall into this category
  • Anything with unpronounceable-able ingredients
• Food with additives or preservatives
• Keep an eye on sodium – we need salt but the daily recommended intake amount is 0.75 teaspoons to 1 teaspoon only

How to be Consistent & Eat Clean Regularly

Benjamin Franklin once said:

If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.

I love this quote (I am a planner at heart) but also because it relates perfectly to learning how to succeed in almost anything in life.

Grocery Shopping Strategy

Make a grocery list before going to the store.

Know what clean eating recipes you want to make and buy the right whole ingredients.

Skip the pre-packaged stuff.

Don’t shop while hungry.

Meal Prep

Busy week ahead of you?

Take Sunday afternoon or evening to prepare a few meals ahead of time.

I also pre-portion out clean snacks (likes veggies, nuts, seeds and fruits) into plastic baggies so I have easy, on-the-go snacks available at all times.

By doing this, you’re increasing your chances of successfully eating healthy, clean meals AND taking away the prep time required on the day of the meal.

It’s a win-win!

Routine

Runners are familiar with routines.

You train according to a schedule (like a 5k training schedule or half marathon training schedule) so plan to also eat on a schedule.

Runners need fuel. Before, during and after a run. But also at meal time. So plan for this (with clean food).

Don’t skip meals.

Plan on 3 main meals and 2-3 snacks (or 6 evenly-sized meals) throughout the day to keep your blood sugar even.

Get in a routine of eating the clean food that makes you feel the best.

Test different clean food (but don’t go crazy before a race – sometimes routine is a runners best friend!).

What are your favorite energy-boosting clean foods? What makes you run the best? Share in the comments!