Runners Food 101: The Ultimate Guide to Nutrition for Runners

Confession: I grew up in a house filled with carbs. Unhealthy carbs. I didn’t even know what runners food was until I researched it while training for my first 5K.

Runners food seemed like this mystical thing that only marathoners needed to know about.

I can totally eat this cupcake before a run, right?! It has sugar. And sugar makes me energetic…which means it’s fuel….right?!

Wrong. Very wrong, self.

Luckily, I learned that runners food isn’t complicated. In fact, it’s based on basic nutrition, with some tweaks.

Read on for the rundown on runners food basics and what it means for you.

1.) Nutrition Basics: Carbohydrates, Proteins, and Fats (oh my!)

Food mostly falls into one of two categories: Macronutrients and Micronutrients.

Macronutrients are the large majority of what we need to consume for energy, and include three basic groups: Carbohydrates, Proteins and Fats.

Your’re probably already familiar with these.

Micronutrients are what we need to consumer in smaller quantities for our body to use the energy from macronutrients, and are vitamins and minerals.

Easy so far, right? Here’s more of a breakdown:

Carbohydrates:

Carbs provide energy to the body. Obviously important, especially for runners – you need plenty of fuel.

A regular exerciser should consume about 50-60% of his/her total daily calories in carbs*.

1 gram carbs = 4 calories

Often, pre and post race runners food recommendations are in grams, but most people think in terms of calories.

List of Great Carbs for Runners:

• Whole grains like oatmeal, brown rice,whole wheat pasta and bread
• Lowfat yogurt and greek yogurt
• Fresh whole fruits like bananas, apples, berries and more
• Sweet potatoes
• Vegetables like leafy greens, broccoli, tomatoes etc

 

Proteins:

Proteins are often referred to as “building blocks” of the body and aid in growth and repair.

10-25% of your daily calories should come from proteins.

1 gram protein = 4 calories

How many times have you heard your friends (who love weight lifting) say they need protein? Or are drinking a protein shake after the gym? That’s because protein helps build and repair muscle (amongst other things).

For runners this is important – what’s the point of training to build muscle to protect against injuries if you don’t eat enough protein?

List of Healthy Proteins for Runners:

• Lean meats (beef, chicken, fish)
• Eggs
• Quinoa
• Beans
• Lentils

Fats:

Fats are both an energy reserve and essential to absorbing fat-soluble vitamins and minerals for your body to use.

20-30% of daily calories should come from fats.

1 gram fat = 9 calories

Fats used to have a bad reputation but they are incredibly important to proper nutrition. Make sure to know the difference between saturated fats and unsaturated fats.

Saturated fats can drive up risk of heart attack (and other conditions) if eaten in excess. Recommended daily amount is less than 10% of your total calories.

Examples of foods with saturated fats include:

• Fatty red meat
• Cheeses
• Whole milk
• Butter
• Coconut oil

Unsaturated fats are the super healthy ones you want to make up most or all of your fat intake.

Examples of unsaturated fats include:

• Olive oil
• Avocados
• Walnuts
• Flaxseeds
• and fish like salmon

Those are nutrition basics that runners should adhere to.

Now some extra layers to the nutritional guidelines as it applies to runners food:

2.) Reduce Processed foods, Increase Whole Fresh Foods

I’m sure you’ve heard about eating fresh and whole foods (there are diets based on the concept).

To define what I mean by  “processed food”, this CNN article does a great job by saying:

“It’s the more heavily processed foods, snacks and meals high in added sugars, sodium and unhealthy fats that are the “problem” processed foods, as consuming too many of them can lead to health problems. Also known as “ultra-processed” foods, they are formulations of salt, sugar, oils and fats, as well as flavors, colors and other additives.”

Processed food is essentially empty calories that provide little or no nutritional value to our bodies.

This is bad for everyone, but especially for runners.

Runners need fuel to perform – and fuel comes from proper nutrition (see above on macros and micros)…and I’m not talking just marathoners. All runners need real, nutritionally-sound food to run.

So replace processed food with whole fruits, vegetables, nuts and more. And feel the difference in your running!

An Aside On Salt:

While not a processed food, too much salt intake causes problems too (like high blood pressure).

And processed foods contain WAY too much salt (because salt is used as a preservative and taste enhancer).

According to the FDA, the recommended daily amount of salt is 2,300 mgs (about 1 teaspoon).

Runners may need a tad bit more salt in their diets to replace what they sweat out during a run. But not substantially more. Use caution.

Example of processed foods with high salt content:

• Per 1/4 of frozen Tombstone Pepperoni Pizza there is 780mg of sodium (and really, who eats only 1/4 of a frozen pizza)
• 290mg of sodium in one single Kraft Singles cheese slice
• A McDonald’s Big Mac has 950mg of sodium and The Burger King Whopper (smaller!) has the same amount

3.) Hydrate – Drink Plenty of Water

Water is essential to your body.

From lubricating joints to dissolving minerals to carrying oxygen and nutrients to cells….a runner MUST stay hydrated.

I’ve seen different recommendations on the amount of water to drink each day – but the rule I follow (and have seen the most) is:

Divide you body weight in half, and that is the number of ounces to drink daily.

So if you weigh 150lbs, you need to drink 75 fluid ounces of water every day.

Tips to Help Hydrate Properly:

• Carry a water bottle all day.
  • I use an insulated 25oz bottle so it lasts longer than a 16oz bottle, and the water stays super cold for hours.
• Take a water bottle with you on runs lasting 30+ minutes.
  • I use a water bottle with a handle (like this one) but some runners prefer a running belt with water bottles attached instead (like this one).
• Try fruit-infused water if regular water bores you
  • Here’s a fabulous list of 14 fruit-infused water recipes (watermelon mint is my fave)

General rule of thumb is if your pee is pale or transparent yellow, you are well hydrated (see a fun pee color chart here).

4.) What to Eat Before, During and After a Run

Runners often wonder what runners food to eat before, during, and after a run.

The answer: it kinda depends on the time/distance of the run.

What to Eat Before a Run

• Under 45-60 minutes: Most runners don’t need to eat before (but do what’s right for your body)
• 1 hour to 1.5 hours: eat a light, easily digestible snack like half a banana, tablespoon of peanut butter, or an orange, about 30-60 minutes before running
• 1.5+ hours: eat easily digestible foods like half a bagel with peanut butter or honey, plain oatmeal, a whole banana, or yogurt with granola. Eat about 30-60 minutes before your run.

What to Eat During a Run

• Under 60 minutes: Most runners don’t need to eat anything during
• 1 hour – 3 hours: 30-60 grams carbs (120-240 calories)
  • I eat one Gu Energy Gel every 45 minutes, they are 100 calories each
• 3+ hours: 30-90 grams carbs (120-360 calories) but this varies greatly by individual

 

What to Eat After a Run

Recovery foods should be rich in carbs and proteins (somewhere between a 3:1 and 4:1 ratio).

Excellent recovery foods include:

• Chocolate Milk
• Banana and nut butter on toast (my fave!)
• Avocado and egg whole wheat toast
• Oatmeal with chia seeds and a banana or berries (try these healthy breakfast bowl recipes)
• Greek yogurt with berries and granola
• So much more!

Focus on the Right Runners Food & Crush Your Training!

Well, those are the basics of runners food – did I miss anything? Have questions? Ask in the comments or email me at contact[at]howtorunguide[dot]com – I’d love to hear from you!

Ready to train for a 5K with an awesome 5K training plan?

Or did all this talk about runners food make you motivated to go out and run – check out our Ultimate 60 Minute Playlist before you go!

Sources:

• Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Nutrition article
• Washington State University Nutrition Basics
• Harvard article on the truth about fats
• RunnersWorld Training Guide (Nutrition section)
• http://womensrunning.competitor.com/2015/10/nutrition/how-to-fuel-long-runs-with-real-food_48166