Whew!

I am so glad my final is over!  I feel like a huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders now - and I actually think I did well (especially on the conversational part)!

This morning when I laced up my tennies, it felt so good to be running again.  When I get in the habit of running hard every day, it really affects me when I take a few days off.  Even though Cameron was sick and cried throughout the night, I managed to pry myself out of bed to run this morning.  I concluded, during my run, that I am in dire need of new running shoes, so one of my weekend goals is to trot down to Pacers and pick up some new kicks.

I typically switch to new shoes around 350 miles, but I've made this pair last a little longer.  I bought them in December, and I've pounded a little over 400 miles in them.  They have holes in the toes and the soles are peeling away from the heels of the shoes.  Some would look at them and scoff, but I like to say that they have character.  If my tennies could talk (probably a good thing they can't)!

Yesterday, I promised that I would include a diet plan for runners...well, that was a partial falsehood.  I'm just going to throw a little basic marathon diet and nutrition out there and see if it sticks.  And I'll be honest, I DO NOT always eat this way - I have been known to consume a chili dog at a baseball game, a glass of wine too many, or wings at my favorite dive bar.  However, I am making a concentrated effort to eat foods that are beneficial to my body and adequate fuel for training.

I think everyone is well aware of the importance of eating fresh produce and getting the right combination of protein, grains and fruit and vegetables every day.  Salads and raw vegetables are especially beneficial because they have not lost any nutrients in cooking. I will never pretend to be a vegetarian or have the desire to become one - I love meat and so do many runners.  However, in my research, I found that many nutritionists recommend having a 'herbivore' day at least once a week (actually, the diet plans said vegetarian, but it's more fun to say herbivore).  It makes me feel kind of like a dinosaur...don't ask.

For those of you carnivores out there, fish and chicken are better to eat than red meat. Additionally, whey and soy products are good substitute for animal protein.  Your goal as a runner is to make sure you eat the best combination of foods to maintain a healthy body.

Now, for the no-nonsense things.  While training, avoid fast food as much as possible.  It's bad for you anyway, but the amount of saturated fat and low quality carbs found in fast foods are not beneficial to marathon training or your overall health.  You should be consuming a higher number of carbohydrates than usual (if you're like me and try to watch your figure), which typically means 50-65% of your daily calories should come from complex carbohydrates, 15-25% calories from unsaturated fats and 20-25% from protein.

Obviously, I am not a nutritionist or dietician.  These numbers could vary a lot depending both on serving sizes and other factors, such as weight, activity level and gender.  A 5K runner should not be consuming the same amount of daily calories as an ultra-marathoner.  When in doubt, use your heads, people!

Not to be the fun police, but there are other things that can be detrimental to training.  I happen to love both of them:  coffee and wine. 

Luckily, I drink more coffee than fermented grape juice, but I've made a concentrated effort to curb my 2/3 cups a day to only one.  If I think I need a cup of coffee to get through a long meeting, I try to get fresh air right before the meeting begins and stay engaged.  If I'm actively participating in a meeting, then I am much less likely to drift off to the land of unicorns and rainbows.

As far as wine goes, just be smart about it.  A glass of red wine a day is a good thing - a bottle is not.  The same goes with training.  It is awfully hard to get out of bed and run with a hangover, so just don't do it.

Lastly, drink lots of water!!!  This simple rule seems like a no-brainer, but how many of us honestly drink our required eight glasses of water a day?  I'm a camel, so I drink water all day (I'm not literally a camel, but you get the picture).  Most people fall far short of eight glasses, and in training, it is of utmost importance that you are well-hydrated at all times.

Sorry for the long post - I was blessed with the gift of gab.

Happy running!