Here at NordicTrackCoupons.com we know many of you visit our blog in hopes of getting fitness advice and tips to helping you reach your fitness goals. Whether your goal be to lose weight, build muscle, or simple to become healthier, along with exercise, diet is going to play a big role in helping your reach your fitness goals.
As we told you in a previous post, eating 60-90 minutes before your workout is going to help fuel your body, giving you energy and making your workout more effective. You are going to want to follow this rule with any workout you do, whether that be cardio or strength training, yet what you eat may differ from workout to workout.
As stated in this article What You Should Eat Before and After Your Workout, “when you are building muscle you need a higher supply of protein for tissue repair. While on the other hand, you will need more carbs for energy supply when powering through a cardio session.” So whether you are training for a race, or simple pumping some iron, what you eat may affect your workout more than you may think.
I came across an article from MyVega.com by holistic nutritionists, Emma Cutfield giving her expert advice on the Top 5 Race-Day Nutrition Tips for Runners. As many of our readers are treadmill runners who train for races, I thought these would be great tips to share in helping you perform your best come race day.
Top 5 Race-day Nutrition Tips for Runners:
- Emma suggests that a week before your race day to start stocking up on your key nutrient reserves and work on fine-tuning your digestion. The last remaining 24 hours is also a crucial time, and even if you have not done all you should have in the last week by committing yourself to your race-day nutrition, you can still help yourself by being “diligent about what you eat, and when you eat it.”
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Hydrate!!! The week before your race it is important to do what Emma refers to as “hyper-hydrating.” You want to start prepping your body for the race by helping keep the ideal water balance in your cells the week leading up to the race. Hydrating with coconut water or an electrolyte hydrator is going to help you do just that and avoid feeling dehydrated come race day. Emma recommends “drinking enough water to equal at least half your body weight in ounces.” Yet an article from Runner’s World says to make sure you do not chug too much water before your race, this will only leave you feeling bloating and can actually dilute your electrolytes. “Diluted electrolyte levels can cause muscle weakness or cramping.” You can read more about that here.
- Carb-load, I’m sure you’ve heard of it. It is one of the most popular practices among distance runners. This is going to be your second-to-last meal before your big race, so when comes to lunch time the day before – go all out. You want to give your body plenty of time to digest and absorb the meal before your race. Emma says “This is one time I advocate simple carbs, which require less breakdown to convert to sugars in the body.”
- Emma also suggests simple carbs the morning of your race as well. As we stated earlier, plan on eating your breakfast 60-90 minutes before race time. You need to fuel your body with enough glucose and energy to power through your race, yet not so much you are uncomfortable come race time.
- Emma also suggested right before leaving the start line consuming a pre-workout energizer for a last turbo-boost of fuel. You can try the one Vega recommends, the Vega Sport Pre-Workout Energizer. This is going to give you all the benefits of an energy supplement without a tummy full of fluid.
For even more race-day tips check out Treadmill Sensei’s Basic Tips for Running a Marathon.
