Marathon Nutrition

Hills30

Hello. I was wondering if anyone had any rough guide to Calorie intake while marathon training (I know everyone is different, but a rough indication for a female). And what the Macro break down should look like.
Currently I train 5/6 times a week clocking around 60/70KM.

Is there any online resource that gives a tailored guide or anything? I haven't been able to find one

adrian522

Hi,

I don't think there is number of calories that we can give. What is your usual calorie requirement? Take this and add on whatever you are burning through training. A general rule of thumb would be that 1 mile burns 100 calories so about an extra 4000 calories per week.

But really I don't think most people go down to that level of detail. If your diet is good and you are eating good healthy food you don't need to get to hung up on the exact calorie count.

If you are planning on running Dublin you may want to check out the thread " DCM 2017 Mentored Novices Thread". You'll get a lot of good advice in there.

Best of luck with your training.

jonnner

MyfitnessPal is a good APP for tracking calories. You can put in all your foods eaten during the day and also your excercise to give you an idea if you are running a claorie deficit or surplus. It'll break your nutrition down into Protein/Fat/Carbs too.

conor_mc

Found this blog post really useful prepping for DCM 2015 after a desperate, naive and gastro-intestinally disastrous guzzling of gels in the last few miles of DCHM 2013. Lesson learnt, there is no sugar rush. And if you're already bonking, it's too late to fix it with gels.

Gels just help delay the bonk, hopefully until past 26.2 miles!

http://www.saltyrunning.com/peppers-guide-to-marathon-race-day-nutrition/

I didn't need as much as the formula prescribed (8 gels!!??!!), but thought the explanation/logic was useful to understand.

Edit: sorry, didn't realise you said training rather than racing. I'll leave this here anyway in case it's helpful.

Supercell

Curious about the aspect of training your body to burn fat. I've read that in training its a good thing not to use gels etc as much as in the race itself as you help train your body to use its fat stores.
Yesterday I did 11 miles for my weekly slow run (building towards DCM now) and could have used a gel around mile 8 or so. In the Limerick half I had one at about five miles and had wine gums after that and regretted not bringing a second gel for 10 miles as a pick me up. The LSR is much slower though and maybe I should be pushing through without?

Any guidance from more experienced runners when prepping for a marathon, how much do you bring on your LSR?

TFBubendorfer

Supercell wrote: »

Yesterday I did 11 miles for my weekly slow run (building towards DCM now) and could have used a gel around mile 8 or so. In the Limerick half I had one at about five miles and had wine gums after that and regretted not bringing a second gel for 10 miles as a pick me up. The LSR is much slower though and maybe I should be pushing through without?

If you're craving a gel after 8 miles it's probably psychological more than anything because you should not burn through all your carbohydrate stores so quickly. Pushing through that is exactly what you should do - you will adapt very quickly.

Personally, I never take anything during my training runs. You're not getting the full benefit of a long run if you're constantly supplying it with added sugar. Teaching it to spare your glycogen reserves is one of the key adaptations you want to push.

aine_fainne

Hills30 wrote: »

Hello. I was wondering if anyone had any rough guide to Calorie intake while marathon training (I know everyone is different, but a rough indication for a female). And what the Macro break down should look like.
Currently I train 5/6 times a week clocking around 60/70KM.

Is there any online resource that gives a tailored guide or anything? I haven't been able to find one

I recently bought a book called "Fast Fuel: Food for Running Success" by Renee McGregor and found it to be an interesting and useful read - it gives some general advice on macros targets according to your bodyweight and how to vary your carb intake depending on what type of training session you do (low intensity, moderate intensity and endurance). It also has sample meal plans and recipes. Might be worth checking out yourself.

Hills30

Thanks. I am trying carb manipulation now and will see if that has an impact, focusing on rest days, medium days and days of Long Runs or HIIT.

ooter

Supercell wrote: »

Curious about the aspect of training your body to burn fat. I've read that in training its a good thing not to use gels etc as much as in the race itself as you help train your body to use its fat stores.
Yesterday I did 11 miles for my weekly slow run (building towards DCM now) and could have used a gel around mile 8 or so. In the Limerick half I had one at about five miles and had wine gums after that and regretted not bringing a second gel for 10 miles as a pick me up. The LSR is much slower though and maybe I should be pushing through without?

Any guidance from more experienced runners when prepping for a marathon, how much do you bring on your LSR?

I'm no expert but I never use gels on training runs and always try to do my weekend long run on empty to become more fat adaptive, if you are building towards DCM and try just that one thing I'll be very surprised if you don't see some benefits, you might feel a bit iffy towards the end of your first few long runs but that should go away. It'd be no harm to carry 1 or 2 gels on your longer long runs (18/20 miles) and take one around half way if you feel the need, at least you'll know there's no GI issues with your chosen gel(s).

conor_mc

Supercell wrote: »

Curious about the aspect of training your body to burn fat. I've read that in training its a good thing not to use gels etc as much as in the race itself as you help train your body to use its fat stores.
Yesterday I did 11 miles for my weekly slow run (building towards DCM now) and could have used a gel around mile 8 or so. In the Limerick half I had one at about five miles and had wine gums after that and regretted not bringing a second gel for 10 miles as a pick me up. The LSR is much slower though and maybe I should be pushing through without?

Any guidance from more experienced runners when prepping for a marathon, how much do you bring on your LSR?

Don't think of gels as a "pick me up".... that's a recipe for digestive distress. Gels top up glycogen but take 20+mins to do so. And the body can't do it as efficiently as usual when it's maxed out carrying oxygen to the muscles in your legs! You should start topping up your glycogen as soon as it dips below max. That's why people take gels right at the start line, the body can convert it to glycogen easier than at the end of a race, and by the time it does so, you've burned 2-3 miles worth of glycogen to make space for it.

So you have to understand your glycogen depletion rate and pre-emptively consume gels accordingly.

hot buttered scones

conor_mc wrote: »

Don't think of gels as a "pick me up".... that's a recipe for digestive distress. Gels top up glycogen but take 20+mins to do so. And the body can't do it as efficiently as usual when it's maxed out carrying oxygen to the muscles in your legs! You should start topping up your glycogen as soon as it dips below max. That's why people take gels right at the start line, the body can convert it to glycogen easier than at the end of a race, and by the time it does so, you've burned 2-3 miles worth of glycogen to make space for it.

So you have to understand your glycogen depletion rate and pre-emptively consume gels accordingly.

My plan is usually to take gels at miles 6,10,14,18,22. So are you saying I'd be better off taking them at the start the miles 4,8,12 and 16 and that should be enough? I don't really want to take any more than 5, and even at that I think it's too much. I've been (more or less) training without them on this cycle, but I do get into trouble after 2.5 hours or so it seems. I've also taken them on any long MP runs for practice.

Eric the Eagle

hot buttered scones wrote: »

My plan is usually to take gels at miles 6,10,14,18,22. So are you saying I'd be better off taking them at the start the miles 4,8,12 and 16 and that should be enough? I don't really want to take any more than 5, and even at that I think it's too much. I've been (more or less) training without them on this cycle, but I do get into trouble after 2.5 hours or so it seems. I've also taken them on any long MP runs for practice.

For my last two marathons I have taken two gels around 20 mins before the start and then every 30 mins during the marathon.

I ended up taking 7 altogether in my last one, I am not sure where I got that strategy from but I did read it somewhere. It seems to work for me as I have felt reasonably good throughout the races.

I tend to not take them that much on long runs in training. I might take one or two just to keep topped up.

Down South

Eric the Eagle wrote: »

For my last two marathons I have taken two gels around 20 mins before the start and then every 30 mins during the marathon.

I ended up taking 7 altogether in my last one, I am not sure where I got that strategy from but I did read it somewhere. It seems to work for me as I have felt reasonably good throughout the races.

I tend to not take them that much on long runs in training. I might take one or two just to keep topped up.

That's what High5 recommend for their gels

hot buttered scones

Eric the Eagle wrote: »

For my last two marathons I have taken two gels around 20 mins before the start and then every 30 mins during the marathon.

I ended up taking 7 altogether in my last one, I am not sure where I got that strategy from but I did read it somewhere. It seems to work for me as I have felt reasonably good throughout the races.

I tend to not take them that much on long runs in training. I might take one or two just to keep topped up.

Yeah, I'm the same for long runs over a certain time, but eventually I'd like to train myself not to need them for long runs - I'm about 70% there. As for marathons - I did the same as you for the first two I did, but I think I took 5 for my last one. I just don't want to be carrying that much stuff around with me. I take the high 5 isogels because you're not depending on water stations to take them.

Ed McGroarty

hot buttered scones wrote: »

Yeah, I'm the same for long runs over a certain time, but eventually I'd like to train myself not to need them for long runs - I'm about 70% there.

Why not just leave the gels behind on your next long run and see how it goes. What's the worst that can happen.

hot buttered scones

Ed McGroarty wrote:

Why not just leave the gels behind on your next long run and see how it goes. What's the worst that can happen.

I did that on a few of them lately. I seemed to go south after about 2.5 hours. Got up to about 18 miles without, 16 miles without with no issues. I think I did a 14 or 15 miler or close without gels or breakfast which went well. What I learned from that is you can go for long enough if you've eaten well the day before (I think). I think if I ran a bit slower I'd probably go a bit longer. I reintroduced them for a couple of long runs with alot of MP stuff just to be sure to finish the session and for race day practice and even then just 2 I think. This is a lot better than last year when I'd take them every 4 or 5 miles during long runs. Sometimes though, I wonder was it hydration or electrolyte issues rather than fuel issues.

conor_mc

hot buttered scones wrote: »

I did that on a few of them lately. I seemed to go south after about 2.5 hours. Got up to about 18 miles without, 16 miles without with no issues. I think I did a 14 or 15 miler or close without gels or breakfast which went well. What I learned from that is you can go for long enough if you've eaten well the day before (I think). I think if I ran a bit slower I'd probably go a bit longer. I reintroduced them for a couple of long runs with alot of MP stuff just to be sure to finish the session and for race day practice and even then just 2 I think. This is a lot better than last year when I'd take them every 4 or 5 miles during long runs. Sometimes though, I wonder was it hydration or electrolyte issues rather than fuel issues.

Try and go without gels on your LSR's hbs, other than to try them out to ensure they don't cause any digestive distress. I read somewhere it takes months to optimise our fat-burning system (which is undermined by taking gels, particularly at the business end of LSR's) but only a couple of LSR's at the end of the training cycle to optimise glycogen processing/burning.

Obviously don't do anything dangerous like getting dizzy after 2.5 hrs or anything! If it was me (and I have also struggled after mile 18 or so!), I'd prefer to stop for a banana or something. It's a healthier snack and there's no real benefit to taking gels in training unless you're testing them for digestive compatibility.

Try the running slower too btw, it won't do any harm but it's good to zero in on your "run all day long" pace.