Hydration & Nutrition

Hydration

A runner that is training consistently needs to have good daily habits when it comes to staying hydrating because the body cannot be quickly manipulated. This means that drinking 16-20 ounces prior to practice will not hydrate a runner who isn't already practicing good hydration habits throughout the day each day.

What are these "good habits"?

• Drinking 16-24 ounces of water at each meal (breakfast, lunch, and dinner)
• Sipping on a bottle of water about an hour prior to training and finishing the bottle prior to training. May even dilute a sports drink half and half with water to get some electrolytes
• Post training session drinking 16-24 ounces and including some sports drink or other source of electrolytes is a good idea if possible as well as including post run snack of carbs/proteins and a full meal within 2-4 hours
• Drinking water in between meals as well

How do I know if I am hydrated?

• The color of the urine is a tell-tale sign. If you are well-hydrated, your urine will be a light yellow or straw color. Urine is dark yellow or gold when you're dehydrated; this is because the wastes normally found in urine become more concentrated as your body tries to conserve water.
• A person's goal should be to cultivate habits that allow them to stay well-hydrated all the time. This is quite easy once a person creates the habits and learns to pay attention to their body and respond to it appropriately.

Nutrition

A runner that is training consistently has certain nutritional needs in order for the body to be able to optimally recover, adapt, and therefore improve itself from the work.

An effective diet is going to include somewhere around 60% carbohydrates, 25% proteins, 15% good fats. Do not try to be exact with these percentages in your diet, but remember these numbers in order to help you make decisions about portion sizes and frequency for certain foods. The table below lists good sources of carbohydrates, proteins, and healthy fats.

However, a well-balanced diet should be the aim. Therefore, vegetables are a must as well (e.g. beets, quinoa, sweet potatoes, spinach, kale, carrots, asparagus to name a few good choices, but there are certainly more).

Most Americans need more FRUITS and VEGETABLES in their diet. Making this one change in your diet can make a world of difference.

Another crucial change is moving AWAY FROM processed foods and consuming MORE clean natural foods.

And yet, another great change is to reduce the amount of added sugar in your diet.

These three changes will completely transform a person in a good way. The body will begin to feel better, recover better, and sustain balanced energy more easily, as well as perform better. Include these diet changes with good hydration habits and your body will be operating optimally and that feels great.

Practical Help & Suggestions

If you struggle to eat enough fruits and vegetables here are a couple ways to make it easy:

1. Buy a single serve blender. Frozen fruit keeps and buy things to mix it with (old-fashioned oats, seeds, beets, spinach, etc.). Find some good combos that you like. Making them is easy. Clean up is easy. The benefits tremendous.
2. Buy children fruit/veggie squeeze packs from the infant/toddler's section at the grocery store.
3. Same section also includes Pedialyte if you need a good source of electrolytes.

Book Suggestions

If you want to learn more about eating "cleaner" and how to discern between the many options in the market today then I've found the following book to be a helpful educational source:

• "Eat Clean Stay Lean" by the Editors of Prevention with Wendy Bazilian

If you are interested in recipes specific to the lifestyle of training and running:

• "Run Fast. Eat Slow. by Shalane Flanagan & Elyse Kopecky
  • Includes the following chapters: Eat Slow To Run Fast, Our Pantry, Thirst Quenchers, Morning Fuel, Snacks and Appetizers, Salads, Soups, Nourishing Mains, Sides, Sauces and Dressings, Wholesome Treats, Runner's Remedies

Fun Effective Recovery Drink (called the Submarino)

1 cup whole milk

1 small bar dark chocolate (about 14g or 0.5 oz), at least 60% cacao

Heat the milk until very hot, but not boiling. Probably about one minute in the microwave. Pour milk into a tall glass. Plunge the chocolate bar into the hot milk and stir with a metal spoon until the chocolate has melted.

From 2019 Cullman Cross Country Team Camp @ Cedarville University

Vegetables:

• Peppers, Avocado, Brocoli, Kale, Spinach, Carrots, Asparagus, Sweet Potatoes, Potatoes, Squash, Boiled Okra, Zuchinni, Corn, Tomatoes

Breakfast Meal Options:

• Cottage cheese with nuts / Natural peanut butter on toast
• Old-fashioned oats with honey and cinnamon / Blueberries / Eggs on toast
• Yogurt with granola / Bananas
• Eggs on spinach / Natural peanut butter sandwich / Fruit
• Smoothie: Almond milk or Rice milk, Fruit, Walnuts, Spinach or Kale

Lunch Meal Options:

• Salad: Spinach with ranch (vinaigrette's healthier) with tomato, cheese, grilled chicken and rice or quinoa
• Tortilla Wrap: black beans, rice, beef
• Sandwiches: turkey, cheese, spinach
• Rice or Quinoa with Chicken or Fish and Sweet Potato

Dinner Meal Options:

• Pineapple chicken with rice or quinoa
• Salmon on rice with asparagus
• Grilled chicken, sweet potato fries, salad
• Eggplant lasagna
• Stuff peppers with rice and beef
• Vegetable soup with beans
• Tuna pasta with tomato
• Avocado toast and eggs

Appropriate portion of a meat or fish (5-6 ounces).

Snack Options:

• Bananas, carrots, a whole-grain cereal with almond or rice milk, cottage cheese, dried apricots, dried plums, energy bars, yogurt with fruit, oatmeal, hummus on wheat crackers, rice cakes with natural peanut butter, smoothie, tortillas filled with black beans and mozzarella cheese, tuna fish, popcorn (not doused in butter), pretzels, Gummy Bears (prior to running or while running)