Fuel the Machine: Nutrition Advice for the Endurance Athlete

“Get your motor running. Get out on the highway!”

Well, maybe it’s better to stick to the sidewalk…

If you’re an avid runner or endurance athlete “getting your motor running,” is essential, but keeping it running is just as critical. If you log enough miles each week to consider yourself a full -fledged “endurance athlete,” then you need to eat like one. Whether you are a recreational endurance athlete performing a daily 5-mile loop around town most mornings of the week or a competitive Iron Man it’s imperative to fuel your body appropriately.

“Nutrition needs take into account 3 main factors: basal metabolic rate (BMR) or the amount of energy you burn at rest, physical activity, and the thermic effect of food. BMR accounts for about 60-70% of the total number the body uses daily and is determined by gender, body size, body composition, and age.”

The thermic effect or the calories burned through the digestion of food makes up a small part, but physical activity can greatly affect one’s caloric requirements. Therefore, in order to properly fuel your body and optimize recovery it’s essential to consider the calories burned through daily activity.

Attempting to maintain a low calorie or worse low carbohydrate diet while attempting to improve your athletic performance for endurance activities can leave you fatigued, overtrained, injured, sick, and frustrated with your workouts. On the other end of the spectrum, exercising and even hard training does not mean you should eat whatever you want. Overeating foods that are high in sugar, saturated and trans fat can blunt your progress and performance by zapping energy and packing on the pounds.

If you want to be a lean racing machine you have to eat like a machine.  This means you employ my basic sports nutrition philosophy of eating “the right foods, in the right amounts, at the right times.”

Choosing the Right Foods in the Right Amounts

Carbohydrates:

A balanced diet should consist of carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fat.  Carbohydrates should make up a large portion of the endurance athlete’s diet. Carbohydrates are stored in the body as glycogen, which is the body’s go to fuel source for aerobic activity. An endurance athlete’s goal is to maximize the amount of stored glycogen. With proper training and diet the body becomes more efficient at storing glycogen, which helps keep you from “bonking.” The majority of carbs should come from complex carbohydrates such as yams, whole grains, low glycemic fruits, and vegetables.

Carbs with a higher glycemic index hit the blood stream more rapidly and release more insulin to help promote glycogen replenishment. High glycemic index foods such as Gu gels, Gatorade, high glycemic fruit smoothies, fruit juices, and bagels should be eaten only 30-60 minutes after a training session or during the training session.

How Much: Consume 3-6 grams of carbohydrate per pound of bodyweight per day. Consume the lower range if training for 60-90 minutes/day and the upper range if training for 4-6 hours/day.

For every hour of continuous exercise consume 30-60 grams of carbohydrate. Consume approximately 0.5 grams of carbohydrates per pound of body weight with the addition of a quality source protein immediately after exercise and again 2-3 hours later to replenish glycogen stores.

Protein:

Protein is important for the endurance athlete, because not only does it play a key role in many physiological functions in the body and help maintain lean muscle mass, but it can also be used for energy when glycogen stores are depleted in events or training sessions that last longer than 90 minutes.

The branched chain amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and valine can be used to produce energy. Therefore, it’s important to consume the right kinds and amounts of protein that can offset daily protein requirements as well as training needs. Protein sources from animal products such as chicken, turkey, fish, eggs, and milk are the best sources since they provide a complete amino acid profile.

Vegetarians and Vegans must make more of an effort to meet their protein needs. Soy is the only plant source that is a complete protein. Vegetarians and Vegans need to pay particular attention to meal combinations: pairing grains with nuts/seeds or dairy and grains to ensure they are getting all the amino acids to form “complete proteins.”

How Much: Consume 0.5-0.8 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight daily. Be sure to include protein in your post workout meal along with a fast acting carbohydrate source. Recovery drinks/shakes are ideal.

Fat:

Fat is essential in all diets. Fat helps transport vitamins and it’s essential for generating muscle contraction.  Healthy fats from monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats should make up the majority of the diet. Choose healthy fats like avocadoes, raw nuts, nut butters, olive oil, fatty fish, and flax seed. Taking a daily fish or flax oil supplement may also help meet essential fatty acid needs.

Studies have shown that a diet rich in healthy fats can reduce inflammation, promote brain and heart health and even have a positive effect on metabolism.

How Much: 0.5 gram/pound of bodyweight daily.  Healthy fats should make up approximately 30% of daily calories.

Timing it Right: A Sample Plan

Eating “the right foods, in the right amounts, at the right times” is essential to improve performance, overall health, and promote recovery. Below is a sample diet for a 30-year old male endurance athlete that is 5’10, 175 lbs. Training 1-2 hours/per day.

• Before starting any diet or exercise program please seek the advice of your primary care physician to ensure you are in good health. This example diet does not account for individual needs, food allergies, and the like.
• Please note: Proper fluid intake is very important, but not mentioned in this article.

6AM. Breakfast:

-1 whole egg scrambled with 3 egg whites

-1 cup cooked oatmeal with ½ cup of blueberries and 10 raw almonds

- 8 oz. Orange Juice

7:30 AM: Training

-1/2 Power Bar 15-30 minutes before training

-1 bottle of sport drink during training, ½ Power Bar

10AM: Post-Workout Recovery Meal

Protein Fruit Smoothie: 1 scoop of protein powder of your choice (whey is ideal), 1 cup sliced mango, 1 cup of strawberries, 8 oz orange juice, blended with ice.

12PM: Lunch

-3 oz chicken breast, lettuce, tomato, mustard on Ezekiel Sprouted Wheat Burger Bun

-1 medium apple with 1 tbsp natural nut butter

3PM: Afternoon Snack

2 small whole wheat or corn tortillas each topped with 2 oz black beans, 1 tbsp chopped bell peppers, spinach, 1 oz avocado, 1 tbsp salsa

6PM: Dinner

-4 oz. broiled salmon

-1 cup cooked brown rice

-1 cup steamed broccoli

-1 large garden salad with onion, tomato, 1 oz walnuts, and vinegar or light dressing

9PM: Evening Snack

Smoothie: 4 oz. plain low-fat yogurt, 1 cup berries, 1 tbsp ground flax seed, 1/2 cup dry old fashioned rolled oats, 8 oz almond milk blended with ice

Daily Totals: 3,472 calories. 175 g protein, 498 g carbohydrate, 90 g fat