I have just started running as part of my exercise regimen. Could you please suggest a good diet for runners?
Answered by our expert Urmi Kothari, an alternative fitness professional who heads her label ‘Kinetic Living’.
Running is a high endurance sport (depending on how much distance you are running at one go and throughout the week.). The amount and type of carbohydrates that you need to eat depend on your duration and intensity of training. On training days, you must eat a small snack before your run. Avoid running on empty stomach since it will hamper your performance. A small banana is good. If you are going for a long run, carry a sipper with you and depending on the run, hydrate well with approximately a litre of water after. If you like sports drinks, be careful of what you choose since many of them have high sugar content. Personally, I prefer water or something natural like coconut water or lemon juice.
Eating after a run
If it’s a long run i.e. more than 10 km, have a carbohydrate rich food immediately after your run. It can be a potato sandwich or high-carb fruit like banana or jack fruit. Fruit smoothies also are an option. Your next meal should be a combination of protein and complex carbohydrates.
Alternatively, you can have a meal of carbohydrates and protein after your training. Eggs on toast, paneer or chicken sandwich works well. If you are currently following a different diet, you can alter it to include the food groups that are missing.
In general, for breakfast, lunch and dinner, have a good portion of complex carbohydrates (roti, mutli-grain bread, upma, poha, oats, and muesli) and proteins (eggs, chicken, curd, tofu, paneer, sprouts). The amount of fat / oil used for preparation should be moderate. Add salads to your lunch and dinner to add variety. Salads can be regular raw green salads or sprouts salad or even a warm salad mixed with boiled chicken / boiled egg / veggies like red/green/yellow peppers, tomato, olives, carrot etc.
Hydrating your body is very essential so don’t just drink only when you feel thirsty. Drink a glass of water every half hour and not too much quantity at a time. Before a race or a long run, make sure the colour of urine is clear or very light yellow.
If you are experiencing any sugar cravings after you have started training, one of the possibilities could be that you are not having enough carbohydrates. Don’t go overboard but try eating more fruits as snacks and complex carbs (during meals) or one of the two. Each body is different and you must try different foods to see which ones suit your body and taste. The trick to eating healthy is to make healthier choices and alterations to your current eating patterns rather than drastically changing what you eat which can demotivate you and make it difficult to change and adjust.
You can watch videos of Urmi Kothari giving tips on fitness and nutrition on our YouTube Channel.
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