Goooood morning!!

Today’s oats included pumpkin & cottage cheese, along with some walnuts and not one, but two nut butters: peanut butter AND almond butter. Yum. I love the nuttiness of the almond butter, but the hint of sweetness from the peanut butter.

The almond butter doesn’t melt as well, so it’s harder to get in every bite. That’s why the PB’s there for back up

The tummy’s definitely doing better today—ahh the magical power of oats. Still a little off, but much better than yesterday! We headed out of town for some family stuff, so things maybe a little sporadic around here- I apologize in advance.

Normally when I travel with the in-laws we eat lots of food out, since we don’t really have anywhere to do any cooking. I don’t normally mind when it’s only for a short time, but with the way my stomach’s been acting and the half marathon coming up, I don’t want to mess around too much.

I decided to pack some snacks that I thought would be pretty tummy friendly in case we do end up having to eat out a lot. Then if there isn’t something that will sit well, I’ll have backups to keep me from chewing an arm off. I asked the husband if he thought it would offend anyone if I brought my own food. I’m not sure why I care what people think so much. It’s not their stomach.

Anyways, I’m all loaded up with goodies: Quaker Blueberry & Hazelnut Latte oatmeal packets, bite sized dried plums, whole wheat Wheat Thins, pretzels, Kashi Honey Sunshine cereal, almonds, & walnuts. Think it’d be strange if I threw in a whole jar of peanut butter?!

Here’s a quickie DYKT for you:

DYKT #7

Did you know it’s more beneficial to carbo-load the week leading up to a longer event than the night before?

Loading up on carbohydrates before an event that’ll last longer than 30 minutes could mean the difference between hitting the wall and finishing strong, but an all-night pasta party probably isn’t the best way to do it.

The idea behind carbo-loading is to maximize the amount of glycogen you have stored in your muscles come race time. By stocking up on carbs, you can increase the amount of glycogen in your muscles from 80-120 mmol/kg to 200 mmol/kg- quite a difference!

Also the point is to specific eat more carbohydrates- not more calories in general, or more fat, etc. Your body does need more calories so the extra can be stored as fuel, but that should be achieved by exercising less, not eating more. Exercising less (tapering) gives your muscles a chance to relax, repair any damage, and store glycogen.

Glycogen stored in your muscles not only provides energy during your race, but it also helps prevent dehydration. For every gram of carbohydrate stored in your muscles, 3 grams of water are stored.

Complex carbohydrates are probably your best option, but what’s more important is not to change your diet too much. This isn’t the time to be messing around! Remember, some carbs like fruit and fruit juice can cause diarrhea in some people. Stick to what you know!

Don’t want to eat more carbohydrates all week long? The most important time period to consumer carbohydrates is the 3 days leading up to the event.

Happy carbing!

Tagged as: carbo loading, nut butter, oatmeal, peanut butter