It took me a long time to come around to the idea of eating during a run. While training for my second half marathon, I tried different pasty substances and chewy squares but it always felt awkward and wrong to be chewing and swallowing in the middle of a long run. Plus, eating didn't seem to make much of a difference in my overall energy or performance so after I while I gave it up. I didn't eat anything while training for my most recent half marathon -- or during the event itself -- and didn't suffer any adverse consequences.
But when I started training for a full marathon, I realized pretty quickly (with the help of friend Carmen) that I'd have to take in additional calories while on the move. For a slow runner like me, eating while running seems even more vital. After all, it's going to take me in the neighborhood of 5 hours to complete the marathon. That's if I can go the distance (sorry, I had to say that because I don't want to jinx myself).
And it's not like I can load up on food and then start running immediately. The longer the run, it seems, the longer I need to wait after eating to get started. For the marathon, I'm going to aim for about three hours between breakfast and the starting whistle. So, all told, that's 8 hours between the last meal I eat before the marathon and the first one I eat after -- more than 8, since it's not like I'll be sitting down to a giant plate of food at the finish line. And 5 of those hours will be spent working my ass off. So (back to my original point), I accept that I've gotta eat during the run itself.
Fortunately, the benefits of taking in calories during a run are now very tangible to me. If I'm slow and dragging, then pop in a mouthful of Luna Moons or Sport Beans, I feel a definite uptick in my energy about 10 minutes later. Placebo effect? Maybe. Especially because I read somewhere that it takes about 10 minutes for the energy from those carbs to get into your bloodstream and hit your muscles. But even if it's all in my head, I don't care one bit -- because I can feel the run becoming less of a push for a while, and even if it's in my imagination, it is absolutely delightful.
Lately I've been experimenting with what to eat on a long run and unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a single answer. I tried doing all Sport Beans on a 15-miler and ended up with a really sour, unhappy stomach. I saw this described as "sugar belly" in a book recently and that term seemed perfect. Although I really enjoyed the taste of the beans and the quick boost they gave me, I knew I needed to look at other options.
Next I tried Luna Moons, thinking that their milder flavor would decrease the sugar belly effect. True to a certain extent -- but I still couldn't consume them for an entire run without suffering some consequences. Honestly, my stomach felt like it needed some real food.
The idea of eating something "real" on a run was a bit frightening to me. Anyone who knows me is well acquainted with my fear of nausea and vomiting. The last thing I wanted to do was put something in my mouth during a run that would make me feel like I was going to barf. Although I've read about runners who eat crazy stuff like pizza and burritos on a run -- and Trainer A from the gym told me he eats turkey sandwiches and bagels and cream cheese -- attempting something like that seemed like asking for trouble. What I wanted was something uncomplicated, not too fatty (read: no dairy), not too sugary, that I could easily carry and would taste good. Oh, and that wouldn't give me diarrhea, make me nauseous, give me cramps or make me barf.
Tall order. But, so far, my experimenting has been fruitful, without any of the side effects I dread. The one substance I really don't think I can consume without putting myself in danger of good old runner's diarrhea is Gu or anything like it. I confess, I'm hugely attracted to the ease and simplicity of Gu: no chewing, just straight down your gullet, and lots of the flavors are even caffeinated. But the ones I've tried give me cramps like nobody's business. So all those pastes are off my list.
What IS working for me these days -- and what I'll carry with me during the marathon -- is a mix of Luna Moons (watermelon is my preferred flavor), LaraBars (peanut butter cookie flavor) and Frosted Cheerios. Not all at once ... one type at a time. I take my first food break at mile 5, then try to put something in every 3 miles or so after that. I alternate: Moons first, then Bar, then Cheerios. Whatever it is that I'm eating, I don't take in a ton: three Moons; 2 chunks of Bar (the equivalent of half a bar or less); handful of Cheerios.
I also make sure to wash down my snack with lots of water. That's another mistake I made early on: not drinking enough after eating on the run. Apparently (and this makes a lot of sense), you've gotta add water to the mix if you want your stomach to be able to absorb the calories you've just ingested. If you don't dilute your food with some water, it sits there longer and -- this is the part that really got my attention -- has the potential to irritate your stomach. Which means that I'm now totally on top of drinking 6 or so ounces every time I eat.
Last thing: have you tried LaraBars? They're really good, and not just during runs. There aren't many bar options for me because I have trouble with soy, and LaraBars are made solely with fruit and nuts -- at least, my fave Peanut Butter Cookie flavor is that way. But unlike other bars that are made with whole chunks of said ingredients, these are ground up and mixed together so they've got that same easy-to-eat-and-digest bar consistency that's the hallmark of products like Clif Bars.
Here's a link to the LaraBar web site and a picture of what they look like. I wish I knew how to make that fancy umlaut.
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