“Fuel Your Body”

So you’re ready to run. You have good running shoes and an empty stomach. It is time to fuel your body. Your car can’t run without gas. Therefore, your body can’t run without food.

Before you run or do any exercise, it’s imperative to fuel your body with the proper food. No junk food. Food that is going to help you get through your exercise program.

Complex carbohydrates, protein and fruit are a great source of food. You need the energy to run and food that will maintain your blood sugar. There are many people that start their run with caffeine and simple sugar foods. It’s a very bad idea to eat like that.

As you run and your body is moving, your stomach is attached and will start to realize it is not very happy. You might end up with a very bad stomachache and a spike in your blood sugar. This will most likely result in a bad exercise experience.

Adjusting your diet might be one of the hardest things you will have to do. However, the results will be very positive. It’s important to be aware of your body and keep a journal of your diet and exercise. By doing that, will allow you the opportunity to review your food. Logging in your daily progress, can be very beneficial to make any necessary changes of things that worked or did not work for you.

An example of my diet is protein and fruit. I eat either turkey lunch meat, turkey burgers plain  or grilled chicken I prepare. I also eat a ½ of a banana, orange or whatever fruit I have and a tablespoon of peanut butter. I drink a ¼ cup of orange juice or Gatorade. This diet works for me. I am able to be fueled and I can run 13-16 miles on this food. If I am hungry during my run, I eat a ¼ Cliff bar or 1 Cliff block.

Cliff is a food product that sells many items for exercise food. It has electrolyte’s that’s essential for your body as it is burning sweat. My favorite food product is Cliff. I love their bars, blocks and gels. These products are sold at most fitness stores. Trader Joes and Costco also carry Cliff bars. There are other companies such as Gu that also sell similar products.

Here are some additional suggestions for food before your run. Plain oatmeal, toast with peanut butter, Morning Star vegetarian sausage patties, non dairy protein and fruit.

Depending on your body will determine how much food you will need to eat. Remember you are burning this food so don’t feel too guilty. You will need these healthy calories to burn more calories. Your body is a machine and it really knows what’s inside of it. Please be kind to your body and it will be kind to you.

Stay tuned for my next blog, “Protein is the Star”.