Ep #94: Your Questions Answered: All Things Fueling! With Jen Lamplough

Welcome to The Not Your Average Runner Podcast. If you’re a woman who is midlife and plus sized and you want to start running but don’t know how, or if it’s even possible, you’re in the right place. Using proven strategies and real-life experience, certified running and life coach Jill Angie shares how you can learn to run in the body you have right now.

Jill: Hey rebels, you are listening to episode number 94 of The Not Your Average Runner Podcast. We’re getting so close to 100 Jen, what do you think about that?

Jen: I am so excited. I just remember when you started talking about doing a podcast and I remember saying like, I need you to do a podcast because I need to hear your voice in my ear. Do you remember that? When I said that to you?

Jill: I do. I do. And here we are, almost 100 episodes later. And you know what’s so funny? Actually wait, let’s stop. You guys, I have Jen Lamplough on the call with me today. On the podcast with my today. We’re going to be answering a whole bunch of questions that have been sent in and we’re going to be talking about fueling for long runs, which is going to be awesome.

But first, the whole reason that I did the podcast – I mean, partly because people were asking for a podcast, but also because people kept asking me to just record pep talks and actually what they wanted was like, when I do my intervals, I want to hear your voice saying hey girl, it’s time to run, or time for a walk break. And they wanted me to record that with music so that they could listen to it.

Jen: That’s awesome.

Jill: And I was like, that’s super awesome but there’s a whole bunch of licensing issues and it was just like, kind of crazy. So I thought maybe I could just do a podcast and people would like to listen to that, and you were just like, yeah, do one.

Jen: Yeah, when I pick the stuff we teach too, it’s nice to have the podcast to refer back to and be like, hey, go listen to episode 33 because that’s where we talked about the thought model. That sort of thing.

Jill: Yeah, for sure. And I do that all the time too. If you’re a new listener, recognize that we have – in 94 episodes, we’ve covered a shit ton of stuff and it’s all there. So I’m actually in the process of creating like, a guide to – the essential Not Your Average Runner Podcast episodes. So if you can think of any that are must listens, let me know.

Jen: I already have that list.

Jill: She’s like, I got them on replay on my – alright, so today we’re talking about fueling and the reason we want to talk about fueling is because we’ve been talking between ourselves about fueling like, constantly for the past few weeks because we are preparing for fueling and hydration month in Run Your Best Life. And I’m like, super excited about that. Jen, of course, is like a nutrition expert. She’s a chef, she’s a long-run fueling expert, and so she’s actually going to be doing a lot of the teaching in Run Your Best Life next month. Do you want to kind of give people an overview of the amazingness that’s coming down the pipeline?

Jen: Well sure. I just have to say; I am not a nutritionist or a dietician. I am a chef, but I do specialize in healthy cooking and cooking for people with food allergies or chronic disease like diabetes. But I am not a nutritionist or a dietician. So if you have a medical issue, make sure you consult a dietician. I just want to say that.

Jill: Yeah, and always if you have a medical issue, do not consult the podcast. Consult a professional. But you do. I mean, in the past couple decades, you have amassed quite a bit of knowledge of – because you have a cookbook. They’re all like, diabetes related. So you’re pretty knowledgeable about that and because you’ve done multiple half marathons and a full marathon and you fueled yourself successfully through all of them.

Jen: Yes, I am an expert. I am an expert in that field for sure, but yeah. So we’re planning for the upcoming fuel and hydration month and we’re talking about things like what to eat the night before a run, what to eat the morning of before a run, what to eat during a run, what to eat after a run. And then just sort of general – you have to think about your nutrition not just during those times, but you have to treat your body like it’s always in training. And so you want to give it the best fuel possible at all times and how do you do that and still enjoy your food, and it is possible.

Jill: It is possible. People do it all the time. And they’re not eating just Gu because literally, there is a running fuel called Gu, which is the dumbest thing ever but probably very accurate. But it doesn’t have to all be like this sugary gross stuff and your food food doesn’t need to taste boring and plain and yeah.

Jen: It’s not all broiled chicken breast and broccoli, which is delicious in its own right, but it doesn’t have to always be that.

Jill: Yeah, you know what, so tonight for dinner, for the first time – I don’t know how I’ve not had this before because I’ve had cauliflower everything else. But tonight, we made cauliflower rice, like sort of a sesame ginger flavor, which was super easy because I bought a bag of the frozen rice – well, Andy bought it at the store and we just sautéed it in a little bit of sesame oil and I threw in some powdered ginger.

Actually, I sautéed garlic in sesame oil and then I threw the rice in, and then a little bit of ginger and a little bit of salt, and then topped it with sesame seeds. And then we put just some stir fried pork and broccoli on top. It was fucking amazing. I was like, licking the plate.

Jen: I’m a huge cauliflower rice fan. We have a ton of cauliflower rice recipes in our latest book. I say our. I have a co-author who is a registered dietician and certified diabetes educator. We’ve written all of our cookbooks together and so we both love cauliflower rice. So we actually have a cauliflower rice stir fry in there that is totally awesome.

Jill: I’m totally going to try that. Your cookbook is amazing. And the pictures in it too are like – they’re beautiful. They’re so beautiful. And so we’re actually sharing in Run Your Best Life, we’re sharing a couple of your cookbook recipes and then also some of your extra special for Run Your Best Life clients only recipes this month in the group because we’re just going to do all things food and hydration.

Jen: I’m even doing a cooking demo. It’s going to be a live stream cooking demo so that’s going to be new for me. I’ve never really done that and it’s going to be very fun.

Jill: Are you going to be doing it in your professional kitchen or are you going to be doing it at home?

Jen: I’m going to try to do it in my professional kitchen. I just have to figure out how the sound will work, but yes.

Jill: I love this, because your kitchen is – I mean, I’ve never actually been there but I’ve seen it on video and it looks amazing. Okay, so we start that on June 1st and if you’re listening to this on the day this podcast drops, that’s like, a couple days from now because I think this podcast comes out on May 30th. So June 1st is when we officially kick off fueling month in Run Your Best Life. So if you want to join and get in on all of that, just head over to runyourbestlife.com. Sign up and you’ll get every little bit of amazingness that Jen is teaching this month. And we just put the finishing touches on all the recipes that we’re sending out to everybody and they just look so good.

And we’re going to be – so in Seattle, we’re taking the our rebel runner crew for their very last race-cation to Seattle. Actually, I don’t even want to say it because I feel like I don’t want to…

Jen: Are you talking about the night before the race?

Jill: Yes. The pre-race meal. The night before race meal.

Jen: Let’s just say it. We’re making a mash potato bar.

Jill: I’m so excited for this.

Jen: It sounds a little not so exciting but it actually is very exciting.

Jill: Because you can do your own thing with it, so I think it’s a great pre-race meal because everybody – if you have a bunch of family members, everybody else is going to like it too. You get to make your own, and if you’re somebody who likes sour cream, you can put sour cream. If you’re like, no fucking way, then you can put something else on it. It’s like an ice cream bar, only way better for you.

Jen: Exactly. With mash potatoes instead of ice cream. And bacon instead of nuts.

Jill: Right. And sour cream instead of fudge. No, it’s going to be really good. I’m excited. Alright, well, let’s just dive into some questions. I picked a few and you picked a few.

Jen: Why don’t you go first?

Jill: Okay, I’ll go first. So we actually – we put a call out in the Not Your Average Runner Podcast community, the Facebook group for questions on fueling to answer and we just picked a handful of them at random and we’re going to answer them. So the first one is from Beth Allan and she says, “How do I know when you fuel? If I can run five plus miles without feeling like I need anything, would fueling help me keep up my pace? In my last half marathon, I was fine until I suddenly started feeling nauseous around mile eight. I didn’t have anything with me but a group was handing out Life Savers. Could a single Life Saver actually have helped or was it psychological? I wish I could just keep running and not have to think about fuel and water until I was done because it seems to inconvenient.”

So, great, great question Beth. And there is a lot to unpack here. So if you can run five miles without feeling like you need anything, that’s pretty normal. Most people have that much glycogen saved up in their muscles that they can just knock that out without a problem. But unless you are fat adapted, which is kind of a whole other topic that we’re probably not going to cover today, but fat adapted basically means like, your body easily runs on body fat as fuel, and that’s something that takes a while to get your body there.

Unless you’re fat adapted, you are going to need to take in some carbohydrate along the way because you use up your available stores. I mean, think of your muscles only have so much space available in them to store glycogen and when it’s gone, they need to pull it from someplace else. And so if you use it all up and you’re feeding yourself at the right time during your run, then your body will just take that fuel and turn it into energy and everything’s going to be fine.

But if you use it up and you’re not bringing in any new fuel, that’s when you get to that point where you feel like you’re nauseous or you’re just – you feel like you’ve just hit a wall, and it’s a different point for everybody. And yeah, a couple of Life Savers might have actually made a difference because it’s really fast sugar into your body. It’s easily absorbed and it can go right to your muscles.

So I know it’s a pain in the ass to have to think about fuel and water while you’re out doing a long run, but I promise you, your run will feel a lot better if you do. But Jen, what would you add to that?

Jen: Probably a couple things. One, I would say make sure that you aren’t waiting until you feel like you’re nauseous and going to pass out before you start fueling. You have to sort of play around with it and practice like, okay if I know that mile seven is when I’m going to start feeling bad, before you hit that, you should take a little in so that you stave that off.

Because if you hit the wall, no matter what you take in, you might not recover from it. It sounded like the Life Savers lived up to their name and you got that immediate sugar, which is great. I always carry Life Savers with me on my long runs. And so they’re one of my favorites actually.

Jill: I didn’t know that about you.

Jen: I always have Life Savers with me. They’re my favorite. You know why? This is going to sound so gross, but they make me drool.

Jill: Right, so you don’t get dry mouth.

Jen: So I don’t feel like my mouth is dry all the time, although sometimes you can like, sort of choke on that drool too, so you got to be careful. But I know that so I’m always really careful, but I love Life Savers on a run. But yeah, just start practicing with it and realize like okay, I know that an hour in, so whatever your pace is, an hour in, so whatever mile that is for you, if it’s – for me I’m at a 15-minute mile so I know that at four miles I need to take a little something in because I know coming up soon that I’m going to start really feeling that depletion.

Jill: And it takes some experimentation as well, but I would also say with water, you can teach your body to run completely fasted and make it through a half marathon or even a marathon without needing anything. But I would never go on a long run without water. So if you’re at a race and they have tables with water, which they should, then that’s fine. I think a lot of people can just get away with having the water that’s at the aid station.

But if you’re out on a long run any more than an hour, then I would either bring water or make sure you stash it somewhere along your route, or you know that there’s a drinking fountain at a certain point because you don’t want your body to go – your body can go a lot longer without food than it can without water. Because water’s pretty fucking important, so don’t mess around with that. And I know it’s a pain in the neck, but the option is – the other alternative is to just collapse from exhaustion. I don’t love that for you. I don’t know.

Jen: I mean, not just water too, but depending on how hot it is or humid it is, you might want to have water and an electrolyte replacement. So something like a Gatorade or a Nuun or whatever it is that you like. I happen to like the Nuun because it’s not super overly flavorful. You know what I mean? Like a Gatorade tastes like drinking syrup to me when I’m on a long run.

Jill: And the Nuun is a powder that you put in, so you can actually control how much is going into your water, whereas Gatorade is just like, it’s just Gatorade.

Jen: I think the Nuun are tabs, but maybe they make it in a powder too. I get the tabs.

Jill: Oh no, you’re right. They’re tabs. I’m confusing them with Skratch.

Jen: Yeah, there’s a bunch of them out there and you can always play around and taste test what sits well on your palate.

Jill: Agreed. And then, so the other thing I want to point out though with Life Savers, because I know Life Savers and a lot of people chew gum when they’re running because they – again, it helps keep the mouth not feel so dry. I just want you guys to know when you’re running, you’re breathing in and out of your mouth pretty heavily and it is easy for you to suck a piece of gum or a Life Saver into your esophagus accidentally and choke on it.

So I just tell people, and I mean, if you’re going to go with a Life Saver once in a while, I think that’s probably a little bit safer than chewing gum for an entire run. What happens if you trip? And you suck your breath in and next thing you know, you’ve got gum in your windpipe and if there’s nobody around there to do Heimlich, you could be in serious trouble.

So I think running with gum is a terrible idea. I think if you’re going to go with a Life Saver, I would walk until you have it completely dissolved in your mouth, or at least small enough that it’s not going to block your throat.

Jen: That’s why they have the hole in them. That’s why they’re called Life Savers, so you don’t choke.

Jill: Is that why they have the hole?

Jen: Yeah, so you don’t choke on them.

Jill: I had no idea.

Jen: But what I do is I just chew them. I don’t like, hold it like a piece of hard candy. I just chew them.

Jill: I did not know that. That’s an excellent design then. Good job Life Savers.

Jen: I mean, they look like a Life Saver from a boat too, so that could be the reason too, but I always heard it was because they have a hole in them.

Jill: That’s what I always thought it was. Oh my gosh, okay. Hopefully that helps and let us know if you have any further questions. Alright Jen, your turn to pick one.

Jen: Okay, so I was looking at all the questions and this one I think we hear a lot and there’s a lot of, I think not controversy around this but a lot of opinions and Julie Bradford asks, “I’ve heard chocolate milk is supposed to be a great recovery drink after a run. Truth or no?”

And you know what, chocolate milk is fine. It’s got protein in it, it’s got carbohydrates in it, it’s got – it absorbs quickly because it’s a liquid so it’s totally fine. Is it the highest quality thing you can take in as a recovery? Probably not. It’s got a lot of sugar in it, and yes, you need the carbohydrates, but milk also has a lot of carbohydrates in it.

So you know, it’s one of those things. It’s also if it’s true chocolate milk, it might even have a tiny bit of caffeine, which would be good too afterwards, but it is not ideal fuel I think for after a run. You really want to get higher quality carbohydrates in than straight sugar for most – of course, as I say that after I talk about eating Life Savers.

Chocolate milk is totally fine I think, but if you’re looking for something that’s a little less – too sugary, you can go for something else that has a little bit of protein, a little bit of carb, a little bit of healthy fat in it. What do you think about chocolate milk?

Jill: I mean, the thought of drinking chocolate milk after I’m done running is kind of – turns my stomach. But the thought of drinking chocolate milk in general kind of turns my stomach. It’s not one of my favorite things. But I mean, I get it, and if you’re somebody who likes chocolate milk and there’s nothing else available, I think it’s a great option.

I think it’s kind of a fun option, I guess. If you’re like, oh yay, I’m done, I get to drink my chocolate milk. But the one thing I do caution people about with is I never suggest having dairy before you run or during your run because it can really upset your stomach. And if you have a sensitive stomach, I think dairy after you run, in the couple hours afterwards might still not feel so good because when we’re running, all of the blood flow is diverted away from our digestive system into our muscles.

And so if you’re putting something in your stomach that’s hard to digest like milk, which is not super easy to absorb, then you can end up feeling kind of nauseous. So I would just – if you’re going to try it after a run, I would just take a couple sips and wait and see what happens. I wouldn’t chug the whole thing and then find out that you’re not ready to – your stomach’s not ready yet and it all ends up like, on your feet or somebody else’s feet.

Jen: The other thing about taking in dairy before or during a run is that dairy produces mucus, which can make you cough and be congested. So it might mess with your breathing a little bit. So that’s why we don’t also recommend dairy before or during a run.

Jill: Yeah, that’s a great point. And I can’t remember, this was a few years ago. The very first time I did a 5K course, somebody in the class said that she felt really, really sick during her run and so we were talking about what she ate before. And she was eating Greek yoghurt as her pre-run snack and she did. She had a lot of mucus and she was nauseous and she basically ended up – I think she also had gastric bypass surgery as well so those three things in combination basically after a mile she was puking by the side of the road. So I would just be careful with the dairy, but hey, to each his own, I guess.

Jen: For sure.

Jill: Okay, what is next? Kristin Kelly asks, “As temperatures climb this summer, which is better for hydration? Water or electrolyte drink?” And my short answer to that is you need both. Period. Because the water obviously, you need the water, but as temperatures climb and as you are sweating more when you run, you’re losing more electrolytes and your muscles need electrolytes to function or you will get dizzy, light-headed. It’s not good when you get low on electrolytes. So I think you need both. I would say you can either alternate or I would just alternate, I guess. I don’t know. What do you think Jen?

Jen: I think alternate. I’ve gone where I’ve taken just electrolyte drinks and I always feel really thirsty when that happens, especially on really hot days on long runs. So I always want to make sure that I actually have water too because I feel like water almost cleanses the palate a little bit and makes you feel like you’re actually taking in hydration rather than – to me, the electrolyte is more fuel. So I always take both.

So I wear a fuel belt that has six bottles on it and I usually bring three bottles of water and three bottles of the electrolyte drink, which I use the Nuun for that. So I do both for the super long – I would say anything over like, six or seven miles I’ll bring that.

Jill: Yeah. And if you’re too the point when you’re running where you can feel like a crust on your face, that means that basically the salt is drying on your face and it is no longer in your system. So if you get to that point, you definitely need an electrolyte replacement. And one thing that you can do is just carry a little salt packet like you would get at a fast food restaurant or something. Just throw some of them in your bag so that if you run out of electrolyte solution or you’re feeling a little light-headed, lick some salt out of that and follow it with some water and that’s a quick way to kind of get your concentrations back in whack.

And I mean, there is also such a thing as too much water, which is – the condition is called hyponatremia, and what it means is that your electrolytes are too low, and that can occur because you’re sweating too much of them out or because you’re drinking too much just plain water and that’s kind of a dangerous thing. So I would say if it’s super-hot, make sure you’re drinking maybe half and half like Jen does.

Jen: You can also tell if your digits start to swell really badly, so if your fingers get really sausage-y, that’s usually an indication that you need more electrolytes.

Jill: Yeah, because your body’s trying to hold on to everything possible and it ends up in the fingers. Although I get sausage fingers like, even 15 minutes into a run. I just am prone to it. But it is an indicator that you might be low on electrolytes.

Jen: Yeah, but if you’re not and all of a sudden you look down and your fingers are twice their normal size or sausage-y looking then that could be an indicator for you.

Jill: Yes, exactly. And there’s a lot of different electrolyte options out there too. Gatorade has sugar in it so it has calories. It’s like a running fuel, whereas something like Nuun or Skratch has some kind of artificial sweeteners so they don’t have any calories but they still have all the electrolytes. I would experiment with a bunch of different options because different people tolerate different solutions differently.

Jen: Yeah, and experiment with them on your shorter runs so you don’t get stuck halfway through a long run with something that’s making you sick.

Jill: Yeah. And there’s some running fuel like Clif Shot Bloks are one that they are full of electrolytes as well. So if you don’t want to carry a solution with you, if you don’t want to carry an extra bottle of electrolyte stuff, bring some Shot Bloks, pop one of those in your mouth and drink some water afterwards, and that’ll take care of you as well.

Jen: I like those.

Jill: I love those things. They’re kind of like candy.

Jen: They’re good. They’re like really soft gummy bears.

Jill: Yeah, exactly. And they keep forever too. You could put them in your backpack and three months later you’re like, oh look, I have some Shot Bloks, yay.

Jen: Yeah, they don’t like, melt or anything.

Jill: No. They’re my favorite. Although with Shot Bloks, you have to be careful because some of them have caffeine and if you’re sensitive to caffeine like I am, super sensitive to caffeine now and so if I eat one of those, I immediately get dizzy and I do not feel good. So you have to really careful. And it’s frustration because a lot of running fuel now – I was looking at Gus the other day in Roadrunner Sports and literally every single one had caffeine. I’m like, alright.

And what are your thoughts on caffeine when you run because I do not do any caffeine at all. I’m completely caffeine free. But I can tell you like, in the past when I’ve had it, I used to do Shot Bloks a lot when I was riding my bike a lot and I found it – it felt like it went right to my legs. But what’s your experience?

Jen: I am made up of about 75% caffeine, so I’m a big fan of caffeine. I always drink a cup of coffee before I run, before a race I always have coffee, and then I usually take the nun that has the caffeine in it, and then I always have a cup of coffee after I run. It doesn’t matter if it was 100 degrees outside and I was boiling hot, I come home and I drink a hot cup of coffee. I don’t know what it is. But one of my favorite things was when I was training for the Chicago Marathon and my training partner packed a cooler and she packed these little Coca Colas. They were not the regular 12-ounce can but like the little small ones. And we had about five miles to go and I drank one of those Cokes and I was like, yes, it was – I hadn’t had a regular Coke in I couldn’t even tell you how long.  It, first of all, tasted so good because it was ice cold. It was super hot that day and I had wings on my feet. I just was like, this is amazing, I’m drinking Coke always on these long runs.

Jill: Alright, well there you go, that’s good to know. And I think, like, if you can tolerate caffeine then go for it. The only thing is that caffeine is a diuretic, which means it does encourage – it’s like when you drink alcohol, it will make you pee more than usual, so you just drink extra water to compensate.

Jen: It can make you poo too, so I mean, like, there’s a little strategy of getting up super early before a race and having coffee so you can clean yourself out too.

Jill: Yeah, that’s always a good idea. And by the way, decaffeinated coffee works just as well.

Jen:  Really? I disbelieve that.

Jill: No, I – it’s something in the coffee, it’s not that caffeine, it’s another chemical that’s in the coffee bean that does it. So yeah, it’s good stuff. Let’s see, what is next? It’s your turn.

Jen: Oh yeah, okay, so this is from Sarah King and she said – and we talked a little bit about this earlier, “I run fasted, partly because I run early in the morning and I’m just not hungry until about 11am, and partly because I’ve always had gastrointestinal problems and, quite frankly, I’m scared I’m going to shit myself if I put anything in my stomach before I run. I started half-marathon training this week and while I know you can do halves fasted, I’d like to know if there’s anything I need to watch out for while doing it.”

Yeah, we know a lot of people who – we know people who have done marathons fasted, so it is for sure possible. Like Jill talked about being earlier, being fat-adapted, you know, that’s why you do that fasting, so you become fat adapted. And so you don’t just decide, like, I’m going to run fasted. You have to sort of work your way up to it and if you run super early in the morning, then yeah, maybe you don’t need to eat anything so you wouldn’t be necessarily officially fasted, but if you intentionally run fasted, there’s some planning and work that goes into it before you start. I mean, wouldn’t you agree with that?

Jill: Yeah, for sure.

Jen: But I know that – we know a couple of people in our group who have done marathons fasted, so it is for sure possible. It’s a great way to burn actual fat on your body. You’re using the fat on your body as the fuel and so it’s very efficient. And then you don’t have those gastrointestinal issues. If you have a lot of food allergies, if you have a lot of stomach sensitivity, if you have – you know, there’s a lot of reasons to eat that way that are very positive, and so it really is up to you and what you are able to do. You know, try it out and see if it works.

Jill: And I think the one thing to remember is, like, that’s a whole lifestyle. So it’s not like, oh you start doing it a couple of weeks before your first half-marathon and say, let’s see what happens. You’ve got to train that way the whole time and you’ve got to be all in on it. You’ve got to be dedicated to it. So yes, it’s possible. I do think it takes a lot of commitment and I think, for most people, it’s not necessarily a lifestyle that they want to maintain all the time. So it’s a commitment. But that being said, if that’s something that you’re interested in, I would say do your long runs fasted, as they gradually get bigger and bigger, make sure you’re doing your fasting through the week so you’re teaching your body to go long periods of time without fuel.

But always have food with you on your runs so if you get to that mile eight, like Beth did, and you are just like, “Holy shit I’m out of gas in the tank,” you don’t want to get to a point where you’re suffering just so you can see if you can push through it, because you probably can’t. So I would say, even if you’re going to run fasted, always bring some fuel with so you that if you get to that point where you start feeling like it’s not going well, you can give yourself some quick sugar and get out of it.

Jen: Yeah, we actually did a webinar about running fasted in Run Your Best Life, so if you’re a member of Run Your Best Life, you can go back and watch that webinar. We do a whole thing about it.

Jill: Yeah, it’s a good one too. Yeah, there’s a lot of good stuff in Run Your Best Life, isn’t there?

Jen: Yes, there is.

Jill: I feel like there is. We just – I’m so excited about the thought download challenge that we just launched today, which is not fueling related, but that’s super fun. So that’s 30 days of change your life through managing your mind.  But I digress. Anything else we want to add to the fasting discussion for Sarah?

Jen: I don’t think so. I think you said it, you know, practice and be sure you have backup and don’t just fast just for your run. If you’re going to do it, make it a lifestyle and do it during the week so your body is adapted.

Jill: Yeah, it has to be a thing that you do every day, not just on running days. Okay, let’s see what’s next. Blythe Jonas asks, “What are good post-run and recovery options? Do we need more carbs or protein? My appetite gets really strong during training and I have no idea if I’m giving my body what it needs. My body gives me immediate feedback for what I eat pre-run.” This is true. This is what bodies do, “But post-run is more of a mystery to me.”

This is a great question, Blythe, because you kind of have a window after you finish your run where your body is, like, alright, let’s start repairing all the damage, because when you go running, you’re damaging your muscles and then your body has to repair them and that’s what makes them stronger. So there’s maybe like a 30 to 60-minute window that’s sort of ideal for refueling, and so protein, because your body needs the amino acids in protein to rebuild, for sure, carbohydrates because you want to replace the lost glycogen in your muscles, so those two for sure.

But then I also say, a lot of times, we eat a little something after we’re done running, like maybe it’s a banana or chocolate milk or whatever, and then 15 minutes later, you’re hungry again because there’s nothing with any staying power. So I would say, you know, have something that has a little bit of fat in it as well. You don’t need to eat a ton, but if you’re somebody who’s getting hangry all the time, or they call it rungry, I don’t know, there’s a word for it. But if you find that your appetite goes up as a result of your running, yes, you’re using more fuel and so your body’s asking for more to replace it, which makes perfect sense, but I think you can also manage that by eating smart.

So you come back from your race and eat a big bowl of pasta, like, you’re going to feel sick and full, but then like an hour later, you’re probably going to be hungry again. So I think protein is important. I would add a little fat in for staying power, and then very high-quality carbohydrates. What do you have to say about that?

Jen: Yes, I totally agree. And I think, a lot of times, the story we tell ourselves is, “Oh I just did this long run and I need to eat a lot after my run.” Because, I mean, whether you’re trying to lose weight or not, that’s not really even the issue, but a lot of people who train for marathons end up gaining weight because they’re eating so much because they’re thinking, like, oh I just did this 15-mile run, I need to go eat and eat and eat. And you really actually don’t need to.

Yes, you need to replace some of the stuff that you’ve lost, those glycogen stores. Yes, you need some protein to rebuild those muscles. But it’s a lot less than most people think. I think, it’s like, oh I just ran a 5K, let’s go eat all the things, right?

Jill: Exactly. When I think we get so hungry that we eat so fast and then, all of a sudden, we’ve overeaten, and in reality – so I would say, like, have a few bites of something and then give yourself 15 or 20 minutes, if you’re still hungry then eat some more. What’s a good – because when we talk about – let’s touch on this a little bit. When we talk about high-quality carbohydrates, like, I don’t mean really expensive muffins. I mean, like, complex carbohydrates.

I feel like – and I know this sounds like the grossest combination but, like, peanut butter and rice would be a great post-run – I know, doesn’t that sound awful? But maybe peanut butter and, like, sticky rice or something like that.  But nuts and rice or – high-quality carbohydrates are basically whole grains or starchy vegetables or starchy – like, fruit is an awesome high-quality carbohydrate. So I would say fruit is always a great option. Oatmeal, I always forget about oatmeal. Quinoa…

Jen: Yeah, I make these, they’re like little chewy oatmeal bites and just pop a couple of those after a run. I do the protein pancakes, so I’ll have one of those with a smear of natural peanut butter and just do one small one. I don’t eat, like, a whole stack of pancakes.

Jill: And that’s what I love about the Kodiak though is you can make just a little three-inch pancake, like it’s a mix that you can kind of sort of just use a little bit of.

Jen: And I always have those made. I make them ahead of time and then I freeze them so that I always have them in my freezer, so it’s not like I’m so hangry and then I’m eating 12 things while I’m waiting for the pancakes to cook. So I just take them and I actually put them in my toaster. So I just toast them, or the air fryer.

Jill: Oh my god, you’re so fucking brilliant.  I wish I lived with you because I feel like I would eat so much better if you were just always putting things in the freezer ahead of time.

Jen:  You might want to talk to my husband before you commit to that. He might have a different opinion.

Jill: Okay, so I think we have time for one more question, so it’s up to you. Choose wisely because we have a whole bunch more to answer.

Jen:  I know, there were so many good questions. I love this question because I think it’s kind of complex, but it’s a great question. It’s from Ashton Steven, and she asked, “Do you have any favorite meals to eat the day before a long run? I know generally the types of foods to eat, but I’d love some recipe recommendations.” I love that question because, you know, what does everybody say the night before a long run or a race? Carbo-load, and everybody thinks big bowl of pasta. But that’s not actually the best thing, necessarily.

I mean, if it’s something you’re used to eating and you can tolerate it and you know it will stick with you, that’s great. But just carbo-loading, just eating straight carbs the night before is not going to be enough for you to fuel for the next day. So you do want some good – like we talked about the high-quality carbs. It doesn’t have to be pasta. It can, but it could also be things like potatoes and rice and we talked about the mashed potato bar earlier. But you also want those other things in there, like high-quality fat. You want some protein, so like a baked potato with some maybe sour cream. And sometimes, I’ll do Greek yogurt or cottage cheese. I don’t do cottage cheese, but I know people do. I know you love cottage cheese, don’t you?

Jill: I do, but only, like, the high milk fat, the California style.

Jen: That’s what you should be eating. It’s so good.

Jill: People put peaches in it, which is like the most disgusting thing ever. It should never be – maybe like a little hot sauce, but otherwise no.

Jen: I only use it to make lasagna. But you know, chili, maybe not with beans, but a maybe not so spicy chili, or I do like taco style, so I’ll throw some taco meat or shredded chicken and some roasted vegetables and that kind of stuff. So you really, again, and those three key components. And yes, you need carbs and you want to make sure you’re eating the kind of stuff and eating enough that you are satisfied but that you don’t wake up full with food in your stomach the next morning because it’s going to mess with you during your run. So you want to have digested and fueled your muscles, but you’re waking up sort of with an empty stomach.

Jill: Well and, so I love what you said about chili without beans. I don’t know if you can make chili without beans or don’t eat most of the beans, because if you eat a lot of beans the night before your run, your run is going to be uncomfortable the next day.

Jen: Especially for the people behind you. And you’re going to get a bunch of emails from all your Texas listeners because they don’t put beans in their chili.

Jill: Really?

Jen: Yes, true chili has nothing in it but meat and the sauce.

Jill:  I’m on board with this. I’m in favor of this. So that was a great question. I’m trying to think what my favorite meals are the night before. I don’t know if I have one.

Jen: I like rice. I’ll do…

Jill: It might be sushi.

Jen: Sushi, for sure, or tortillas. Like, tortillas are a great option. So I’ll do maybe a chicken quesadilla or something. And pasta is totally fine if you’re used to it, but if you never eat pasta and you eat a huge bowl of pasta the night before your run, your stomach is going to have something to say about it. And so, you know, make sure it’s something that you’re used to and make sure you have some of the other stuff with it like some protein and maybe some veggies.

Jill: Yeah, that’s a great idea. What did I read recently? Somebody, their night-before meal was, like, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I’m like, that’s not a bad idea.

Jen: Not at all, or a sweet potato.

Jill: Oh, sweet potato – so I learned this from…

Jen: I know what you’re going to say…

Jill: Try the hot chicken with the sweet potato.

Jen: I thought you were going to talk about the sweet potato with the peanut butter on it.

Jill: Oh, where you slice it and put it in the toaster. That’s actually not bad.

Jen: I don’t know how I feel about that. I haven’t tried it so I can’t really say. But the thought of it is not pleasant.

Jill: You should totally try it. It’s not bad. It’s not bad. It’s just like, mine never came out the way they look in Pinterest, so just kind of gave up. But no, the hot chicken over sweet potato. So – and this is something you can make in the instant pot so easily – you just take a pound of boneless skinless chicken breast and throw it in the instant pot, dump a bottle of Frank’s Red Hot Sauce on top of it, like the medium sized bottle, the whole thing, just turn on the instant pot for an hour and it comes out and it’s this beautiful – it pulls apart easily with a fork, and then the hot sauce is infused into it. And then you just stir in a bit of cream cheese and it becomes this, like, creamy spicy pulled chicken. And then I like to put that on top of a sweet potato and then top it with, like, a little bit of sour cream and cheddar cheese and chives; fucking amazing. Perfect. I think that’s a great pre-race meal.

Jen: You don’t think the hot sauce would be a little much for the belly the night before?

Jill: For me, I’m pretty much sure that, like, part of me is made of hot sauce, so.

Jen: Yes, I’m made of caffeine and you’re made up of hot sauce.

Jill: Yeah, I mean, I don’t, like, have hot sauce on everything, but I do kind of love it. And I’m from Western New York, so I’m very partial to Frank’s Hot Sauce, the Buffalo-style hot sauce. Yeah, it’s a good point, if you don’t tolerate spicy things well, maybe only half a bottle of Frank’s, or maybe just do it with barbeque sauce instead of hot sauce. But again, it’s like the instant pot is – I love my instant pot, it’s amazing.

Okay, so that is, like, all of our time for today. This went really fast. I love talking about food. And we have a million more questions to answer, so anyway, thank you to everybody who submitted them. And if we called your name, go ahead and email support@notyouraveragerunner.com, let them know that your name was chosen on the fueling podcast and we will mail you a little treat.

So yes, so that’s it. So this is just a sampler of the fun stuff that we’re going to be doing in June in Run Your Best Life. So if you liked all of this information today and you want the ability to ask Jen questions every single day about everything related to food and nutrition, or you want to hear stories like nutrition gone horribly wrong, got plenty of those, join is in Run Your Best Life because we are kicking it off in two days from when this podcast airs. So we’re kicking it off on June 1^st – runyourbestlife.com. We’re having a really fun time.

Jen: Yeah, and the people in that group are amazing. Everyone in that group is amazing.

Jill: Yeah, they really are. And you know what’s fun? So, one of the things that we do is if you actually – so it’s $39 a month, which is great. If you want to go month to month, that’s cool, but if you sign up for a full year at once, you get a bonus coaching call, like a private coaching call with me.

And so, I was talking to one of our members who had signed up for a whole year and one of the things that she was concerned about was, like, she’s thinking about coming to the retreat in Savannah in November and she thought, “Gosh, I don’t really know anybody. Am I going to feel awkward?” And she hasn’t posted in the Facebook group yet because she was, like, “What if nobody comments on my post or what if people don’t like me?”

And I realized, like, we have the most drama-free group I have ever seen. Like, just literally, it is so supportive, it is such an amazing community. Everybody looks out for everybody else. If somebody said they were going to go for a run, the next day, you hear somebody going, “Hey Stephanie, did you do your eight-mile run yesterday?” So it’s more than just a lot of running information. It’s more than just all the life coaching. It’s, like, this crazy ass sisterhood. So I promise, you will find your new best friends in this group.

Jen: It’s amazing, I have all these new friends all the way across the country and it’s just such a cool and amazing group. And you’re right, zero drama. I mean, it is nothing but support.

Jill: Yeah, it really is. It’s just amazing; amazing. And here’s what I just – so earlier today, one of our members actually lives about 30 minutes away from me and we’ve kind of been chatting back and forth a little bit about that I’m doing the Philly Marathon and she said, “Hey if you ever want somebody to do some of your long runs with you, I’m happy to do it.” And I was like, obviously because Andy runs like a lot faster than I do.

So anyway, we’ve kind of been chatting back and forth about that and then today she messaged me and she’s like, “Yeah so I just went ahead and signed up for the Philly Marathon.” So you never know, you never know what can happen. So it’s super fun and super exciting. You can get into it, runyourbestlife.com is the website. Just join. I don’t know why they’ve not joined yet.

Jen: I don’t either, they’re missing out.

Jill: They are missing out. Don’t have the FOMO friends… Am I saying it right?

Jen: We’re young and hip. We know the terms.

Jill: We know the stuff. Alright, well okay, rebels, that is it for this week and you can find all of the stuff that we talked about tonight at notyouraveragerunner.com/94, the show notes are all there. There’s a transcript of everything if you’d like to download it and read it at church or something, I don’t know. I don’t know why I just said that. It’s been a long day. Alright, so transcripts and all of the show notes are at notyouraveragerunner.com/94. You can join Run Your Best Life, of course, at runyourbestlife.com and thank you so much for joining me again, Jen, and we’re going to do this again in a month.

Jen: Woo-hoo, thanks for having me. It’s always my favorite day of the month.

Jill: Alright, until next time…

Jen: Bye.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Not Your Average Runner Podcast. If you liked what you heard and want more, head over to www.notyouraveragerunner.com to download your free one-week jumpstart plan and get started running today.