After a few marathons under my belt, I have decided that being a marathon runner is a lot like being diabetic. It requires a lot of careful attention to diet, especially the management of sugar. Around mile 23 of each of these marathon experiences, I can honestly tell you, I was ready to quit- even deciding, no more! and never again!
My stomach starts to turn and I feel nauseous. My legs are wobbly, cramping, and I feel utter exhaustion in a way that I cannot compare to any other experience I have had. This is where pure grit and determination take over. This is a mental test like no other, I have to decide right then and there, that, no matter what, I am not going to stop running. Remember Finding Nemo when Dorie pushes Marlin with the mantra, "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming."
But right around the last half mile as the crowds become bigger and louder and the view of the finish line gets clearer... there's a sudden pep back in my step and my pace picks up. I'm ready to collapse and sprint at the same time, then total elation when I cross the finish line followed by an intense need to both eat and release what I've eaten- the last thing I want to do is eat and the only thing I need to do is eat.
What I ultimately need is fast burning, easily digestible sugars to bring my sugar levels back up in my body. Sports drinks, sports gels, and even chocolate milk are all good choices. All this, of course, needs to be consumed while I am trying to re-hydrate with water. I begin replenishing these essentials as soon as my body lets me.
Back to my original point- sometimes I feel like a diabetic during a marathon. It's all about managing my sugar levels. Part of training for a marathon involves training to consume just the right amount of quick burning, easily digestible sugars to keep these levels at the exact right amount so that I have just the right balance to be able to keep my energy level where it needs to be and to keep my body functioning correctly.
Food is fuel, so every bite of food should have a purpose- to fuel the body for activity, but the right kind of food is what's going to make or break a healthy lifestyle. Carbohydrates are for quick energy that the body needs to sustain activity. To understand what carbohydrates are, think sugar.
Marathon running requires some easily digestible, fast burning carbohydrates; but only a few days before and just after the race. All other times, it is not necessary and can be harmful to eat that many heavily processed carbohydrates. In a marathon, your body burns ALL those excess sugars as your muscles need them as fuel to sustain the run, but unless you are running a marathon every day, heavily processed carbohydrates are bad for you and all the excess sugar with latch on to your body as fat.
Fat is stored on your body as slow burning energy, so left over carbs get stored for later use... in fact the theory behind the Atkin's diet (high protein and fat, low to no carbs) is just that. You trick your body that in order to get energy, it must use stored fat because the carbohydrates aren't there to burn. But what about other nutrients and fiber? Supplements... because apparently in caveman days when Og was feeling a little sluggish, he just went to the local Vitamin shop and picked up some supplements... Ok Dr. Atkins there are some flaws in your logic, but you weren't a complete loon. You did have a point- the American diet has relied on heavily processed, easily digested, and very sweet carbohydrates for well over 50 years.
We've become accustomed to fluffy white bread, white rice, white pasta, white sugar, potatoes, etc. Our waistlines have increased with our cholesterol and so to eliminate this problem, we've blamed fat intake and have processed chemicals to turn them into fake fat. We've even processed chemicals to turn them into fake sugar.
We processed down wholesome ingredients and to combat the problems we caused to ourselves, we have processed chemicals in order to try to solve our problems. The best part is that heavily processed food is significantly cheaper than whole foods. So, guess who gets fatter? Poorer people! There is no logic in this!
Here's my suggestion to keeping your diet simple. (1) buy this book, "Bread Alone" by Daniel Leader and Judith Blahnik- with this book you will learn to make 100% whole wheat bread with only 4 ingredients (wheat, yeast, water, salt), (2) eat brown rice, (3) eat whole wheat pasta (maybe learn how to make whole wheat pasta- that's my goal for 2012), (4) eat more beans- they are very easy to make and cheap when you buy them dry in a bag and they are high in protein and complex carbohydrates.
The more processed the grain, the more damaged the nutrients and less complex the carbohydrates. What you want to eat are whole grains that have not been enriched (enriched grains are grains that have been processed so much that their nutrients have been destroyed and unnatural nutrients have to be added to make up for what's lacking). Complex carbohydrates are slower to break down and give more fiber and sustained energy and many more nutrients so they are healthier for you.
Ok, so to summarize- The less processing the better, the fewer the ingredients the better, the less sugar the better, whole grains are better, the more complex the carbohydrates the better, the higher the fiber the better... the only exception to this rule is if you are about to run a marathon, ride a century on a bike, swim several miles in a race or do a triathlon... but only right before and right after the race... all other times and all other people think this...
To make healthy living more simple, make your carbohydrates more complex.
Enjoy!
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