What to Eat

Now that I'm officially training for the marathon, I've started searching for tasty recipes that will fulfill my nutritional needs, and that my whole family will enjoy. One great think about training for a long distance race, is that you don't need to cut calories. As a matter of fact, you may actually need to increase your normal intake. Bonus!

Back in 2012, while I was training for my first race, I ate more than half as much more than I normally would at each meal. I still ended up losing 30 pounds without even trying.

Now that's not to say that I would just eat anything just to increase the caloric intake. Filling up on chips, ice cream, and other goodies was not how I was able to lose that weight and was ready to run 13.1 miles.

Back then I carefully planned how to increase my intake of quality carbohydrates (fruits, veggies, etc), lean proteins (tofu, fish, vegetarian substitutes), grains (mostly rice, bread, oatmeal, and some pasta), and healthy fats (avocado, nuts, oils). I did enjoy the occasional pastry or ice cream cone.

It worked really well for me then, so I think this time around I will probably stick pretty close to that same plan.

Even though I usually cook fairly healthy (not always), everyone in the household benefits when I'm training for a race. I purchase and cook a lot more vegetable dishes, and try to make as much of what we eat from scratch as I possibly can.

This is what I ate for breakfast this morning:

A method that has worked really well for me in the past, when training or trying to shed a few pounds is reversing meals - dinner for breakfast, breakfast for dinner. What has also worked extremely well is following this saying: Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, dinner like a pauper.
There are conflicting theories out there about how many meals you should have during the day. I've tried 5-6 small meals, 3 big meals and 2 snacks, and 3 'square' meals. Three square with no snacks is how I've been most successful. Everyone must find what works best for them.

It also depends on when you are burning the most calories. I do most of my runs in the early afternoon, so having a big breakfast works perfectly for my. I have enough time to digest and plenty of stored energy for the workout.

I firmly believe there is no one-size-fits-all plan, as far as meals go. Years of trying a variety of ideas and theories is how I discovered the most effective plan for myself.

Age is also a factor. What worked for me in my twenties, certainly does not work for me now!

All that being said, I still want to find the tastiest dishes for me and my loves. If it doesn't taste good, we're not eating it!

Stay tuned to find out about my experiment with Peanut Butter Crispy Treats and Other Accidental Recipes...


You can also follow me on twitter, where I will post what I'm eating during this first-time-marathon journey @   MomOfEvaAndLila