I am starting today....nutrition help please.

[Hockeychic]

I am starting to train for the 1/2 Marathon. I would love to try for the full but since it is my first I will do the 1/2, I use to be a runner in my high school years but haven't done much of anything since then and I am now 40. I have been OK'd by my doctor. I am overweight so that is another reason for doing this.

I have my training all scheduled out, the question I have and that I haven't seen any info on is what I should be eatting. I am trying to lose about 40 - 45 pds along the way so I need to cut junk out of my diet but still eat enough to build muscle and keep me going??

ANy advise???

Thanks
Kim

 

[AmyBeth68]

Way to go Kim! It's great to set the goal for the Half Marathon. Please feel free to join the weekly walking/running thread for lots of support and advice.

From everything I've read you will only be able to diet during your "training to train" phase. Training to train means getting your body ready for the longer runs, strength training, cross training, running, etc. Full training for the half marathon will be somewhere from 20-24 weeks out if you follow the Marathoning for Mortals or Jeff Galloways training plans. I would say a balanced diet of fruits/veggies, protein and carbs...basically cutting out the excess and watching calories, would probably be your best bet. Something like Weight Watchers or similar healthy diet plans is probably the best way to approach it because you will need some amount of healthy carbs, small amt of fat, etc. Once you get into full training you won't be able to "diet" per se because your body will need the calories and dieting isn't recommended!

I would suggest trying to set a realistic, healthy goal of losing weight up through the summer. Then just try to maintain as you head into your full-scale half marathon training. Best of luck! I'm sure some other experts here can give you additional advice!!!

 

[solotraveler]

I would suggest trying to set a realistic, healthy goal of losing weight up through the summer. Then just try to maintain as you head into your full-scale half marathon training. Best of luck! I'm sure some other experts here can give you additional advice!!!

Bingo, this is what I think is most important. Right now start building your running base and eating more healthfully (whatever you program might be) in order to lose weight. it will be very difficult once you enter the actual "training" portion to actively try and lose weight while running longer distances. (You body needs fuel to perform and that fuel is food).

I would caution you to avoid any kind of low-carb diet (i.e. Atkins) since that probably won't give you enough energy to exersice well.

Best of luck!
Solotraveler

 

[lilouisianagal]

mypyramid.gov gives you a healthy breakdown of food to eat. It's your basic food pyramid that we all know, love, and tend to ignore. You can put in your own information to make it more personalized. If you actually follow the serving suggestions it is a great guide/tool. My pyramid tends to be a bit top heavy--oops! For example here's my breakdown that I *try* to eat by:

Daily Food Groups:
6-7 oz grains (3-3.5 whole grain)
2.5-3 cups veggies
2 cups fruit
3 cups dairy
5.5-6 cups protein
6 teaspoons healthy oils
265-290 Kcal "extras" limit

plus you get the extra special Weekly Vegetables guide!!!
3 cups dark green
2 cups orange
3 cups dry beans and peas
3-6 cups starchy veggies
3.5-7 cups other veggies

I'm still trying to figure mine out since I am vegetarian. I never ever ever have trouble getting enough dairy and I love eating beans (red beans and rice, bbq beans, black eyed peas, hummus,mmmm) and so I generally count that in the protein block. Oddly, day-to-day I am tending to have trouble getting in all my grains. I normally LOVE bread, but I went on South Beach a few months back and still have some of those "carbs are bad" habits. Now that I have rambled on .....

Good luck and I can't wait to see you in the 1/2!!!

 

[Hockeychic]

thank you all for the info. I know I can do this with the right knowledge.

Hope to chat with you all some more.

Kim

 

[k_hase]

I use fitday.com to track my food, its cumbersome at first (but free!) but it has tools to tell you if you have gotten your nutrients and if you are burning more than you are eating.

Its been eye opening!!