Firstly to ensure your overall marathon training diet is balanced, read Nutrient Balance for Athletic Performance.  You also need to figure out what you can / should eat before each run. During your training, use this time to practice what you will eat on race morning.

Don’t overdo it

You may not need to eat before every training run. My rule of thumb is I don’t take in any calories if the run is under 10 miles (unless the workout is a speed workout or other intense session).

You want to start each workout fully fueled. Think about how long you are running and what energy it will take to get you through the workout. If I am running 10 miles or less first thing in the morning I will have a banana before leaving home OR a sports gel just before the run starts. (assuming I am driving to a group run) Between 10-14 miles I base my decision on what I had for dinner the night before and if I have any hunger. Over 14 miles I follow the suggestions below.

For your weekly runs if you run after work, follow these instructions. You will probably be running 5-7 hours after lunch which will approximate the overnight fast.

Your objectives during your training season are to:

• find out what works for you and
• stay optimally fueled for the workout.

Beyond that, there is a school of thought that you need to teach your body to use nutrients wisely by running on “empty” occasionally.

When planning your marathon training schedule, also plan when / what you plan to eat.

When planning what to eat before your run think about these things:

Satisfy your hunger

This seems obvious but is so often overlooked. If you run first thing in the morning, don’t skip breakfast. You need to BREAK the FAST to fuel your workout.

How much you eat depends on the distance / intensity of your workout.

Skipping breakfast can make it harder to maintain your blood sugar level and can deplete your limited stores of carb muscle fuel (glycogen) even faster. This can hamper your ability to get in a full workout and reduce the effectiveness of your training.

If you have trouble eating first thing in the morning, get over it. This is mostly a mental problem and you can overcome it.

One method to get over the problem of not being able to eat first thing in the morning is to have a liquid breafast. You can blend a smoothie or try Ensure High Protein drink. You can find this is the baby section of most grocery stores.

Replenish carb stores

The second goal is to restock your carb stores. This is most important for early morning runners

During the night your body works to repair tissue and regenerate cells. All of this work creates energy demands during the night. Plus you were breathing and digesting dinner. The most readily available source of energy is glycogen. This is your precious energy source you stored up in your muscles for your morning run. By the time you get up your carbohydrate store has been reduced by 140 – 260 calories. That should give you an idea of how much you need to eat before your run.

As mentioned earlier, the longer the workout the more important this is. The idea is to replenish carbohydrate fuel stores without overtaxing your digestive system.

Reestablish fluid levels

During the night you likely lost as much as ounces of fluid. Replace this to ensure you start your workout hydrated.

Optimize performance

Every workout has a training stimulus. Or it least it should. Suppose you have a 8 mile tempo run on your schedule. The training stimulus of a tempo run is increasing one’s lactate threshold. If you start the run depleted, it is highly unlikely you will train at your optimum level, thereby missing the improvement in your training you were supposed to get from the tempo run.

Prepare for recovery

Recovery is one of the most overlooked aspects of training. Yet it can be the difference in dragging through workouts and sailing through them. We will have a separate discussion on recovery nutrition but for now understand that if you start the workout depleted, your recovery will be affected.

You can set yourself up to recover quickly by starting each workout optimally fueled.

Those are the general pre-workout nutrition goals.

What are the specific recommendations for eating before marathon training?

Try to take in 200 – 300 calories for every hour between now and when you run

If your run is starting at 7:30 and you get up at 6:30, eat 200 – 300 calories. If you can get up at 5:30, then you can take in more. What did you have for dinner last night and when did you eat? This will make a difference in how many calories you will want in the morning.

Eat mostly carbohydrates

Since your goal is to replenish glycogen stores, it makes sense to eat the foods that will most easily be converted to glycogen – carbohydrates. If you choose the right carbs, your food will digest quickly and you won’t be carrying it around in your gut during the run.

Eat from the low end of the glycemic Index

The Glycemic Index (GI) has to do with how fast the carbohydrates in a food are digested and absorbed into the bloodstream.

You have two decisions to make regarding the GI of your pre-run snack.

• High GI – blood sugar crash
• Lower GI – tend to have fiber and might be hard to digest quickly

Low GI foods are generally not ideal in the pre-exercise meal. Since these foods are processed more slowly by your digestive system and typically contain more fiber, the danger is that you could end up with gastrointestinal discomfort while running. (This is why you practice what you plan to eat. An apple might work for you while be too much fiber for your neighbor.)

• Lower GI – give the food time to digest
• Higher GI – eat immediately before running

Keep your pre-run food low in fiber

As just mentioned, lower GI foods are often high in fiber. That fiber will absorb the water in your gut and swell. Not what you want during your long run.

Include some protein

It’s wise to include a bit of protein in your pre-run meal.

Several studies show that a mix of essential amino acids (protein) and carbs taken before strenuous exercise stimulates protein synthesis after exercise. This is great news for endurance training as it sets you up for recovery.

Even without the promising results from the studies, the protein will blunt the affect of a high GI food, delaying the release of sugar into the bloodstream and delaying fatigue.

Hydrate well

Surely you know this by now. Don’t start your run at risk for dehydration. Research has shown beginning your workout fully hydrated may reduce protein breakdown during training. If you are not sure why this is important, google “ammonia smell during exercise”.

Water only the last hour before your run

Many marathoners guzzle Gatorade in the last hour before the race (or training run) but this is not ideal. The sugar in sports drinks sends sugar into the bloodstream, followed by the release of insulin to control it. Such a reaction is likely to leave you low on blood sugar at the start of the run.

However, 10 minutes before your run, go ahead and have that Gatorade. When the insulin rush happens you will be running and the exercise will blunt the effect.

If you need some help choosing foods that fit this profile, read this article titled “Ideal pre-marathon foods“. In addition to ensuring your overall marathon training diet is sound, you need to monitor what you eat before each run. During your training, use this time to practice what you will eat on race morning.

Fruit with eggs

Applesauce

baby food

liquid meals

sports bar with protein

coffee, tea, water

10 minutes before

Whether it is for business or for an event, competitive athletes face many challenges associated with travel. An athlete must maintain a regular eating schedule to ensure proper carbohydrate and protein levels, daily vitamin needs, adequate energy and hydration. Travel, however, very frequently disrupts this schedule and exposes the athlete to foreign food and water which may lead to gastrointestinal distress. This article focuses on key points that will help athletes adapt and reduce the nutrition stress of unfamiliarity. Some of these points include planning ahead, researching destinations and their catering styles, determining what food to pack, and recognizing and remaining aware of energy balance and food safety.

Plan ahead for your race travel

Once you account for time differences and jet lag, aim to keep foods and meal times as similar to home as possible. Do not assume that what is normally consumed at home will be readily available, particularly if you venture to a different country. By using the internet, embassies, travel agencies, and the event organizers, you can determine what foods are available and how assessable stores will be to you once you reach your destination.  Foods such as fruit, yogurt, string cheese, jello-type puddings, cottage/ricotta cheeses are usually available if stores are accessible.  If you want to prepare your own food, determine the accessibility of refrigerators, microwave ovens, or even blenders. You may even consider taking a mini blender (such as the magic bullet express) if electricity is present and appropriate wattage.

Packing your race luggage

Appropriateness of traveling with certain food items and/or mini appliances may differ based on whether all meals are included or part of nutrition is expected to be self catered.  With regard to preparing your luggage:

Protein/energy bars offer great snack options and are easily transportable as well as non-perishable. Make sure you pack an adequate supply.

Other non-perishable items are easy to throw into luggage, ready to provide a quick and easy snack or mini meal.  These include packets of oatmeal or other instant hot cereals (all you need is hot water which can be made in a microwave or in a coffee pot, usually available in hotel rooms), snack packs like pretzels, animal crackers, and Fig Newtons.

Consider packing protein powder for meal replacement shakes. Protein powder is easily transportable and would not take up much extra space if packed into sandwich bags. The availability of fruit is almost a guarantee in most cities, and thus protein shakes for recovery and/or as any meal replacements becomes an easy option. Protein shakers with specifically designed whipping tops are a great alternative if blenders in inaccessible, these can be purchased at most health food stores or sports stores, such as GNC, Vitamin Shoppe, Sports Authority.

Proper research and packing can ensure that you have foods available when needed.

Using what is available

Hotel breakfasts, if included, often have oatmeal packets, bran cereal in little boxes, fruit, and yogurts that can be taken away from the breakfast area when you leave for the day. These can be kept in tog bags for snacks during the day (especially if you are unable to get to a store). Remember, dairy products should not be left at room temperature for very long. By attempting to eat every two to three hours when you are traveling as you would at home, not only do you maintain a well fueled metabolism but you consume these perishable foods within a reasonable amount of time.

Many hotel breakfasts not only serve yogurt and fruit options, but also serve egg options, which can be accompanied by a slice of whole wheat bread/toast or a whole wheat English muffin. Always ask the service staff if they serve eggs, because it is not always evident, and more than likely can be arranged. They may even boil some eggs by request. Be aware of buffet style breakfasts and stick to the same choices you would normally make at home – fruits, yogurts, raisin bran cereal, and egg options.  Especially when away, be very careful of portion size.  It’s easy to forget.

For lunches and dinners, even though it may be difficult and the food may be enticing, make good food choices:

Be conscious of hidden fats in restaurant foods especially in dressings, marinades, and other sauces.
Stick with grilled, baked, broiled or steamed chicken, fish, and grilled or steamed vegetables. Coastal cities always have excellent grilled fish – a great choice for good quality protein.
Limit the amount of fat in snacks and breakfast choices so that if lunches and dinners are unavoidably high in fat, at least the chance of overload is minimized.   
Try to include a carbohydrate choice for each of the main meals, like rice, grain bread, baked or sweet potato, or legumes (beans, edamame).  
Try to get the whole grain options for carbohydrate choices, such as whole grain breads, quinoa, couscous, brown rice, etc.  

Be high maintenance, wait staff are there to please you and will usually honor reasonable requests without a fuss.  

If by Air

You are more likely to receive a lower fat, higher carbohydrate meal if you request a vegetarian meal on the airplane which you should do as part of your pre-planning. Some airlines even offer a sports nutrition meal, and researching options can aid in reducing the risk of gastrointestinal distress, particularly before a competition.

Reduce the stress associated with travel by readjusting to time changes for both sleeping and eating as quickly as possible. Make sure to eat meals when the locals are eating and sleep when the locals are sleeping.  

Hydration

It is important to maintain constant hydration, not only in preparation for an event, but particularly while in flight – air travel is a highly dehydrating experience. Sip water and sports drinks continuously throughout the flight as a preventative measure. Consider taking bottled water with you, as their may be a large lag in time from when seated on a plane until the first beverages are served. With regards to the new security regulations, bottled water can be purchased inside the airport once you pass security check points.  Avoid caffeine and alcohol on flights, since both have a diuretic effect, which increase the risk of dehydration in an already dehydrating environment.

Bottled water is highly recommended in foreign countries. Even though you may hear “the water’s safe”, it may be for the locals, but because the water supplies are foreign to our immune systems, they may cause gastrointestinal stress which can quickly put a damper on your time away.  

Athelete’s Travel Tips Summary

Disruptions and distractions of traveling away from home can significantly impact performance. Preparation and self education on destinations offer an extreme benefit to keep athletic performance optimal. The main priority is to remain effectively fueled. It is not difficult to adhere to good nutritional strategies away from home, even when in foreign countries. The key to successful travel is planning.