So I decided to drop 10 pounds before my next marathon (Shamrock Va Beach) in March. It makes sense to me that running with 10 less pounds, especially over a marathon, will make me quicker. I am almost done with the drop in weight. I've gone from 173 at Christmas and today I was 164. The problem is that it seems like I am running slower now than I was in December. Is this because my calorie intake is too low for proper carb loading? Obviously I plan on raising my calories back up soon as I have achieved my weight goal, but I am concerned. I have bonked on both my 20 miler and 22 miler. Anybody have any experience with this?

I think you lost weight too fast and your body is letting you know. Give it a few weeks and you probably run better again. I'm in the process of loosing 11 lbs. But I'm taking it really slow to keep up the energy. The plan is too loose it over a period of 5 months. So far all I've done in January is food journalling and omitting things or replacing it with a healthier more nutritional alternative and portion control. More nutritional means I eat less of it. My energy levels are fine and my running is better than it has been in a long time. I'm continuing with the food journalling in February. The food journalling has made me aware that even healthy food can contain a lot of calories and that I'm lacking in the vitamins and mineral department, even with healthy choices. Every week I change or delete something from my usual food choices. I've omitted cookies (obviously), the creamed soup at work and the (bad) stuff I eat when I get home after work and before dinner. I've subbed white rice with brown rice and white pasta with whole wheat pasta. I have 3 slices of really dark bread with pumpkin seeds for lunch instead of 2 or 3 bread rolls. Plus I've upped my water intake, and I eat more veggies and fruit. And at dinner, I try to stick to the 50-20-30 rule (carbs, fat, protein). I've noticed I eat less but am not hungry. My weight is down 4 lbs. My waist shrank with 4 centimeters already and my fat % has gone down 3.5% (24% this morning).

There was a part of me that was saying I was losing weight too fast. I've heard it from some non runners also, so I guess I'm finally on board. The good news is that I'm done losing weight anyway. I will now try to hold below 165 and hopefully the boost in calories will gradually even out and my speed will come back up. It definitely looks like the increase in mileage and decrease in calories is what I was feeling. I have been using gels and powerade on my long runs for a while, and thought that would be enough for my long runs. I read an interesting post in another forum that talked about the maximum number of calories the body can store. And how in the morning your stores are down a little even if you have been carb loading. My bad runs definitely happen more when I don't eat alot in the morning before my runs. I think the other fix for me is going to be getting up a little earlier and eating more. Thanks for the responses. I'll let you know how the experiment works out. Jeff

That's good advice. I think that in general, not eating in the morning is probably a bad thing, whether or not you are running. I've fallen into the bad habit of just one big meal at night, I need to change that.

I usually end up snacking on something unhealthy mid-day. That's part of the problem.