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Overwhelmed by dieting info (Read 344 times)

golddaveberg


    History: (not relevant to my question, so feel free to skip down to there)

    I've always been a runner and never cared about what I ate.  I operated under the belief that "if the furnace is hot enough it'll burn anything" which, up until now, has always been true.  I don’t eat fast food or horribly, but I've had more than my share of spicy buffalo chicken wings and beer, while still staying <160lbs and low % body fat.  All of that held  true until about a year ago, when I hit 28 years old, metabolism caught up with me, and about 10 lbs went straight into my now beer gut and love handles.  This is a problem this will either get better or worse, and doubtfully just never stay the same.

     

    Certainly, you may think You're getting old, it happens, quit your crying.  But it would be irresponsible for me not to explore my options.

     

    So, I started to read some about diets and nutrition.  WOAH, is there ever a TON of information about the subject, and so far none of it seems relevant to me.  Tons of talk about high protein, low calories, no fat, liquid only, only endangered species diets – pretty much a diet for everything, 99% of them not geared towards people that run >40 miles a week, like me.

     

    Question:

    Does anybody know of a good primer to get me started on proper nutrition?  An idiots guide to dieting for runners.

    Any advice or reading material appreciated, but googleing “running diet” pulled back enough results to terrify me.

    Trent


    Good Bad & The Monkey


    Regular ass person

      tweisner


        That's a loaded question.  There is a lot out there and you will need to find what works for you.  What you are willing to do, give up, not do, not give up, etc.

         

        There is much to be read on the subject.  But read what you can so you can make informed decisions.

         

        Keep your food in its most basic form.  Cook a lot and make what you can from scratch.  Eat  vegetables and beans and limit meat.  Stay away from sodas, junk food, processed stuff.  Keep it real.  Don't eat out much.  Make your own food.  And I don't mean opening up a box of hamburger helper.

         

        Google Michael Pollan.  You are looking for a lifestyle not a diet.

         

        Good luck.

        PS:  ditto what trent said.  He said it way shorter than me.

         - itri - 

        FTYC


        Faster Than Your Couch!

          What has worked for me all my life now (I'm 48) is to eat mostly natural foods, not much processed or restaurant food. Lots of vegetables (preferably steamed, with a tablespoon or two of sauce (cheese, spicy, thai,..) on top), whole grains, I've had meat-eating phases and phases where I did not eat meat (I don't like it, but that's just me), fruit, dairy, usually low-fat, low sugar and low sodium, but never fat-free or sugar-free, as these may cause even more trouble than the real thing. I also avoid hydrogenated fats, and I hardly ever eat fried foods (I don't like them, either - I know, my taste is strange, if not pathetic).

           

          Try to stick to vegetables or a piece of fruit right after your run, don't overdo the proteins, you don't need more than 1 gram per kg of (your ideal) body weight, even with a lot of running (and the typical American diet already contains more than that).

          It is not easy to loose weight when you are running a lot, and I've always been most successful with a slow, but steady weight loss of not more than 1 lb per week (which came without any special dieting, just sticking to mostly vegetables, fruits and whole grains). Before a run, have a bagel, or something with more carbohydrates to give you more of a boost. If you cut down on calories, do so by leaving sugary foods and high-fat foods out of your diet. Oh, and don't overdo on the beer...

           

          To maintain your weight, you need to change your food choices permanently, not just stick to a certain diet short-term.

          Run for fun.

          cookiemonster


          Connoisseur of Cookies

            ***************************************************************************************

             

            "C" is for cookie.  That's good enough for me.

            jmctav23


            2/3rds training

              I'm about at the same point as you.  I'm 25 but I have been steadily slimming down since college when I hit over 200 lbs through a combination of college food, avid weight lifting, a part time job at pizza hut, and nightly munchy binges.  Since then, I've figured out that I really don't have a taste for unhealthy foods.  When I go shopping, the cart fills up in the produce section and I don't even go down most of the aisles.  Even going out to a pub usually ends with me dissatisfied with the amount of fried foods and junk on the menu.

               

              So after five years of improving my diet AND my cooking skills, I'm just under 160 and still falling slowly, especially now that I'm running mountain trails for 90% of my runs and getting a lot more elevation change into each run.  The key for me was and still is cooking really good food out of healthy ingredients because if you don't like how it tastes, you won't want to eat it no matter how good it is for you.  Good cooking takes time, effort, and maybe some talent or training.  For me it has always been experimentation, and fun.  I don't have a single cookbook and I rarely look up recipes online.  Cultivate an enjoyment of cooking and it's my bet that good health will follow.


              Mmmmm...beer

                Eat less, move more.  Or some combination of both.  If you don't want to run more than eat less, or keep eating the same and run more, etc.  Weight loss is calories in vs. calories out.  Nutrition on the other hand, that's another topic entirely. Smile

                 

                You're right in thinking that getting older shouldn't mean getting fatter.  Too many people accept that and just say, oh well I'm getting older, guess I just have to deal with the gut.  I'm 38 and dropped 85lbs last year, so I'm not buying it.

                 

                As others have mentioned and the great article that Trent posted, try to eat real food, whole, unprocessed, etc.  If you can't find it fresh at a farmer's market, and you have to go to the grocery store, stick to the perimeter, produce, fresh meats, dairy.  Pretty much everything in the middle is crap you don't need.

                -Dave

                My running blog

                Goals | sub-18 5k | sub-3 marathon 2:56:46!!

                golddaveberg


                  Weight loss is calories in vs. calories out.

                  Then why is there all the hype about when you eat?  One of the things I know I do wrong is only eating 1-2 meals a day.  I've heard it's better for weight loss to eat smaller meals throughout the day, don't eat late at night, always eat breakfast.  Why would any of that matter if it's a simple math problem of calories in vs. calories out?

                   

                  (BTW, still getting through that article.  Sorry if these questions are answered in there)


                  Mmmmm...beer

                    Then why is there all the hype about when you eat?  One of the things I know I do wrong is only eatting 1-2 meals a day.  I've heard it's better for weight loss to eat smaller meals throughout the day, don't eat late at night, always eat breakfast.  Why would any of that matter if it's a simple math problem of calories in vs. calories out?

                     

                    It's just what you said, hype.  Doesn't matter when you eat, how many meals, etc.  All that matters is the amount of calories you eat vs. the amount of calories you burn.  If it helps you to eat smaller meals throughout the day, or to do an intermittent fasting type deal where you only eat during an 8hr window, then do whatever works for you.  But it all comes down to the same thing, if you want to lose weight you have to burn more than you're taking in.  That's all programs like Weight Watchers are, simplified calorie counting systems.

                     

                    I've eaten 1,000 calories right before going to bed and my weight was down the next day, just depends on what I did that day, the day before, etc.  We tend to think of everything in a 24hr cycle, but our bodies don't work like that.  Can't think day to day, have to track long term, weekly, monthly, etc.   Also, all of the calculations are just estimates, when you calculate your BMR, TDEE, etc., they're just a guideline.  Use those as a starting point and if you're not gaining or losing, then you're eating at maintenance and need to eat less to lose, if you're gaining, then you're eating too much, etc., regardless of what the calculators tell you.  I lost weight pretty steadily eating around 1800 calories a day, for other people it will be different.  As my mileage increased, I found that I needed to eat more or I didn't have enough energy, but I was still able to lose weight.

                    -Dave

                    My running blog

                    Goals | sub-18 5k | sub-3 marathon 2:56:46!!

                    zonykel


                       

                      Doesn't matter when you eat, how many meals, etc.  All that matters is the amount of calories you eat vs. the amount of calories you burn.

                       

                      If you're talking strictly about weight loss or weight maintenance, then you're probably right about your statement above. However, I would think that getting the proper nutrients is important.

                       

                      to the OP, I would recommend "racing weight" by Matt Fitzgerald. He opines that the mix of protein, carb, and fat isn't terribly important, as the body does the best it can with what you give it (the main point is that there is no need to find the perfect ratio of nutrients Or to zero out any of the nutrients).

                       

                      personally, my eating habits are my weakness. I know once i hit a plateau, I need to change my eating habits. Easier said than done. Perhaps a gradual change is what's called for.

                      jEfFgObLuE


                      I've got a fever...

                        I recommend trying a calorie counting app like myfitnesspal or loseit on your iOS or Android device.  Even if you don't want to count calories long-term to lose weight (it's tedious, but it works -- these apps make it a lot easier), inventorying what you do eat will you figure out where you can cut.

                        On your deathbed, you won't wish that you'd spent more time at the office.  But you will wish that you'd spent more time running.  Because if you had, you wouldn't be on your deathbed.

                          The other day I came across these two links from the runningplanet website.

                          Marathon Nutrition – Nutritional Tips for Running Your Best Marathon

                          http://www.runningplanet.com/training/marathon-nutrition.html

                           

                          THE GLYCEMIC INDEX - HOW TO USE IT TO INCREASE YOUR ENERGY AND LOSE WEIGHT

                          http://www.runningplanet.com/training/glycemic-index.html

                          5k - 20:56 (09/12), 7k - 28:40 (11/12), 10k trial - 43:08  (03/13), 42:05 (05/13), FM - 3:09:28 (05/13), HM - 1:28:20 (05/14), Failed 10K trial - 6:10/mi for 4mi (08/14), FM - 3:03 (09/14)


                          Mmmmm...beer

                            If you're talking strictly about weight loss or weight maintenance, then you're probably right about your statement above. However, I would think that getting the proper nutrients is important.

                             

                            That's why in my first post I said that nutrition is another topic entirely. Smile But you can still balance your nutritional needs while managing caloric intake to lose weight and stay healthy.

                            -Dave

                            My running blog

                            Goals | sub-18 5k | sub-3 marathon 2:56:46!!

                            Julia1971


                              Because no one's going to buy a one-page book that says eat less than you burn.

                               

                              I think things like meal timing - for weight loss - mostly come into place when you're already in a healthy weight range and you're trying to get your body to shed weight it's happy with.  And, it seems like you might be one of those people if you're talking about 10 lbs of beer gut.  So, I would start with drinking less beer.  Wink  Seriously, though, a few marathon cycles ago I gave up alcohol and I couldn't keep weight on me it made such a difference.  (But, I was probably also running 70+ mile weeks).  It's not targeting runners particularly but I liked The Sports Nutrition Guidebook by Nancy Clark.

                               

                              Then why is there all the hype about when you eat?  One of the things I know I do wrong is only eating 1-2 meals a day.  I've heard it's better for weight loss to eat smaller meals throughout the day, don't eat late at night, always eat breakfast.  Why would any of that matter if it's a simple math problem of calories in vs. calories out?

                               

                              (BTW, still getting through that article.  Sorry if these questions are answered in there)

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