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Mid-Run Fueling with Real Food (Read 118 times)

    I'm doing a 20 mile race this weekend, my first time racing anything longer than a half marathon. I'm not sure how long the 20 miler will take, but for reference, I did a half three weeks ago in just under 1:38.

     

    For my training runs, I've never done mid-run fueling. My longest run topped out at 2.25 hours and on some of those runs I was definitely hitting the wall by the end, but assumed it's just because I was pushing my limits. I got some advice that I should not attempt a race that will take probably 2.75-3 hours without mid-run fuel. That said, I've essentially run out of time to experiment with doing this before race day.

     

    I'm particular about what I eat and race gels just don't appeal to me. I looked into some 'real food' options and those that appeal to me most are dried fruit (raisins, dates), frozen grapes, or pretzel sticks. Other options like nut butter appeal to me but I think carbs would probably be more helpful than fats. Perhaps honey spread on or mixed into something would be OK.

     

    Based on some reading I did I was thinking of having a small snack of one of these types of things at 45 minutes, 1:30, and 2:15 in.

     

    Does anyone have experience fueling with real food (as opposed to gels)? Any recommendations on what is easy to carry and doesn't make stomach upset?

     

    Separately, would it help me perform better over a race this long? Or is it more advisable to just run without given that I won't be able to practice ahead of time?

     

    Betsy

    LedLincoln


    not bad for mile 25

      My only experience was that I didn't have sufficient saliva to process fig newtons. Maybe make your own gel-like substance with PB and honey/jelly? Would require creative packaging.

      grapes


        Raisins or dates make sense. If you like candy, jelly beans maybe? Maybe you could try a few different options during your training runs this week to see how it goes. If you have *any* problems that seem digestion related, then I'd say you should skip the fueling for your race. You get better at eating while running by training it, and you're out of time to do that.

           

           

          I'm particular about what I eat and race gels just don't appeal to me.

           

          What exactly does this mean? Have you tried them? They are not intended to be appealing, they are intended to give you an easy to carry, consume, & digest boost of sugar & electrolytes. They upset some people's stomachs, but if they don't do that to you, not sure what the objection is. For people wanting something more "natural" - I've heard of people using honey packets, like the kind you see in restaurants.

           

          Whatever you decide - an experiment is needed. You have not run out of time if your race is this weekend. I would strongly urge you to try whatever options you're thinking about during training runs this week. Whatever you feel is no problem eating under normal circumstances may work out differently while racing.

           

          You can do a 20-mile training run without any fuel, but for a race of that distance, most people wouldn't go without. But better to go without than to try something new on race day.

          Dave

          Half Crazy K 2.0


            I've used fig newton's (was carrying a handheld water bottle), caramel creams and Munchkins.  Munchkins were brought by an absolutely amazing volunteer at miles 10 and 16 of a marathon.  The was also a Munchkin Mile at a different race.

            AndyTN


            Overweight per CDC BMI

              I have a friend who does +100 mile mountain bike races who will go to Moe's the day before and get full-sized burritos to take to the bike race the next day. Each time he does a lap on the ~20-25 mile loop courses, he will grab a burrito and eat it while riding. I don't think he does this while running marathons since you are bouncing up and down but he has told me some really crazy things while running long races too. Snickers bars, apples and other fruits, biscuits, and even cold cheese pizza one time.

               

              I wouldn't have the stomach for any of that stuff but basically, he is just looking for calories and will try anything in practice to see if it works for him. I can't stand the Gu and other gels either and am addicted to the Jelly Belly Sport Beans. You just have to try a variety of things in training runs to see how your stomach reacts. Don't risk it on race day with something new even if the race is passing it out. Carry some Tums or Alka Selzer chews with you while experimenting to see if those help your stomach settle after your snacks.

              Memphis / 38 male

              5k - 20:39 / 10k - 43:48 / Half - 1:34:47 / Full - 3:38:10


              delicate flower

                How about liquid calories instead of food or gels?  Gatorade Endurance, BASE, Skratch, Tailwind, etc.  I carry a bottle of Infinit with my for my marathons.  650 calories, and I take a swig every two miles chased with aid station water.

                <3

                rlopez


                  Ultrarunning input.

                  The trick with eating "real" food during a race is that your body has to digest it and put it to use. Otherwise, there's no point in eating it. And, depending on how hard you are working, your body may or may not be that into trying to digest denser foods. Which means (best case) it'll sit there or (worst case), it will not.

                   

                  Or, as ultrarunners do, you'll just slow down a bit while you digest. Which is going to be 20-30 minutes, not 2.

                   

                  This is why gels and liquid calories work so well. Which, PS, they are sort of similar things. You are supposed to drink water with gels. Guess what happens when gels and water mix in your stomach. Liquid calories.

                   

                  Dried fruits and fig newtons can work. With a lot of water. Frozen grapes? I think you mean simply grapes unless your race is in the middle of winter.

                   

                  I have tried various real foods during ultras. I wouldn't do it in a 20 miler if I was truly "racing". If I was running to complete the distance and not worrying about time, PBJ or a hunk of ProBar.

                    Won’t quote any particular person since there’s a lot to respond to:

                     

                    Gels have a bit of a stomach churn factor for me in part because they seem very artificial, but mostly because of the texture/taste. Candy is also artificial, but I have no problem at all with licorice, Swedish fish, etc. on occasion. Meanwhile, honey is of similar texture, and if I eat that it has to be spread on something like bread because of texture (although I don’t happen to consume much honey because I actually think it’s too sweet). Jams/jellies I have a similar texture issue with that in theory could be mitigated by, say, toast but in the case of jam/jelly additionally don’t like the flavor and can’t stomach it. I have test tasted a power gel at an expo before, and while I’m sure there are different brands and flavors, and maybe I would even like one of them, I wrote them off entirely after that experience because of the taste. I just can’t make myself eat something I don’t like at all, even for a purely utilitarian purpose like running. Guess I’d rather just run slower if it came to that? Although it seems like a ‘real food’ option shouldn’t be too difficult to find and that I shouldn’t have to sacrifice too much performance based on what I’ve read about, for instance, bananas/raisins being comparable to a number of sports products in terms of boosting endurance.

                     

                    Also, laughed out loud at the image of someone chowing down on a burrito on a bike. Your friend must be a much more proficient biker than I am since I can’t go one handed for very long. Anyway, agreed that bouncing introduces an additional challenge, so maybe not burritos during the race, but while on the subject, I have used burritos as a pre-race dinner before and have found them great for that purpose in lieu of the classic pasta dinner! Great mix of carbs and protein, and tasty too! And by the way, on race day I tend to wake up several hours early (yes, even for the early races) and have a fairly sizeable breakfast a few hours before.

                     

                    I like the suggestion of fig newtons, but given the advice on the effect of digestion on running speed and that I will plan to be carrying my own water backpack, I am leaning toward filling it with Gatorade, or slightly watered down Gatorade so that I don’t have to worry too much about chasing with water timed at aid stations. I’ll take a look at the race map to see how frequent the aid stations are. Also, I’ve had Gatorade mid race before and if it was correlated with stomach issues I haven’t been smart enough to identify the Gatorade as having been the cause.

                     

                    As for frozen grapes, I’m really not sure why the article I read specified frozen. I suspect it’s so that by the time you eat them they’re still cool. Race day weather is low of 67 high of 91. Yikes. The race should be shady, though.

                     

                    Will have to experiment with easy to digest foods later (bananas, raisins, dates, etc.) if I decide to go for the marathon distance to test possible effects on pacing.

                      What rlopez said is right on.

                       

                      For 20 miles, if you're running slow enough to digest real food, you probably don't need the calories at all unless you started the race in a depleted state.

                       

                      And if you're running fast enough to need fuel, you can't digest real food.

                      Runners run

                      chuckstone


                        About honey's texture and sweetness... it can be thinned with about an equal amount of something that will cut the extra sweet taste.  I have used coffee or unsweetened lemon concentrate and carried it in a 5 ounce gel flask that can be held in a running vest or a belt like Spi-belt.  For a marathon two of these are more than enough for me.

                        dhuffman63


                        Trails

                          I know you said you prefer real food but I'd look into My Spring energy gels....they are made with real food ingredients.  I use them for my ultras as I get hungry a lot.

                          paulv


                            I tried eating a granola bar once and as soon as I took the first bite, my mouth turned into the Sahara desert. Anything you eat either needs to have a lot of liquid in it or get washed down immediately with lots of water. My stomach can usually only tolerate a few gels. I found that the energy chews worked the best. They are a lot less messy than gels and you can consume smaller amounts more often.

                            AmoresPerros


                            Options,Account, Forums

                              What rlopez said is right on.

                               

                              For 20 miles, if you're running slow enough to digest real food, you probably don't need the calories at all unless you started the race in a depleted state.

                               

                              And if you're running fast enough to need fuel, you can't digest real food.

                               

                              Pace may be relevant here--I speculate that while real food is probably not going to work for someone racing 20 miles in 3 hours or less, it may be more feasible for someone taking 5+ hours.  But the OP is way too fast for that to matter.

                              It's a 5k. It hurt like hell...then I tried to pick it up. The end.

                              wcrunner2


                              Are we there, yet?

                                I eat lots of real food during ultras, but I'm going a lot slower and have plenty of time to digest it.  For 20 miles at your pace, and eliminating gels as a source, I'd go with liquid calories like Gatorade or defizzed Coke and something like Reese's PB Cup minis.  Somewhat related to gels but a texture more like Swedish fish are Shot Bloks.  Like you I can't stand the texture of gels; just the thought of them can turn my stomach, but I have no problems with the Shot Bloks.

                                 2024 Races:

                                      03/09 - Livingston Oval Ultra 6-Hour, 22.88 miles

                                      05/11 - D3 50K
                                      05/25 - What the Duck 12-Hour

                                      06/17 - 6 Days in the Dome 12-Hour.

                                 

                                 

                                     

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