Half Marathon- Carb Loading

Finally leaving for the beach today after work with the girls. We are heading to Myrtle Beach, SC for our first half marathon, the Diva Run. Even though its only 3 hours away and a frequent vacation spot for us North Carolinians, it will still be a fun destination race to add to our growing list. 

One major thing to remember when running marathons or half marathons is your diet- CARB LOAD! Carb load like crazy. Eat a ton of carbs, and when you think you're full, eat some more. 

The reason for this is to stock your glycogen stores. That's probably one of the most lengthy topics I could write about, but for now, we'll keep it short and sweet. Your glycogen is stored in your muscle as fuel. All food you eat is either turned to glucose-which goes right into your bloodstream, or glycogen, which is stored for later. 

Here's some quick tips for carb loading before a race:

• You'll need 3.5-4 grams of carbohydrates per pound of body weight per day. Since I'm a smaller female, I leaned towards 3.5- giving me a grand total of 437.5 grams a day.
• Start carb-loading 72 hours out (my race is Sunday morning at 7:10am, so I started today- Thursday at breakfast)
• Carbs should make up 70-80% of your diet during this 72 hour period
• Limit fiber intake- high-fiber fruits and whole grains, for example
• On race day: pre-race meal should be eaten 3-4 hours to completely digest
• Pre-race meal: 15-20grams of both proteins and fats is ideal 

Some of the foods I included are quinoa, spaghetti, asparagus, and brussels sprouts. Lots of snacks too. All simple, but do the job! 

But more importantly......BEACHHHHH. Sun. and tanning. and listening to the ocean. Ahhhh. As soon as my race is over, I'm drinking a big Coors Light (or well, a normal size one, whatever) and all the seafood I can choke down. I haven't had a proper cheat meal in almost 45 days. It. Is. TIME. 

Fasted Cardio...Why even go there?

Hi, I'm Erin, and I have a love-hate (mostly hate) relationship with cardio. But, this half marathon I'm training for? Yeah, gotta fit in the extra cardio. Do I like it? Heck no. Would I rather be lifting something heavy, you betcha. But, gotta suck it up and do it. 

Got up this morning and got in fasted cardio. Here's the thing. If I've gotten enough sleep, I am your most obnoxious, cheerful morning person. But if I don't get my 8-9 hours of sleep, I am probablyyyyyyy comparable to the devil before I have my coffee. So with that said, I'm trying to get back in my morning routine of waking up at 5 and getting started. Anywhoooo. Yes. Fasted cardio.

For those of you who have never tried it, it actually is better than it sounds. Yes, you are up before your brain is, and you're working out before breakfast. But there's the key- do it before your brain realizes what you're doing! 

Here are  some of the benefits to fasted cardio:

• Burn extra calories throughout the day 
• Forces your body to use fat as an energy source (taps into those stubborn areas, like hips and thighs for women/lower abs for men)
• Burn more fat on empty stomach than with pre-workout meal hours beforehand
• While fasting and while exercising, your body releases HGH (human growth hormones), which prevents muscle being burned as an energy source 

This is from both researching the subject, and my own experience. This is totally just my opinion that fasted cardio is beneficial. Many academic types would argue it has adverse effects, and this has been a controversial topic for some time. While both sides have merit, I choose to believe it does have benefits from seeing results in myself. My advice to you? If you're really on the fence, check your own results. Just measure your body fat and calculate your lean mass. This goes for all aspects of fitness- the case studies are still fairly new, and all of the experts all have their own opinions based on their research. How do you know what to believe? Stick with what is working for you personally.

Whether fasting or not, to make your cardio count, you've got to add intensity. The joke about the girls who go into the gym and come out looking just as good as they went in- its true. You've got to work up a sweat and really work for those results, or they won't come. Its all up to you! I like to throw HIIT (high intensity interval training) workouts in my weekly routine at least 2-3 times a week. No one likes cardio, but it IS vital to every person's fitness journey, no matter the goals.