Week 1 -- Days 2 & 3

Hiya everyone!

I've been doing a lot of reading on diet and nutrition for a marathon training schedule. Nutrition is incredibly important to me and I know that my body is going to be taking a beating with all of this training.  Here are some really interesting tips that I have learned:

1) It helps to know what time the actual race is and to train around the same time of the race.  This helps the body establish a rhythm during running time so that it's a smoother transition into running for the race.  (Plus, it helps with letting your body plan for bathroom breaks ;p)

2) The key with diet is to eat carbs around the time that you will be active.  This means fruit, pasta, bread, rice, etc. before or right after training.

3) Don't go too many hours without eating or your brain will signal starvation mode and stimulate your appetite.  This is a factor that I am most cautious about.  It can be very easy for my body to think that it's being overworked and underfed.  Which is why....

4) ....snacks are important!  It's good to eat a little something every few hours to keep your body's metabolism going.  This entails having a piece of fruit or raw veggies, something light and nutritious.

I'm currently getting myself back into the habit of eating 5 times a day (yes, like a hobbit).  I eat something for breakfast, have a pretty significant lunch, a small snack in the afternoon, dinner in the evening, and a small snack at night.  This transition always changes how I go through food in my house.  You'd think that it would be going faster since I am eating more often, but it actually disappears a bit more slowly since I am usually not super hungry when it's time to eat.

I've also discovered that I am already having trouble meeting a healthy calorie count.  Since my meals are consisting of mostly fresh foods, it's lucky if I make it to 1,500 calories in a day.  This would normally be acceptable except I'm already burning between 400-500 calories in a workout.  And those calories that I am burning are only going to increase as I gain the ability to run farther and farther.  I foresee that I will need to find good staple foods that are rich in nutrients as well as filling.

Hey guys, I just have to say this: Bodies are SO COOL.

In other news, I did my first hardcore workout last night.  I ran three miles on the treadmill and then did the most amount of core work I have ever done in one take.  I'm feeling it today, let me tell you.  Since I didn't give myself enough time to go to the gym this morning, I'll be going again tonight.  It's looking like legs, back and arms are on the agenda for tonight along with a light run.

That's all for now!