Running On Food: Be Prepared

 This article is part of a new series on Nutrition for Runners.   Heather from the blog, Trials of Training, has offered her expertise in Nutrition to runners in the Lounge to pass along information on recipes, nutrition, and running/food related questions.  She has her BS in Nutrition from Penn State, she is currently working to be a Registered Dietician, and is a loves to help runners with their questions.

Be Prepared

by Heather

Every week I meet up with an evening running group; we start promptly at 6:30 p.m. for a nice cool run around DC. I absolutely love it. However! Every time I do this, I find myself home around 8:30 p.m., starving for dinner, and the Last thing I want to do is COOK.

To be honest with you, this has lead to a frozen meal choice on more than one occasion. I’m not much of a fast-food eater, but I can see where this would be the easy option as well! In other words, if I’m not prepared, it’s too convenient to make a quick decision just for some Food and miss out on a healthy meal.

Instead of letting this become habit, or something I “just do twice a week”, I’ve started thinking ahead. I also don’t like cooking for just one meal; leftovers are my best friend. Plus, if I make enough for at least two meals, that means I have my Monday and Thursday night post-run dinners all covered!

This concept doesn’t just have to be about dinner after the run, it can apply to weekly dinners in general, post-run snacks, lunch at work, etc. In college, this was a concept that took me a long time to fully appreciate, but once I started making meals ahead of time (and cooking for more than one meal!) I found I ate a lot healthier. On days I didn’t want to cook, or I didn’t have a good post-run snack handy, I went for convenience. When I thought ahead, and actually prepared for these days, I had a healthy home-cooked meal or home-made snack waiting for me.

What you choose to fuel up with after a run can make such a big difference in your body’s recovery. This is not the time to be making haste decisions! It’s always best to get a mixture of Carbohydrates and lean proteins. Adding in some veggies and/or fruits provides more antioxidants and minerals that you may need to replenish as well!

Some easy things to make ahead of time (let’s face it – not everything tastes as good when it’s reheated!):

-Any pasta mixture/pasta salad! Throw in some diced tomatoes, cooked chicken, veggies, garbanzo beans, shrimp, etc.  
-Casseroles 
-Lasagna  
-Home-made Pizza 
-Chili 
-Soups

Smoothies and peanut butter (w/ banana, optional of course!) sandwiches are great post-run snacks to have on hand that can easily be made before you leave! 

Any other ideas? How do you prepare for nights/runs like this?