Dikos - Finish line fueling: an essential guide to runners nutrition

Copyright 2017 by Jackie Dikos

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.

Cover design by Tom Lau

Cover photo credit: iStockphoto

Interior photographs by Jonathon Fean and Jackie Dikos

Print ISBN: 978-1-5107-1962-0

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-5107-1964-4

Printed in China

Contents

For Greg and our race without a finish line.

Introduction

Quality of Life: What Does It Mean to You?

Early in my career as a dietitian, I worked in the hospital setting. While there, I found that there were many circumstances when patients and doctors were making decisions based on what patients wanted most in regards to quality of life. Decisions ranged from a medication choice, whether to have an elective surgery to increase activity level, or to concede and stop treatments in order to be more comfortable at the end of life.

These decisions often slipped into my conversations at home with my husband when I was at my peak of training 80 to 100 miles a week. My husband, Greg, is an orthopedic trauma surgeon who faces quality of life decisions with patients daily. In the midst of heavy training, raising our young son, and working as a dietitian he would frequently remind me that I did not "have" to run. It was a choice I made in regards to what I wanted from life each day I squeezed in the demanding schedule.

As I prepared for the start of my first marathon as a runner of sub-elite status, Greg reminded me to take many mental photos of the special opportunity. I have many amazing mental images of that day. It was my first qualification for the Olympic Team Trials Marathon and the product of what I had pushed through each sluggish morning. It was a powerful reminder that I felt blessed with an amazing quality of life.

These experiences, and many like it, have offered me great perspective. The phrase quality of life has become my personal motto and the focus for those I educate. Every day, as athletes and as people, we face decisions. It may be what to eat or drink, or whether to run on a bitter cold morning. Each decision plays a role in how we interpret both short-term and long-term quality of life goals. How will each decision support what I want most from life and my future?

I find quality of life pieces come together when I avoid overcomplicating decisionsincluding training and food. There is more to everyday fueling than calories-in and calories-out in an effort to optimize nutritional status, health, and performance. My goal for the pages ahead is to help the runner better understand what the body requires on an individual level, interpret how the body communicates needs, and how to respond to support both quality of life and performance related goals.

My quality of life goals: to feel happy, healthy, and unstoppable.

Happy: Part of a world full of life, love, and potential. Slow to anger, quick to respond, and confident in my own skin.

Healthy: Free from pain, excessive fatigue, and chronic disease.

Unstoppable: A feeling of infinite energy and sense of limitless potential for the day. To be as productive as possible.

Jackie Dikos, RD, CSSD, CLT

Eventually all things fall into place. Until then, laugh at the confusion, live for the moments and know everything happens for a reason.

Albert Schweitzer

GOAL-SETTING ESSENTIALS FOR EVERYDAY HEALTH AND OPTIMAL PERFORMANCE

What does a loyal runner want most from his or her day? They want to run. A day without taking in the fresh air, working up good sweat, and feeling the smooth rhythm of a spirited stride feels like its missing something. A run makes the day feel more complete.

Feeling great when we runnow thats a state of contentment beyond measure. It feels like cashing in a winning lottery ticket. It makes a good day brighten into a great one with an extra ray of sunshine. The lasting state of contentment that comes with a great run makes the countless miles and endless effort of basic daily training worth every tiresome second.

When we just want to run, everything else, including food, seems to just complicate things. One more mile on a run can easily take precedence over post-run flexibility and refueling. Long workouts, a busy schedule, and working in enough sleep to do it all over again can demand a lot out of the day. Over time the pantry becomes lined with prepackaged foods, sports performance energy products, and fad diet books in an effort to find simple answers to support efficiency in life and performance. The message of what entails quality fueling and goals to support performance can get muddled.

Food doesnt have to be complicated. Keeping food simple and making the effort to put together basic food choices can fuel even the most demanding lifestyle. Bringing simple, high-quality ingredients together with a fundamental fueling thought process offers fuel to sustain health and performance, and leaves time to do what makes you feel most like yourun.

The aim of Finish Line Fueling is to inspire ditching the pre-packed foods and performance products laced with less ideal ingredients. Emphasis is placed on a simple whole food grocery list packed with essential nutrients every caliber runner requires to thrive. Focusing on whole food, nutrient dense ingredients allows for a healthy, high performance regimen to unfold and open the door to many aspects of a good quality life.

Fundamental Fuel

Are there goals you strive for when you put together a meal or snack? What do you want to achieve from your plate? Some runners reach for favorite and routine comfort foods because it offers a sense of security in weight management and predictability. Other runners yearn to fill a void response to cravings and overwhelming hunger. Sometimes simply working in a quality source protein or having a vegetable land on the plate feels like blue ribbon kind of meal.