Running nutrition

Techguy said:

I have been doing a little research into post run diet and one of
runnersworld.com suggestions was to have a high car drink after
running. I found one called Sustagen, but the ad suggest drinking it
before running. Do any of you have knowledge of this? If so, do you
know any brands?
Thanks

Seems that OJ is high in carbs. At least I know where to find that.

Quoted message said:

I have been doing a little research into post run diet and one of
runnersworld.com suggestions was to have a high car drink after
running. I found one called Sustagen, but the ad suggest drinking it
before running. Do any of you have knowledge of this? If so, do you
know any brands?

Some thoughts and opinions.

[a] Need for worrying about the whole deal: often overstated. If
you're feeling good doing what you're doing, you're fine. You
probably want to pay some attention to what you're doing on your
longer days but likely don't need to overthink runs much less than an
hour.

[b] Special sports formulas and brand names: maybe not quite snake
oil, but claims that some powdered drink is really much better than
another or lowfat chocolate milk or juice and normal food or whatever
are suspect at best. Main thing the powdered sports drinks offer is
convenience and portability. And while they may be quickly absorbed
they - especially the ones with protein, which is a good thing
generally - aren't always the easiest on your (or at least my)
digestive system. Bottom line is you want carbs first and foremost,
and ideally a little protein. And don't be afraid of a little fat
while you're at it though so far researchers have less to say about
the role of fat in post-exercise recovery. I find something like
juice + a bagel with cream cheese, or cereal with fruit and yogurt and
trail mix and almond milk, work at least as well for me as an official
recovery drink.

[c] When: after longer runs is by far most important, IME. Worry
about the "before" and "during" if you run into problems with energy
on runs, or when your long runs get a little longer. But mostly you
want to get some good stuff after, to get you on the road to recovery
(meaning things like: restocking glycogen, repairing muscles, getting
blood sugar up and stopping catabolism... other more scientifically
minded people will have a better grasp of particulars). I usually
arrange it so that most all of my runs, even the short easy ones on a
double day, finish right before a meal. Unlike some I'm almost always
ready to eat after a run, and the body is ready to receive it and do
those good recovery things and handle glycemic loads that might be
more problematic at other times etc.

Here's a reasonably sensible article: http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/rununiv/runrr.htm

Techguy said:

I have been doing a little research into post run diet and one of
runnersworld.com suggestions was to have a high car drink after
running. I found one called Sustagen, but the ad suggest drinking it
before running. Do any of you have knowledge of this? If so, do you
know any brands?
Thanks

I'd do whatever works for you. I agree with Charlie's comments for the
most part, although I do prefer a sports drink rather than water while
running. Chocolate milk is a favorite recovery drink of many people. (I
use Slim-Fast if I'm not going to be home for 1 hr or more - just leave
some cans in my car.) The protein helps carb absorption as well as
providing protein for recovery.

Their web page sounds like it's a recovery drink, but possibly could be
used any time. (I didn't download their .pdf)
http://www.sustagen.com.au/sport.php

If you look at the various recovery drinks (or other drinks, for that
matter), their web pages may explain why they use whatever formulation.
If their site doesn't explain, I make the assumption it's for fashion
rather than sports, but some products do both (Slim-Fast is an example -
you won't find a thing about sports on their web page).

Dot

--
"The goal is training and adaptation, not destruction and injury."
- John Hardy
http://www.mountainrunning.coolrunning.com.au/misc/training.shtml

Dot said:

I agree with Charlie's comments for the most part, although
I do prefer a sports drink rather than water while running.

Right, you might want the calories if you're out there long enough,
and the salt and sugar might help with absorption. I'll often grab a
bottle of G'rade from a vendor at the park if I'm running 90 minutes,
sometimes two bottles for a two hour run.

I mostly meant that as a source of carbs and protein for recovery,
there's nothing all that special about any particular drink just
because it's in powder form and marketed as an athletic recovery
drink. Sure it might have a little salt and vitamins and herbs or
whatever... but whatever magic goodies it's got, in turn it just may
lack some different phyto-micro-anti-etc. magic goodies in fruit and
veggie juices or chocolate milk or eggs or whatever "real food".

The main things are the timing (sooner the better after a long run)
and the composition (no need to obsess over percentages, but largely
carby, not some Atkins burger-sans-bun).

Charlie Pendejo said:

Dot said:

I agree with Charlie's comments for the most part, although
I do prefer a sports drink rather than water while running.

Right, you might want the calories if you're out there long enough,
and the salt and sugar might help with absorption. I'll often grab a
bottle of G'rade from a vendor at the park if I'm running 90 minutes,
sometimes two bottles for a two hour run.

I mostly meant that as a source of carbs and protein for recovery,
there's nothing all that special about any particular drink just
because it's in powder form and marketed as an athletic recovery
drink. Sure it might have a little salt and vitamins and herbs or
whatever... but whatever magic goodies it's got, in turn it just may
lack some different phyto-micro-anti-etc. magic goodies in fruit and
veggie juices or chocolate milk or eggs or whatever "real food".

The main things are the timing (sooner the better after a long run)
and the composition (no need to obsess over percentages, but largely
carby, not some Atkins burger-sans-bun).

Thanks for the info, I like slimfast so I will try that out this
weekend. Right now my long runs are just over an hour, but they will
be longer by the end of the summer.l