Exercise and nutrition for great results

My half marathon training is going well. I have now completed a week and a half and I'm starting to become more comfortable with running again. With any new exercise, it takes your body time to become accustomed to the new stresses and strains that you are placing up on it. After a while your body learns to cope and you will feel much more comfortable when performing the exercises. This is the stage where you will really start to see improvements.

Whilst you are training it's vital that you give your body the right nutrients to help provide energy and to aid recovery. You need to be eating the right number of calories for the activity you are doing and good quality wholesome food.

In my case, if I'm running for 40 minutes continuously, I need to make sure that my calorie intake is sufficient to my calorie needs. Running for 40 minutes burns approximately 670 calories (This figure will vary for everyone. It depends on your weight and the intensity of your run). If you are trying to lose weight, then it's advisable to only create a calorie deficit of no more than 500 calories per day. This 500 calorie deficit should be created as 250 from food intake and 250 from activity.

But be careful though, because if you increase your activity levels, you may not need to adjust your calorie intake too much or even at all. As you can see from my example above, I'm actually creating a deficit of 670 calories just from activity. I may actually need to increase my calorie intake slightly so my body doesn't think I'm depriving it. If this happens you could be losing weight but also losing vital lean muscle mass, which is a no no.

So what can you do to improve your nutrition for exercise, here are some quick tips to help you along;

1. Eat for energy. You will require carbohydrate for energy. Eat some at least 2 hours before your activity. Something like a banana or a bowl of cereal is ideal.
2. Improve the quality of your food. Foods that are high in trans fats and sugar are low in nutrition and just succeed in making you fatter. Cut out processed foods and introduce more whole and fresh foods into your diet.
3. Create your own electrolyte sports drink by mixing 250ml of pure fruit juice with 250ml of water and a pinch of salt.
4. If your exercise session is longer than one hour, then you will most likely need to take in some extra energy. An electrolyte sports drink such as the one above will provide you with replacement fluids and much needed carbohydrate for more energy.
5. It's important to have some protein in your diet as well as good quality fats. These can be found in fresh fish and lean meats as well as nuts and seeds.

This is a typical daily menu for me whilst I have been following the half marathon training schedule.

08:00 - Breakfast - Muesli, natural yogurt, cup of tea

10:30 - Snack - Banana, handful of mixed nuts

13:00 - Lunch - Tinned tuna, wholemeal pasta, sweetcorn and olive oil

16:30 - Pre-exercise snack - Apple, glass of milk

18:00 - Exercise, run or circuit training

19:30 - Bowl of Meat Chilli, vegetables and small baked potato

21:00 - Natural yogurt and fruit

Make sure that you also drink water during the day. I aim for at least 2 liters, that's approximately 8 glasses per day. If you are training hard you may need more.