You know how sometimes, things in life (events, experiences, people, books, thoughts, dreams) just sort of swirl around the top of your head, like a vortex of the all the answers to any question you may ever think of, but you just can't quite get to it? It is like that word on the tip of your tongue: its there, you know it is but you just have to quit thinking about it so you can get it.
Well, my ultra running nutrition has been like that for me.
Then in December I finally got around to reading the October issue of UltraRunning and low and behold, the vortex reached down and touched my brain. There was an article by Sunny Blende in which she writes about Metabolic Efficiency and how to eat and run to train your body to more efficiently burn FAT. The beauty of this idea is you don't have to focus as much on carbohydrates while running long (or short) which can really save your race if you end up with any sort of stomach or intestinal distress.
Now, I've been pretty lucky. My gut is either pretty hardy or I treat it right and we work well together. I don't usually bonk, unless I do something stupid like not eat enough (Pigtail's Challenge 2012). But still, I'm always looking for a little edge, a little way to improve myself as an athlete. And, to be honest, I've put on a few pounds since I started running ultras. And while I would like to think it is all muscle, unlike some disgraced former winner of a little bike ride in France, I must be honest with myself. I am not rock hard.
To make a long story short, I did some additional quick research about this idea and it makes sense to me. I know it has critics but with my limited knowledge of cells and human biochemistry and energy pathways PLUS what I have experienced with myself and that whole vortex of experience swirling above my head thing I had to give it a try.
I listened to this informative podcast on Trail Runner Nation with Sunny Blende and Tim Flemming. Ok, I listened to it like two or three times because I kept falling asleep. Admittedly I listened while in bed with the electric blanket set to high. But I digress.
I bought the book "Metabolic Efficiency Training" by Bob Seebohar and "Nutrition Periodization for Athletes" also by Bob Seebohar. Oh, and then I read them. Twice. Each.
Then I jumped in. Well, after Christmas I jumped in to metabolic efficiency training (MET) because John get me a heart rate monitor/GPS watch which is a handy tool to use to keep your training honest. Which I like to be honest, unlike some people in the professional biking world. Can you tell I'm a bit miffed about Lance? I digress again.
After more research and calculations I decided my heart rate should be no higher than 145 and hopefully closer to 135 for all of my runs for 2 solid weeks. For my diet I chose to ELIMINATE grains, most excess sugar (very hard to do) and alcohol for those weeks as well. I chose two weeks just as a starting point.
I found that my diet drastically improved. I ate WAY more veggies and fruits. I ate MORE fat and protein. I felt good. Running felt SLOW but it was. I wanted to run faster but I didn't. I tried to be honest.
After 1.5 weeks of this MET running and eating I ran the Bridle Trails 50k. Now, I'm not really fit for a 50k right now. This was a training run. I planned on doing my MET through the whole 6 long hours of it.
And guess what?
It worked!
A couple of days prior to the run I did add a slice or two of yummy bread to my diet. Maybe I even had some hot chocolate one night. The day of the race I did not "carbo load" with grains. I ate a piece of toast for breakfast, some cottage cheese, fresh salsa and an avocado for lunch and then I ran (it was an afternoon/evening race).
For the first 3 hours I ate NOTHING. No gel, no bars, no potatoes. I ran through the aid stations and I followed the beeps of the heart rate monitor.
For the second 1/2 of the run (3 hours) I did eat (not bonking was a big goal) but not much. In total I had 1 Larabar, 1 orange slice, 1 potato chunk, 1 handful of chips, 1 cup of chicken broth and 1 tablespoon of noodles. And never once did I feel like I needed it. I know I did but not so badly I could feel it.
In fact, when I got finished, I could have kept going. It was a beautiful night and there really was no need to stop.
I guess, I was amazed at all this. Now, perhaps I was/am pretty efficient already so maybe I am just fine tuning my diet. But so far it is going well. I will try it again at the Capitol Peak MegaFatass tomorrow and see how it goes, although I have been eating more grains this past week (recovery and another big run).
According to my at home scale, my weight and body fat percent have dropped but I'm not convinced that my scale is perfectly accurate for body fat and I only have two data points so far. However, running today I was able to keep a faster pace with a lower heart rate (which is also an affect of MET).
So, this is my experiment of one. It is not something I will do 365 if you know what I mean. But right now I am really appreciating how it is refocusing my eating onto real, fresh foods instead of processed grains and carbs.
If you have any questions I'd love to share my experience while we're out running!
