Measurements
Date 8th September 13th September 21st September
Weight 56.7 55.8 55.5
%BF 22% 22.3% 21%
Left arm 26 26 26.5
Right arm 27 26.5 26.5
Chest 88 88 88.5
Waist 69.5 69 68.5
Hips 99 98.5 99
Right thigh 53 52.5 52
Left thigh 54 54 52
Well, as you can see I have not lost much but, to be honest, I did have a weekend of eating and drinking because it was a friend’s birthday. I don’t feel disappointed about not losing much weight, but I am back on track with my eating plan. I am happy with the way my training is going and feeling very strong when I am out running. I am pleased and feel that my diet is helping with my performance.
When I started running, people recommended shakes to have afterwards, or recovery bars, and I would very rarely use them. I think I was worried about adding calories and putting on weight. I have been doing a lot of research and have realised how important it is to fuel the body before, during, and after training. Like I mentioned in my last blog about the pre- and post-meals, I just want to reinforce the importance of fuelling the body. Obviously, depending on the intensity or mileage your training entails, will depend on the amount of calories you intake before, during and after.
When I am doing shorter runs (under an hour), fuelling during a run is not necessary but will depend on if I have eaten enough before I start running. When I am doing my longer runs (more than 90 minutes), I most definitely need to fuel my body during my run. There are so many different ways to fuel your body during exercise, but everyone will have different preferences so you have to experiment and find out what you prefer to use.
I have been using these gels to fuel my longer runs:
Smart 1energizer gel
High5 IsoGel
Powerbar energize sport shotz
Other options you can use:
Gels: Lucozade gels, Powerbar gels, High5 energy gels, Go Gel, Torq gels, Cliff Bar Shotbloks
Jelly beans
Jelly babies
Energy bars
Also, when I am doing my longer runs taking in water is extremely important as I need to keep hydrated. I tend to run with water when I am on my longer runs. I have tried the belt that holds the water bottle, but I find it extremely annoying. So I just run with the water in my hand and just keep alternating between my right and left hand. Another option would be to put money in my running belt and make sure my run goes past different shops that I can buy water from. Every runner will have their own preference.
After my run I will normally consume a bottle of water, Lucozade or Powerade sports drink. Followed by the water and sports drink, I will either have a Powerbar shake or a Powerbar or Lucozade recovery bar.
Everyone is different, the best way I find, is to try different bars/gels out and find which one suits you best!!
