Pre-Race Carb Intake Study

[Andrea North]

I thought I would share this abstract - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21590642

"Further covariate-adjusted analysis revealed that those competitors who consumed carbohydrate the day before the race at a quantity of >7 g/kg body mass had significantly faster overall race speeds (P=0.01) and maintained their running speed during the race to a greater extent than with those who consumed <7 g/kg body mass (P=0.02)."

Obviously, conclusions from studies such as these should be taken with a grain of salt. But I thought it was interesting!

[Michelle Lowry]

What's a kg?  Just kidding.  Timely info.  Thanks!

[Jake Krong]

So how much ice cream does this mean I need to eat the night before a race? My standard giant bowl?

[Andrea North]

I would say that a small extra scoop would be justified 

[April G]

This makes a lot of sense. Some of my best runs and races have been in the morning after gorging on a carborific dinner along with multiple desserts.

[Joe Furse]

I also tend to eat a larger-than-normal amount of fat with my carbs before a big race.  Seems to help with endurance.  I usually carb load for 3-5 days ahead of the race on top of my regular diet, then have a nice big meal full of carbs and fat the night before.  Pasta with meat and LOTS of alfredo sauce and cheese is a particular favorite.