Desperately want to be faster

mileage is looking good!

thanks! It's been a cold winter, brrrr:) I can't wait for it to warm up. Hey I have been meaning to ask you, do 'you find that eating lots of grains help you with running?

i agree about the cold. i can't wait for it to warm up!

about grains - i actually follow a gluten free diet after discovering i have an intolerance for gluten/wheat products. so it gets tricky when it comes to "carb loading". i do eat a good amount of gluten free grains, such as rice, corn, quinoa, etc and i definitely think it helps with my running.

i actually tried going completely starch free for a bit --- so no wheat or any sort of grains at all, not even corn, peas, or beans. i really found that my energy levels were lacking, as i rely on grains for a lot of my calories. (i am vegan, so i don't eat meat or dairy products---so all my calories come from fruits, vegetables, grains and nuts). so when i cut out starches, basically all i was eating were fruits, veggies and nuts & seeds. i found i just wasn't getting enough calories, and i was having trouble staying energized through a run. so i added starches back into the mix and things improved for me greatly. i felt much more energized, as i had built back up the much-needed glycogen stores in my muscles to fuel me on my runs. i just wasn't getting that on fruits and vegetables alone.

sorry, that was a lot of rambling, but overall YES, i do think grains help with my running. but the most important thing is the overall diet. wholesome, fresh food, an abundance of produce, cut out most or all processed foods and sweets.

Wow. That is exactly what I have been experiencing over the past few months. I have been a vegan for 15 years, so I definitely relate to the limitations in your diet. I love being a vegan and for I have never felt any tiredness.

In the past few months, however, I decided to streamline my diet eve more so that I was only eating lots of fruits, green vegetables, protein (tofu) and nuts. I noticed when I did that I found myself feeling more tired on the runs.

Also, I did something that I realized was really dumb before my last marathon: I decided to do a three-day cleasing fast the week before the marathon. Even though I ate grains after the fast (which ended a few days before the race), when it was time to dig deep during the race, I did not feel as strong as usual.

so, lesson learned. I am not crazy about all grains and I don't always like the way they feel, but I have been trying to incorporate more brown rice and complex carbohydrates in my diet. I am just trying to find the ones that do not make me feel heavy or sluggish. Now that I am eating more grains, I do feel like I am running stronger.

And I agree with you, processed food and sugar are the kiss of death...

So nice to talk to someone who has had the same experience as me (you obviously were much smarter and listened earlier than I did:)).

Thanks for sharing!

Michele