Give. Me. Food.

I am starving.  All the time.   Even though I am trying to maintain my healthy eating habits, I have really been messing up lately.  As in I have forbidden anyone from bringing peanut m&m's into my house.  My self- control is really that bad.

Devils in disguise

I know that the amount of running I am doing torches lots of calories, and I know I will be a better runner if I replace those calories, but I am just not use to eating this much.  On my 20 mile run yesterday I ate honey stingers, an entire pack of peanut butter crackers, some stinger shots, and a couple mini snickers.  Yeah.  And that was after a great breakfast.  But I have noticed that I run so much better when I eat.  All these years of running marathons on a pack of sports beans and half a banana.  How dumb.

Now the challenge is to strike the right balance between what I can and can't eat.  Some things are much more tummy friendly on the run than others, and unfortunately for me, they are not the same things every run.  What works one day might not the next.  And since I can't take a suitcase with me on the trail, I have to give a lot of thought as to what usually works most of the time.

Do they make shoulder straps for this?

So far I am having great success with any of the Stinger stuff, mixed with some real foods.  My go-to for the real long runs are turkey and cheese with a little bit of mustard on rye bread. (thanks Beth)  I know, who in the world would think you could eat this as you are running down the trail.  But I have trained my stomach to do this, in little bites, and it really works. The steady stream of nutrition keeps me from feeling yucky and does make my time on the trail and the roads so much better.  I think that for the first time in my life, I am really celebrating food as being fuel for my body.  It feels so good to think of it that way instead of "good" and "bad" and always out to get me.

On another note, another long run weekend must mean....more snow!  Not one to disappoint, Mother Nature has decided to deliver 10-14 inches tomorrow just so I can continue my shake out shoveling streak.  If you have lost count, this will make 4 weekends of long running followed by a massive amount of snow to get off the driveway. I actually heard on the news the other night that shoveling is considered "strenuous exercise".   If When I am successful at Umstead, my next goal should be to write a book outlining the benefits of shoveling as a form of 100 mile training.