Posted: January 19, 2005

Science of Sport: "Ask Owen" Weekly Feature

Ask Owen Q and A Index

Visitors are invited to submit training questions for exercise physiologist Owen Anderson, Ph. D. to answer in a weekly column.

Owen currently writes a weekly column for the Runner's Web.

Questions can be emailed to: Ask Owen.

Each week, Owen will pick the most interesting question(s) and publish his answer(s) on the Runner's Web.

Question::

I weigh about 150 lbs. and am 5'6. I am beginning to train for my 1st marathon, and I want to lose about 15 lbs. I feel like at that weight I would run better and put less stress on my body. I want to know how best to eat when I am training so that I lose weight and have energy to do my runs. I am not a strong runner and I am only running about 3 mi a day and 5 mi on my long run- so energy and losing weight are really important to me. I know that low-carb diets are not the best when doing this rate of physical activity, so how should I eat to lose weight?

Melanie

Answer:

Hi Melanie

Thank you very much for your question. You have been doing a great job with your training; running three miles per day with a long run of five miles is a terrific start.

I do not think you should eat to lose weight - I believe you should eat to be healthy, and if you are healthy you can train to lose weight. As you very gradually increase the quality and volume of your training, the pounds will come off.

Smart eating for runners involves consuming whole-grain foods at most meals, abundant quantities of vegetables, two to three servings of fruit per day, several daily servings of nuts and/or legumes, occasional samplings of fish/poultry/eggs, a decent daily source of calcium, and healthy portions of plant oils, including olive, flaxseed, canola, corn, sunflower, soy, and peanut oils. In general, the idea is to avoid high-fat, energy-dense foods and to instead focus on comestibles which are rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. In general, the best diet for runners is high in carbohydrates and adequate in protein and plant fats (oils).

The beautiful thing about eating in this way is that you can eat plentiful amounts of food without ingesting mega amounts of calories. As the quality and volume of your training naturally increase, you will eventually reach a point at which you are burning more calories each day than you are ingesting, and of course the pounds will then begin to come off.

A key for losing weight is to train consistently and without injury. To do this, it is very important to carry out running-specific strength training a couple of times each week (this helps your muscles and connective tissues stand up to the running training you are completing) - and to increase your mileage and amount of quality running very, very gradually, so that your body can adjust to the challenges it is facing. Remember that time is on your side over the long term. If you are currently running about 23 miles per week, for example, and build up to a 30-mile per week schedule in a gradual and careful way, the extra seven weekly miles will produce a weight loss of one pound every five weeks - or 10 pounds over the course of a year. If you move to 35 weekly miles, you could potentially lose a pound every three weeks and 17 pounds for a year. As you know, this kind of weight loss would have a very positive impact on your running.

The motto of the successful Kenyan runners is to eat so that you can train well, and to train well so that you can achieve a great body composition and perform well in races. These are principles which work well for all runners.

Very kindest regards,

Owen Anderson, Ph. D.

www.RRNews.com

About Owen Anderson
Owen Anderson, Ph.D., is the editor and founder of Running Research News and the author of the books Lactate Lift-Off (http://www.rrnews.com/products.htm) and Great Workouts for Popular Races (www.rrnews.com). An exercise physiologist and training expert, Anderson coaches and offers training camps for runners. He's based in Lansing, Michigan. To learn more about Owen and his work, please visit www.rrnews.com

Running Research News is a monthly newsletter which keeps sports-active people up-to-date on the latest information about training, sports nutrition, and sports medicine. RRN publishes practical, timely new material which improves workouts, prevents injuries, and heightens overall fitness.