What This Vegan Ate While Training for a Marathon Part 6

The Secret to Staying Strong and Healthy on a Plant-Based Diet While Training for a Marathon

What This Vegan Ate While Training for a Marathon Part 6

Another Friday, another week closer to the Chicago Marathon. Did you just hear my ♥ skip a beat? As I told you in last week's post, Saturday was my longest run ever. I was really nervous about running fourteen miles because I'd never run further than a half-marathon, or 13.1 miles.

Being the control freak that I am, I prepared for it, and I conquered it. I have another fourteen miler this Saturday, only this time I know what to expect and how to do it in regards to nutrition before, during, and after the run. Endurance training is a journey and I'm going to enjoy every minute of this learning experience.

Proper nutrition, as I'm discovering, is not only important before and after a long run, it's crucial during the run. If you don't keep fueling your body, you're going to be in for a big crash and burn. Now I know why I hit the wall at mile eleven of every half-marathon that I've ever run, and why I spent the remainder of the day on the couch feeling like crud. I didn't fuel my body during the run.

Thanks to Alex, I discovered Clif Bar BLOKS Energy Chews. They're organic, vegan, and they actually taste pretty good. They remind me of jelly candies that I ate as a kid, and they come in several different flavors. What surprised me about them was that they really did provide quick energy. I ate a piece fifteen minutes before I ran (drink water after you chew them) and then one at six miles, ten miles, twelve miles, and thirteen miles because my legs were starting to feel heavy. A few minutes after eating each chew I could feel my body surge a little and I could pick up my pace. Pretty cool! 

Besides learning how to fuel my body while I run, I'm getting better at eating the right amount of complex carbohydrates before my run. I've increased my whole grain bread and whole wheat and quinoa pasta consumption. I already eat a ton of vegetables and fruits so I'm not increasing those. Let's take a look at what I ate in a day this week.

How to Eat a Clean and Healthy Vegan Diet While Training for Endurance Sports

Breakfast

I'm a creature of habit in the morning and at night. Like always, I start my day with a glass of lemon water and a cup of coffee with frothy almond milk. I had a six and a half mile run on this day so I ate a banana, a handful of almonds, and drank a glass of water before I headed out the door.

When I got home from my run I made a recovery smoothie made with water, frozen blueberries, and two scoops of Arbonne chocolate protein powder. It's vegan! About an hour later I had two pieces of whole grain toast with peanut butter and a handful of blueberries and raspberries, as well as a glass of water.

Lunch

I ate two of the three leftover dirty rice stuffed peppers that I made for the blog a few days earlier. Click here for the recipe. I washed them down with a cool glass of water.

Mid-afternoon snack

I was craving spinach so I made one of my favorite quick spinach and fruit salads with a squeeze of fresh lemon.

Dinner

I made more of the vegan nicoise salad that I made earlier in the day for the blog. It went so well with a chilled glass of white wine. Get the recipe for the salad here.

Dessert

I had a bowl of lemon avocado ice cream. It was so refreshing.

Bedtime

A glass of water and lights out.

Endurance athletes need protein, there's no doubt about it. If you're worried that you can't get enough quality protein on a vegan diet, don't be. On this particular day I consumed approximately 73.9 grams of protein. The daily recommendation for an average woman is 46 grams, for a man 56 grams.

Activity for the week:

Friday - Two hours of doubles tennis, upper body strength training, two mile walk with the dogs.

Saturday - 14 mile run, two mile walk with the dogs.

Sunday - 1 and 1/2 hour doubles tennis match, three mile dog walk.

Monday - 2 hours of doubles tennis, 6 mile run, 1 mile dog walk,  1 and 1/2 hour singles tennis match.

Tuesday - 4.6 mile run and a 2 mile dog walk.

Wednesday - 2 hours of doubles tennis and lower body strength training. 2 mile dog walk.

Thursday - 6.5 mile run and a 2 mile dog walk.

Friday - 2 mile dog walk and interval training.

Total miles run: 31.1 miles

Total miles walked: 16 miles

Total hours of tennis: 7 hours

Tomorrow I have another fourteen mile run to complete and I'm not nearly as nervous as last week. Every day is different so I won't have the same run as I did last weekend, that's okay As long as I know that I did my best to prepare my body for it, I'll be happy with whatever happens.

Have a fabulous weekend! I'm leaving you with sweet pictures of Gizmo and Coco. Sunday was Gizmo's 11th birthday so we took him to Ft. Sheridan beach for a long walk on the beautiful paths. They had so much fun sniffing all of the new smells. 🙂

Happiness is a long walk and a cozy car ride home.

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