Carb loading is so yesterday
Have you as a vivid workout enthusiast or endurance athlete ever suffered from plantar fasciitis?
If so can you think back to what your diet was like or is currently like, in and around the time you had pain through your feet?
Studies show that the increased carb loading that workout enthusiasts were consuming added up to a heck of a lot of sugar. (Sugar is being studied by thousands of people each day on the effects that it has on our bodies and nervous system).
Sugar causes inflammation within our body and the increased complex carbohydrates breaks down into sugar, so therefore contributes to the inflammation in our bodies. Being a runner and always placing wear and tear on our feet, our amazing body is telling us that we have too much inflammation in and around our feet, showing signs of plantar fasciitis. However this could be a huge signal that from all the added carbohydrates we’ve been told to increase, has converted to sugar and therefore caused inflammation in the part of the body we keep placing loads of pressure on – our feet.
As an endurance athlete, the sugar will no doubt get used, if your are training for over 4 hours, but for those tackling fun runs, or sports activities under a 2 hour time frame, you must question how much carb loading you need.
You should be fueling your body with protein and good fats. Good fats lubricate the joints and protect them; carbohydrates (carb-o-HYDRATES) dry out the body (just remember what the word is made up of).
An example is having a bowl of pasta the night before. The amount of pasta in a restaurant (and home) can equal up to 3 cups of pasta.
3 cups pasta = 100gm carbohydrates (100gm carbs is a full daily requirement)
100gm carbohydrates divided by 4 = 25 teaspoons of sugar!!!!
On top of that disgusting amount of sugar (that’s only one PART of your meal), you are having this at night making your insulin levels go up, you therefore make blood sugar levels peak, then when they crash down again during the middle of the night, you wake, restless, on top of adrenaline you can’t go back to sleep, therefore not getting good rest before your race!
I hope you’ve just had an ‘a-ha’ moment and think about the meal choice next “event eve”.
My tip – go for Atlantic salmon and vegetables with some grass fed butter! Post race a protein shake.
Good luck..
Disclaimer – I am not a medical doctor and the information I give is based on research available, if you have any concerns about your health please see a medical practitioner or naturopath regarding your symptoms.
Cheers here’s to good health,
Kerrie Fatone
– professional Health and Fitness Coach
