“doing the little things” by camille herron, m.s., b.s. exercise and sport science 2:37...

“Doing the Little Things”

By Camille Herron, M.S., B.S. Exercise and Sport Science

2:37 marathoner and 2-time Olympic Trials qualifier

A typical day of eating and running

• 120-150+ miles per week, 4,000-5,000 calories/day

• Eat 5-7x a day, hydrating with mix of fluids

• 8-9am: Whole wheat/whole grain toast with natural crunchy peanut butter and natural jam, banana, and Nescafe Classico instant coffee with milk and lots of sugar– when I travel to races, I substitute the

toast with a Powerbar Harvest energy bar

 • 10-12pm: Run (sometimes later,

depending on when I get up)  

A typical day of eating and running

• 12-1pm: Post-run (<30 min. after) is some combo of porridge (chia seeds, homeground flax seed, wheat germ, walnuts, honey, pinch of salt), Powerbar, orange juice with liquid iron and B vitamin supplement, water, Gatorade, and/or 8 oz. of chocolate soy milk – fruit smoothie after hard workouts– MAGIC

BULLET

•  1-2pm: Lunch is usually leftovers from the night; or I’ll do a potato/sweet potato or brown rice with black beans, butter, ranch dressing, and sardines, tomato, half an avocado; pickles; or, scrambled eggs with cheese; or,bacon sandwich with avocado; orange or apple; nuts; few dates.

• 3-5pm: Nap

A typical day of eating and running

• 5:30pm: ½ a bagel with Nutella, pieces of chocolate, tea with milk and lots of sugar

  • 6-7pm: Second run, followed by OJ with liquid iron (few

times a week), may eat some nuts or chips with salsa

• 7-8pm: Weights twice a week (and sometimes I do the run before weights)

•  • 8-9pm: Dinner- Some sort of meat (love our George

Foreman!) pasta/rice/potatoes with real butter, 2-3 veggies, black beans (if we’re eating rice or potatoes), and home brewed beer.  

• 11pm: Ice cream with chocolate syrup or a piece of fruit

• 11-12pm: Go to bed

Fueling/hydration before a marathon• Want to consume low-fiber, simple

sugars– Soda/Coke– Candy– Juice instead of fruit– White rice/bread/pasta (instead of

whole grain)– Fast food– good balance of

fat/simple sugars/salt• Store up more glycogen because won’t

feel as “full”• Drink mix of fluids (need more sodium

if a race is hot)

Pre-Race Breakfast

• Light/easily digested/familiar to gut

• Energy bar, fruit, toast (PB and jam), cereal, oatmeal

• Water/Gatorade/Coffee• Need 50g of CHO per hour leading

up to workout/race • I take in ~75g of CHO 90 min. before a

race– Powerbar Harvest bar, banana, coffee with milk and sugar, Gatorade)

Fueling during the race

• Rule of thumb is you need 30-60g of carbohydrates per hour– Mix of fluids/CHO

solutions/gels/other– Personal preference– Takes practice– If you’re a good fat

metabolizer, can get away with taking in less

Hydration during the race• During the race/workout:

– Lose 2% of body weight =performance starts to suffer

– There’s a formula for determining sweat rate to determine fluid intake; however, gastric emptying rate may lag behind

– Research shows most can do fine with ~16 fluid ounces/hour (Powerbar.com says 13-26 oz., depending on individual needs/conditions)

– You liberate water when you break down glycogen (~Carbo-hydrate)

– Drink as needed

Recommended Supplements

• Multivitamin• Calcium Citrate (esp. if lactose

intolerant)• Vit. D3 (very crucial in winter)• Iron pills or liquid iron in OJ (take

at different time than calcium)• Super B Complex (~B-12)• Fish oil

Shoes

•Wear what is most comfortable to you

•Every shoe has it’s own idiosyncrasies

•Rotate various shoes

•Break in your race shoes in training– get legs and feet used to them (strides, workouts)

•Get new shoes when you start to feel “niggles” in your body

Sleep

• You need at least 7-8 hours!

• Your body produces Growth Hormone, to repair and rebuild your body– Reason why elites take naps = MORE

GROWTH HORMONE!

• Not getting enough sleep…. Body will breakdown over time.

Injuries

• Check out my website: www.camilleherron.com

• Know the difference between pain and soreness

• Most little things you can train through, if you back off/run easy…. Make a change (shoes, socks, easy running, more sleep/calories)!

• Body likes to move and be consistent!

Injury prevention/treatment

Bottom line is: low-level mechanical stress heals

• Easy running/walking/cross training• Light barefoot running on smooth grass• Do not take NSAIDs– hinder tissue

recovery/healing• Massage• Ultrasound device or bone stimulator• The Stick and/or foam rolling• Icing/ice baths only help pain and not tissue

recovery…. UNLESS, there’s a mechanical component involved, ~ice cupping

• Compression garments (after run/race)

Conclusion

runcamille@yahoo.com

www.camilleherron.com

Questions?