NY Post exclusive: Multiple women claim marathon training made them fat

ComeOnMan wrote:

I just posted about this (see the "Fatties..." thread).

I've been refreshing every ten seconds and NO ONE has replied to my thread. How did you scoop me this way? My thread was way more explicitly hostile and thereby delightful...

. The key to a thread is the title.I just posted the other responses from your thread in this one and deleted the other thread.

most guys on here have the skinnyfat physique. Never going to get any girls with that. Hit the gym and lift. You don't want to be a scrawny little runt

Not major weight, but definitely noticed a shift in body composition and weight when marathon training versus 5000/10000 training.

During four years of college xc and track, weight was between 139-142 with 4-5% body fat (calipers twice per year). Mileage between 60-80/week consistently depending on season.

During three years of marathon training, weight hovered between 142-145 with 6-7% body fat. Mileage 90-110+.

I could see hormones causing a physiological shift favoring fat storage and weight gain during periods of aerobic volume. Couple that with craving huge amounts of carbs, and there you go. I'd say it's plausible.

I'll add a little anecdotal but personal story to the mix.

I ran in college and was a XC/10k/5k guy. I am pretty thin and have never had issues putting on excess weight, even in lower mileage times (work, kids, etc.) My wife is also think and pretty fast, to boot. She ran in college, too, but she was a XC/1,500/5k runner.

I immediately started running marathons after college while she stopped racing and just ran. After a while, she started doing other forms of working out (elliptical, yoga, barre classes, etc.). She actually lost weight after she started doing other forms of working out. She got leaner and less muscular, especially in the legs.

So fast forward a few years and we are married. She decides that she wants to run Boston with me, so she needs to train for a BQ. So she starts running more and we both go and race a marathon. She runs an easy 3:34 and qualifies for Boston the following year. She steps up training and probably maxes out at like 70 mpw leading up to Boston. She runs under 3:30 at Boston but over the entire 18-month process gains about 10-15 pounds.

After Boston, she goes back to her normal workout routine and the weight comes off. She was very aware of it at the time and she never looked bad, but it was something we discussed because it was so odd.

With regard to food, we didn't really do anything differently. This was before kids, so we had a pretty set routine and it wasn't like she was sneaking burgers or something. Yeah, calorie intake probably went up with the harder workouts but nothing crazy.

I cannot see this happening to me, but maybe it is specific to women?

LULz wrote:

Reminds me of this woman I know who decided to "run" a marathon. (5 hours or whatever.)

Hal Higdon Novice plan. Day 2 or 3, she hasn't even done a "long" run yet and posts something like this to FB: "Wow, I can't believe how hungry I am! Marathon training makes me STARVING! #cupcakes"

Yup, doing a 4 mile jog and then binging on cupcakes will make you fat. No fvcking sh!t.

I think I have the same issue with beer, no matter how long or hard the run.

Still not fat, lean IQ, hate joggers.

Can someone confirm that 27798 is a charity bib? I have no idea how she would have got into Boston otherwise. She finished Boston in 5:36:51.

Her Strava training log is pretty telling as well:

https://www.strava.com/athletes/12162815

Go for it bro wrote:

These are the types where the main goal is just to finish the marathon, which equals a 10k of jogging/walking, and then 20 miles of walking.

Not always. I know some pretty fit ladies who are a part of the running scene who talk about avoiding the weight gain during marathon training. It obviously depends on the individual. I didn't read the OP's article, so maybe they are all the couch-to-26.2 types.

articles like this are irritating. It more accurately could have been titled, "poor eating choices made me fat." The training itself didn't make them fat. Even in the article it states how the one woman was also dealing with the stress of grad school. I bet if she hadn't been running she probably would have gained even MORE weight. And the other woman talks about eating and drinking sugary crap. No more Gatorade, people. I can understand maybe 5-10lb weight gain but beyond that and other areas of your life are clearly contributing.

They're not training to run a marathon. They're training to hobby jog / walk a marathon.

Nobody will tell them this.

If you gain 15 to 30 lbs while training for a marathon, then you are doing it wrong.

Training increases the output side of the calorie equation. If you increase inputs (eating and drinking) more than you increase the outputs, then you will gain weight. Obviously it's not a simple 1:1 correspondence, but balancing inputs and outputs is generally what governs weight gain.

Personally, I have lost weight from marathon training without trying or wanting to because my appetite didn't match my miles. If you are the opposite, then you need to show some common sense about not eating all the time, especially if you are not actually putting in a ton of miles, which is the case with lots of casual marathon runners. Running 40 mpw will not turn you into a calorie burning machine like Michael Phelps.

I couldn't find the first woman referenced in the article in the 2014 NYC results. We need to get Derek on this!

storing fat and glycogen is a natural response to an activity that needs fat and glycogen

Lurker wrote:

I couldn't find the first woman referenced in the article in the 2014 NYC results. We need to get Derek on this!

Guy With Wife wrote:

I cannot see this happening to me, but maybe it is specific to women?

Look at the pictures of the women in the article. They are not just getting a lot of extra muscle on their legs. I could see someone bulking up with leg muscle from running a lot compared to putting minimal demands on their legs (not 15 lbs worth, but a few). But the women in the article would be derided by Mr. Trump for how they gained weight and are not just bulking up on their legs.

Guy With Wife wrote:

I cannot see this happening to me, but maybe it is specific to women?

I used to be fast, now I'm old and slow, but I still run 60-70 mpw when not injured. When all I'm doing is running and a little strength work in the gym, I have to be careful about what I eat to avoid gaining weight. I don't starve but I certainly can't eat "everything I want" just because I'm running moderately high mileage.

Oddly, when I get injured and have to substitute cycling for running, I always lose a little weight. I don't think that I'm eating any less, but I do spend more time cycling than running, and even though the cycling feels less strenuous, apparently 2.5 hours of cycling burns more calories than 1.5 hours of running.

I agree that these women mainly have a problem with what they eat, but the idea that running more can make you gain weight is not completely ridiculous from my experience.

Guy With Wife wrote:

With regard to food, we didn't really do anything differently. This was before kids, so we had a pretty set routine and it wasn't like she was sneaking burgers or something. Yeah, calorie intake probably went up with the harder workouts but nothing crazy.

Unless you actually have numbers, you have no idea if this is true or not.

xcrunner6 wrote:

Ahem wrote:

"I'm training for a marathon - I can eat anything I want!"

No. No you can't.

If i run 100 miles a week I can. and do.

In your case, training made you a skinny weakling.

kikKomen Soi sauce wrote:

It's not marathon training that's making them fat, it's marathon eating.

Exactly.

Such a foolish, shallow thread, article, and moronic hobby joggers in the article.

Extra calories (many empty) make you fat, exercise makes you fit. There is a grey area at the intersection of the two circles on this venn diagram. In general, people tend to be illogical and irrational