The pros diets include pizza, gummies, candy.... Nick Willis: "We eat a lot less healthy than everyone thinks we do."

Cathy loves to run 13 wrote:

Pizza is still unhealthy and tastes disgusting:

The bread is white and has all sorts of chemicals like dough conditioner

Tomato sauce is so yucky and unhealthy. My brother eats it everyday like it's a 6th food group. I'm surprised we came from the same parents!

The meat is probably deep fried and I tasted a pepporonni. It tasted unhealthy.

Pizza is unhealthy OK!

You must be eating crappy pizza. Like with a lot of other foods, pizza can be made with quality ingredients, not chemicals. I ran a marathon PR and half marathon PR after eating (quality) pizza the nights before.

Pizza is like burgers. Sure you can have a homemade hamburger or pizza and it will be perfectly good for you.

But you can also go to McDonald’s or pizza hut and have a burger or pizza and it will be terrible for you.

When people refer to pizza being bad for you, they are referring to fast food kind.

bill rodgers spoonfuls of mayonnaise wrote:

Reminds me of Bill Rodgers autobiography talking about eating spoonfuls of mayonnaise right out of the jar.

He also used to eat cold pizza leftovers after a long run.

YMMV wrote:

In the late '70s, the best runner of all was setting WRs every few weeks while drinking heavily. Nutrition advice from pro runners is like getting financial advice from bank robbers.

Henry Rono, the "jiggy" belly guy

Steak does the body good. wrote:

YMMV wrote:

In the late '70s, the best runner of all was setting WRs every few weeks while drinking heavily. Nutrition advice from pro runners is like getting financial advice from bank robbers.

What about Zach Bitter? Do you agree with his diet advice?

Sure, for what he is trying to accomplish (I don't run ultras).

One out of 100 bank robbers actually probably know how to invest properly. But if you yourself have no clue you will not be able to pick him out of the mob.

"(at the southwest corner of Central Park, not far from where she ran past me last November about 1/4-mile from the finish of the NYC Marathon - really, I'm not a stalker)"

All those juicy details and you are not a stalker...yeah...right.

YMMV wrote:

Steak does the body good. wrote:

What about Zach Bitter? Do you agree with his diet advice?

Sure, for what he is trying to accomplish (I don't run ultras).

One out of 100 bank robbers actually probably know how to invest properly. But if you yourself have no clue you will not be able to pick him out of the mob.

I'm not strict keto right now (currently most of my carbs come from dairy products like kefir, cheese and yogurt. Not much carbs either for how much run it is usually only 200g or so a day). Anyways, what are your thoughts on a runner only eating as many carbs as they burn running per day from exercise? For example, if I burn 800 calories a day from running. And, only eat 200g of carbs per day? My second question, what are your thoughts on the carnivore diet? Third and final question, what is your typical day like as far as food?

First of all, I should emphasize is that diet as an athlete is a personal journey where your own observations (on health, pace, race performance, etc) take first place. That said, I think there are enough basic commonalities among most athletes to establish a common launching place.

Keep in mind that "keto" is not an all-or-nothing state for most people who go in that direction. What has been profound for me this year is the realization that our best state is to go in and out of ketosis on roughly a daily basis (thanks to intermittent fasting of at least 14-16 hours/day, more if convenient). When you are in ketosis you are in catabolic rest/repair mode. This is critical to your health and your training.

On the other hand, your feeding "window" is where you are providing the materials and anabolic stimulus for growth and expansion (primarily from insulin response). Here is where the tradeoff between dietary content and timing comes into play.

Assuming you already have metabolic flexibility (have been in ketosis on a regular basis), then in theory you could eat an amount of carbs that would nearly replace that which you expend in exercise. You and I are both similar in expending about 800 kcal/day. My carb intake is about 100-130g/day, any more is assimilated from fat consumption. At 200g/day, you are risking not keeping metabolic flexibility, since the carbs are coming in to replace all the expenditure. I think that ratcheting down closer to 100g will be beneficial, since the goal is to minimize insulin output and maximize recovery.

The key element here is timing: the feeding window. Mine is 2-4 hours/day. After digestion, this gives about 10-12 hours/day during which I am in ketosis, and autophagy (cellular clean-up) is in place. If you are eating in say, a window of 8-12 hours, with 200g carbs, then you are close to "break-even" and will have minimum benefit from ketosis and autophagy.

In summary, right now, running 40-50 miles/week with workouts, I feel well-optimized with the following carb intake: 1-3 pieces of fruit, a salad of some sort (low net carbs), about 1-2 cups of nuts (almonds, pistachio, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds), and 1/2 cup of berries. If I have a hard anaerobic session coming up, I might sub in a cup of white rice or a sweet potatoe for the fruit to ensure topped-off muscle glycogen. Aside from this, I have an entree of meat and/or fish, and/or eggs plus high fat condiments in the form of cream, cheese, bacon coconut oil, or Kerrygold butter. Also cacao chocolate fairly often. During the day I take tea with cream and stevia, ACV and "snake juice" which is salted water for electrolytes.

All of this has to dovetail with your work, social obligations and training. Fortunately, I have built a lifestyle that optimizes performance and health, and those around me support it for the most part.

Thank you for your insights.

Former D1 sprinter, A-A. High-20, High-45.

Ate like crap. Barely any vegetables. Lots of fast food, and the cooking of my fraternity's chef, who used to cook in the Army. 2-3 sodas per day, tons of frat parties on the weekend. My house had a lot of the football players in it, so it got crazy. Would have been 250 pounds if it weren't for the workouts and my metabolism.

Coach didn't get involved in our personal lives. As long as we showed up to practice, hit our times, went to the weight room when we were supposed to, and stayed out of the police station, we were good.

Didn't remotely take nutrition seriously until recently, in my mid-30s. Definitely wonder what could have been, but wouldn't change it, either. Too much fun off the track.

boring storyteller wrote:

Former D1 sprinter, A-A. High-20, High-45.

Ate like crap. Barely any vegetables. Lots of fast food, and the cooking of my fraternity's chef, who used to cook in the Army. 2-3 sodas per day, tons of frat parties on the weekend. My house had a lot of the football players in it, so it got crazy. Would have been 250 pounds if it weren't for the workouts and my metabolism.

Coach didn't get involved in our personal lives. As long as we showed up to practice, hit our times, went to the weight room when we were supposed to, and stayed out of the police station, we were good.

Didn't remotely take nutrition seriously until recently, in my mid-30s. Definitely wonder what could have been, but wouldn't change it, either. Too much fun off the track.

Honestly, you probably came close to your potential anyway. What would kill you at 30 barely makes a dent when you are 20 and fully enabled genetically (not me, that's why I was a nutrition geek from the get-go). A great diet might have added a few years on the back end, but makes little difference up front.

It's like the dimepiece girls who can be dead drunk on Sunday morning and look like a million bucks on Monday morning.

The guy I would like to pick his brain on this topic is Bernard Lagat. Even if he is/was doped to the gills, he has had incredible longevity. He is doing something right.

I'm relatively young male (early 20s). Was vegan for almost 4 years. At first it was really great. Increase of energy and lost weight. First year like this, second year about the same, but the third year started to feel plain and sluggish. Lost my vigor. As my fourth year anniversary was approaching of being vegan. I remember watching the Zach Bitter podcast on Joe Rogan a few months ago and with his hundred miler he did a few weeks ago I said f-it. I'm going have a steak. And, I couldn't believe it. Ever since re-introducing meat, dairy and eggs back into my diet and dramatically reducing my carb. How much better I feel. Longer I was vegan, the harder it was to satisfy my appetite. It was almost impossible for me not to snack. I was also suffering from low blood sugar and low blood pressure, this has went away since adding back the meat, dairy and eggs. Now I can get by just eating twice a day with no snacking. My energy level throughout the day has gotten dramatically better. I'm no longer light headed. I no longer have to eat a boat load of carbs before I exercise. Can't believe it how I deprived myself of steak for almost four years.

Well, that's good to know.

The other thing that I'll mention is that if you don't have discipline off the track (like me!), you obviously have to be a warrior when it comes to things like practice and the weight room, and mentally tough during competition. I've seen a lot of people party their way off the team, but it wasn't because of the party, it was because of lazy practice habits, poor attitudes, and so on. To me that's the real potential killer. And that's also how I justified everything else - I knew Coach couldn't come down on me too hard if I ran every race like it was an Olympic final, practiced like a professional, and wasn't someone he needed to babysit.

That initial "boost" from getting away from a Standard American (Junk)Diet is very common and is the bait for the vegan cult. "Guzzle sugary rainbow smoothies and Save The Planet!" Once the inherent nutritional imbalance kicks in after six-12 months, the problems begin, and they are all chronic and insidious: skin, bowel, teeth, brain, muscle function all going off the rails. Hair falling out, anemia, runs that end in a stumbling, arthritic fog.

The cult says to "Be more pure, go more raw! Double down as your body detoxes!" It is just like drug pushers getting you to up the dosage. They have their own twisted agenda. Some of them are just in fear and denial, some are deranged, others straight up evil.

I went thirteen years without a burger or steak (although, as a mere vegetarian in the 70's when vegans were unheard of, I allowed myself a few eggs/week and made my own yogurt to stave off the inevitable).

At the end of that ordeal, my body was literally rotting from the inside out and I could see a hospital bed with my name on it, yet I had no money and I couldn't hold a job long enough to pay for it. Running was a distant, hazy dream of youth.

To be 29 years of age, male, with health far worse that your parents who are sedentary smokers in their late 60's...well, it's pretty bad is all I can say. 30 years hence, I feel it was all a gift to focus me on what is most important...your own real, solid health. Each day that I can run unfettered with pain or fatigue is a gift. That is most days now, thanks to not giving up and listening to those who found a way out of the prison of mistaken ideals. Every piece of animal that goes into my mouth is a gift for which I am eternally thankful, for they are giving me new life force and health. When I pass they will recycle what they need as well.

I am very glad you have found recovery. The veggie/vegan cult is as bad as any form of drug addiction or alcoholism. Keep educating yourself and you will achieve all that you have ever dreamed of.

Respect. You got the best out of your college experience. You had the right mindset for your situation. That is very rare.

Yes, now in retrospect I can't believe how crazy it was. It didn't really get bad externally, but internally I was suffering from anxiety, dark thoughts and paranoia. All of which has gone away since quitting Veganism. Also, my teeth feel healthier and stronger since quitting Veganism. They were thinning, now I believe I am reversing the damage I have done to them.

My diet is mostly vegan. Most vegans I know just eat the wrong food with no nutritional status and completely neglect getting the b vitamins they miss from meat. Chickpea, bean hummus, garlic and mushroom coconut wraps with nutritional yeast sprinkled on is my go to food and I am extremely healthy. I eat a lot of Lentil curries etc.

Darwin would say that we need mobility to acquire food, so that’s the most important thing. Having acquired it, we may have to eat what is available.

Also, we’re social animals, so you may have to share out the day’s harvest to have friends & family to eat with. Limited diets may limit your allies.