How to eat to race your best marathon

1 Begin carb-loading 3–4 days out from your marathon. 2 Increase your servings of carbohydrates by 3–6 extra servings a day. 3 Calculate your carbohydrate needs. Aim for 9–12 g of carbohydrates, per kilogram of body weight, per day. 4 Be mindful of fibre, yes the dreaded F word, unless you want to be well acquainted with the inside of a race porta-potty, make half of your carbohydraterich food choices lower in fibre. For example, eat white rice or white potatoes to prevent any race day emergencies. 5 Increase your water intake, there is no set amount. Think instead: pale pee equals PB (and dark pee equals the medical tent). Remember: being over-hydrated (clear pee) can also be problematic come race day. 6 Eat fewer veggies. Yes, you heard that right, you get a free pass to forget your leafy greens for a few days only leading up to race day, to help decrease fibre in the diet and make more room for carbohydrates. Now, this is not saying you shouldn’t eat any veggies, you should still have a few servings each day. After the marathon veggies should go back to making up half your plate. 7 Decrease protein intake slightly to three-quarters of your usual intake to allow for the diet to be richer in carbohydrates. 8 Consume foods like crackers, pretzels and fruits for snacks instead of nuts and cheese, as the latter are higher in fat, which will take up precious room in your stomach for our favourite food group: carbohydrates.