Three winning recipes for runners
Beet-filled treat, cupcakes and hearty pasta dish are great fuel for racers
A dense, dark, delicious chocolate cake that could actually improve your athletic performance? It sounds too good to be true, but Ottawa athlete and nutrition expert Sheila Kealey says there’s science to back it up.
Here, we offer three winning recipes for runners, each developed and road-tested by an actual athlete.
Kealey’s cake recipe contains no added fats — zero butter or oil — but it is loaded up with a secret ingredient: beets. Beets are rich in nitrates, which new studies show allow your muscles to perform the same amount of work while using less oxygen.
“The science that nitrates improve heart health is quite robust,” says Kealey, who has a masters in public health. “The science that they improve athletic performance is also looking promising.”
Beets aren’t the only source of nitrates — rhubarb, leafy greens such as arugula, and even basil are all good — but so far, most of the research has been done with beets. Cyclists who drank beet juice could ride 16 per cent longer. Runners who ate baked beets before doing a 5K ran faster — and significantly faster near the end of the race, when athletes might normally succumb to fatigue.
Kealey, 50 and a national champion cross-country skier, hopes to do the 5K on Race Weekend in less than 20 minutes. She says her cake would be great to eat in the days before a race to make your muscles more efficient, but also after, to celebrate and help replenish and refuel.
Heather Trim, the recipe creator behind the 2015 Milk Calendar, is also an athlete — a cyclist and marathoner who plans to do the Sporting Life 10K in Toronto next month. She says several recipes in the calendar were inspired by her pre- or post-run snacks.
“About 45 minutes before I started a marathon, I’d have my espresso latte and I’d take a banana and smear it with Nutella and peanut butter. That’s exactly why I came up with the Chocolate-Hazelnut-Swirled Banana Muffins.”
Ottawa Olympic pentathlete Melanie McCann worked with Brian Vallipuram, chef at the Lord Elgin Hotel, to develop a quick, nutrition-rich dinner recipe for a free online cookbook (find it at catelli.ca) that features athletes’ tips.
McCann — whose event includes swimming, riding, fencing and shooting as well as running — says pasta provides a great base of carbohydrates for energy, while protein in the chicken helps muscles recover and the vegetables are important for vitamins, minerals and fibre.
Pentathlete Melanie McCann, who runs five times and swims six times a week, says she chose the ingredients for this dish because they are readily available at any grocery store.
“I love the fact that this dish is nutritious and quick to whip up after a long day of training,” says McCann, 25.
“My favourite part is that it will still taste great as a leftover for lunch on the go the next day.”
Makes: 4 servings Preparation time: about 30 minutes
Four 5-oz (140g) chicken breasts 2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste 1 package (375 g) Catelli Smart (extra fibre) fusilli 1/2 cup (125 mL) diced onions 4 cloves garlic, minced 1 cup (250 mL) cherry tomatoes 1 cup (250 mL) baby spinach 4 tbsp (60 mL) sun-dried tomatoes, julienned 4 tbsp (60 mL) basil leaves, julienned 1 cup (250 mL) shredded aged cheddar
1. Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C). 2. Toss chicken in 1 tbsp (15 mL) of the olive oil with salt and pepper. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.
3. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions.
4. While pasta is cooking, in a large, non-stick, heavy-bottom fry pan over medium-high heat, sauté onions and garlic in remaining 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil for 2 minutes.
5. Reduce heat to medium. Add tomatoes and sauté for an additional 2 minutes.
6. Strain hot water off pasta in a colander. Do not rinse. Add pasta to the mixture in the fry pan.
7. Stir in spinach, sun-dried tomatoes and basil. Add salt and pepper to taste.
8. Serve in a pasta bowl. Slice chicken and place on top of pasta. Add shredded cheese and serve.