Favorite Pre and Post-Race Meals, Whats Your Fuel!
Congratulations to the four winners of the Montrial-Trail Run Times “My First Ultra” contests, definitely check out the great recaps by David, Lisa, Thomas, and Trisha! So what is the the subject of the contest for week 3? FOOD! If you are like me, a post-run feast is probably something you talk about more than anything else while out logging long miles. If you ever find yourself on a long run with friends Devon Crosby-Helms and Nathan Yanko then you are really in for it as they are both trained chefs!
So what do the Pro’s eat before and after a big race? Several members of Team Montrail were kind enough to share their favorite pre and post-race meals. The responses are as varied as the Montrail Pro’s themselves and are as equally entertaining as the characters of the runners that make up the team. (check out the Montrail team blog for proof)
Bev Anderson-Abbs: Pre-race – the night prior I will have either pasta with just a little sauce for flavor or white rice with some chicken or egg mixed in. Kind of boring, I know, but my system is pretty sensitive and anything spicy or acidic will not be good during the race. The morning of, a plain bagel with peanut butter and/or Ensure. Post-race – after shorter races (50k/50mile) pizza or pasta of some kind, this time with sauce, chicken, and veggies. After longer races, especially 100 milers – scrambled eggs.
Annette Bednosky: A preferred Pre-Race evening meal – Veggie sandwich, a small bowl of chicken noodle soup and 2 glasses of red wine. Usually I am eating in a campsite or at a motel heating food on a camp stove or in my room. I have a collapsible wine glass I use for travel. If it is a 100 miler, I try to regulate my system and eat the same thing for supper all week long! Preferred Post-Race Meal – A cold beer as an appetizer and then grilled chicken and grilled veggies, bread or potatoes. Generous amounts of red wine and good companionship! (check out Annette’s blog)
Francesca Conte: Pre-Race – Toast with “Nutella”. If you don’t know what Nutella is, you have been missing the boat! As an awesome European invention, I basically grew up on this stuff. It’s hazelnut butter mixed with chocolate. I put it on toast, bagels, bars… The more the merrier. Immediately Post-Race – lasagna, pasta, or chicken soup always sounds the best. The day following the race I’ll get the fattest piece of meat available, which usually ends up being a rib-eye. Nothing like gristle after a race!
Eric Grossman: Pre-Race – I gotta be healthy at this point. I go with plain whole yogurt with peeled apple sections and walnuts. Post-Race – I’m not thinking healthy at this point; I’m thinking greasy, filling, fattening, high calories: a burger, fries, and a Coke.
Matt Hart: Pre-Race – Quinoa with chicken and mass veggies. Post-Race – A recovery drink first. Then fruit and some salmon with veggies. (check out Matt’s site and blog)
Sean Meissner: The night before a race – if I’m somewhere I can cook, it’s usually pasta with a little butter and cheese, and I drink lots of nuun. Usually I’m out camping before a race and often don’t take a stove, so I’ve had more Spicy Italian Subway sandwiches the night before races than I can count; and lots of nuun with the sandwich, too. Race morning – pb&j sandwich, banana (if I can choke it down), and more nuun. Post-race – immediately after, either Clif Vanilla recovery drink or Ultragen Tropical Punch recovery drink. Then it’s time for the fat, salt, and protein. My favorite is cheese fries with lots of salt! And if I’ve been “Mr. Pukey” for much of the race, a couple pieces of KFC extra crunchy really helps soothe the stomach. Yes, it sounds totally disgusting, but it works. (check out Sean’s blog)
Terri Schneider: The night before – pasta with sauce, chicken – eaten late afternoon. Bland, boring and I usually have to make myself eat it. The morning of a race: a bagel w/ butter usually chewed while driving to the race. I don’t usually want it so it will get carried around in my teeth for a while. Post-race – I eat what I crave, so a tough call on picking just one thing. Most likely I’ll cover 2 of the most important post-race food groups – salt and fat. The other ultra running food group – sugar – is avoided at all cost post race (unless it comes in the form of beer or wine). In a 100 miler I most certainly have OD’ed on sugar. (check out Terri’s site and blog)
Erik Skaden: Both pre-race and post-race a favorite meal for me is steak medium well. On the side, corn, mashed potatoes, and a side salad.
Joelle Vaught: The night before a race I always have pizza. It seems like the best combination of carbs/protein/fat to get me fueled! It usually has chicken, sundried tomatoes, mushrooms, maybe spinach. The morning prior to the race I prefer a banana and usually a big poppyseed muffin (Costco!) After a race I usually crave pasta, or nachos often sound great, I guess it is because of all the salt!
So … what is YOUR Fuel? What is your go-to meal the night or morning before a race, and what do you crave afterwards? Leave a comment with your favorite pre and post-race meals and we will draw a lucky male and female winner to each receive a pair of Montrail sandals! Nothing like kicking back, letting the dogs breathe in a pair of Molokai or Maka Slides (pictured below) while grubbing on a big post-race feast right!? Leave your responses by 11:59 PM Pacific on Sunday, August 23. Larissa and I will draw a male and female winner at random on Monday as soon as we get back from having some fun up in Oregon running the Where’s Waldo 100k, race #1 of the 2009-2010 Montrail Ultra Cup. So to sum it up, share your favorite pre and post-race fuel, win sandals — good luck!*
Molokai Slides or Flips up for grabs for the guys
Maka Slides, Molokinis, or Panas up for grabs for the ladies
*if we ever run together, you are required to make this meal post-run. Ok, I’m joking, its my appetite talking 
I’m a cook/eater before a runner, however, I like to keep it simple.
Night before – Pasta without heavy sauce. Usually penne with a simple sauce or puntanesca.
Morning of – Bagel, toasted with fresh ground peanut butter or Nutella, a gel right before.
Post Race – Dry bagel, followed by a lunch of all you can eat Brazilian Churrascaria in particular Churrascaria Plataforma in NYC!! Nothing like a table of athletes at an all you can eat meat place!! Or…like some others, I’m not thinking healthy and fast food it (KFC!)
The night before: A good chicago style pizza…by far my favorite and most common. If I am in the SF Bay Area it has to be Zachary’s.
The morning of: A couple of bananas and the first gel of the day.
After the race: The first thing I usually have is a couple of chocolate milks. After that, I am not picky at all…pretty much anything I can get my hands on. Usually something pretty fatty that I do not normally eat.
Night Before: Indian food if I can find it: Roti (whole wheat tandoori bread), saffron rice and Lamb Rogan Josh with some Kheer (rice pudding) for desert. Definitely NO vindaloo!!
Breakfast: Toast with hummus, a banana and a high-protein ensure. As the race gets closer, I start with the Clif Shots and gels…
Post Race: Cottage cheese and watered-down Gatorade immediately after, then all bets are off – a 1/2 lb burger with sweet potato fries and a vanilla milkshake usually hits the spot.
The day before the race, I ALWAYS have a soy latte, from Starbucks, if I can find one. (Superstition, for sure!) The night before I’m all about skinless, grilled chicken breast with steamed rice. I go easy on the veggies because they cause me to spend too much time in the bushes on race day.
The morning of, I like a whole wheat bagel with peanut butter. (Sometimes I’ll substitute it with a ZonePerfect bar.) Wash ‘em down with lots of water.
After the race, I love a hamburger with lots of ketchup (salt, baby!) The red meat helps keep my anemia in check. For races longer than a marathon, I give myself a “free eat” day the following day, where I can indulge in chocolate, white carbs, or whatever I please. Then it’s back to healthy eating until the next race!
This is a great topic! My absolute favorite pre-race food for the night before is my wife’s pasta (shrimp, jalapenos, chopped tomato, and basil), most ingredients coming from our garden. Morning of, I always have a bagel with chunky peanut butter and a large cup of steaming coffee.
Post race, no question. It’s pizza, if I can get it from Beau Jo’s here in CO then it’s even better. I’ll get the 5 pound Skier Mike’s! Couple that with a fine pale ale and consider it all the race reward I need!
Argh, you would have to ask this question the day after I started my diet!
I usually carb load for 2 days before with a box of Wheat Thins per day along with Cytomax pre-formance meal replacement drink. I like the Wild Berry flavor, but it tastes nothing like berry to me… It is the taste of ritual and success, however. My favorite pre-race dinner is pizza (fat, more fat, protein and carbs…), before 6:00 pm. In the morning it’s either oatmeal or pancakes (I have a feeling that I perform better on oatmeal…) and more Cyto pre-formance. On the way to the course, I take Succeed pre-race supplement:
http://www.succeedscaps.com/main_prerace.html I love Succeed stuff, everything I’ve tried works amazingly well for me!
After my lightning slow finish, I usually prefer chocolate milk (good mix of fat, protein and carbs…) right away, along with a bowl of PCTR Chili and a Coke to refuel. Later that night, I head out for a greasy cheese steak sandwich with garlic fries to reward.
Thanks again, Brett! I’m not going to be able to enjoy my post race meal until my next race… In October!
All Day!
~Ken
P.s. If I’m ever fast enough to keep up with you, I would be more than happy to buy cheese steaks and garlic fries!
Night before, especially a 100 or 24-hour: Extra cheese pizza with lots of salt and a quart of some cheap beer like Bud Light Lime.
Post-race yum: A chocolate shake and some kind of greasy fast-food egg-and-cheese biscuit. mmmmmm!
The night before, I’m not super picky. I avoid ice cream and alcohol (both of which can give me stomach aches when running) or tons of grease or cheese. Other than that, I’ve done everything from Ethiopian to sushi to Thai peanut chicken.
Day of: This is the only meal I’m particular about, because it’s soon enough before I run to really matter. I always do a banana, and then either a PB&J sandwich or oatmeal.
After: Whatever I feel like! If it’s a really long run, I often really crave protein, like cheese filled tortellini or a hamburger. I almost never eat red meat, but I definitely get in the mood after a long run.
I like pizza with lots of veggies or some nice pasta the night before a big run. I usually chase it with a couple of light beers and plenty of water. In the morning I’ll drink a gatorade and eat a banana and bagel with PB and J.
My carb loading starts 3 days prior to the race. Carb loading the night before leaves me to full to run a proper race. My favorite meal is Red Beans & Rice with a salad on the side. The night before, more like for lunch…more carbs, a baked potato, pasta or more rice. a light dinner, and a good night sleep. During the race If I’m running 26.2 or less I’ll stick to Heed and gels. If I’m running 50K or more Heed, bananas, oranges, and a homemade energy bar that I created. After the race I want a big glass full of frozen fruit and a scoop of protein powder.
Hmmm… Pre-race for me, really just about anything that is minimal on spice, however if it is a local race then I like to walk down to Golden Boy Pizza here in North Beach in San Francisco for a slice or two of their killer zaaaaaaa! Morning of, toasted crumpets from Tea & Crumpets (thanks Jenna and Victor for the insights) and some sports drink. Post-race.. watermelon right away if its hot, and after an hour or so I absolutely crave eggs.
So I just drew the winners out of a hat (drumroll…) Congrats to Lori Heinselman-Craig and Chef Bill Bailey, you each won a pair of Montrail sandals!
Before running, I prefer a grapefruit with lettuce or celery, all blended. After running, I like bananas, preferably blended so that I can eat enough carbohidrates, as well as the protein in the bananas.
I love to make banana/oatmeal/protein pancakes or a nice strawbery/banana/oatmeal protein shake about 45 min before I start my race. I snack on mashed up sweet potato chunks and pre-made oatmeal/protein pancakes while I run. I feel fabulous and recover better than anyone I know who uses those sugary supplements.