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04 · Training days

Marathon Fueling

A base Mediterranean plate that's right for a rest day is under-fueled for a long run and over-fueled for a light one. Same meals, same recipes — this page is just how to scale the grain portion against your weekly training structure.

DayTrainingCarb adjustment
SundayOTFStandard portions from Breakfast / Lunch / Dinner
MondayRestTrim grain portions ~⅓; lean toward the lighter options (tofu braise, shrimp & white bean stew, avocado toast)
TuesdaySpin + backStandard portions
WednesdayEasy run + chestStandard portions; overnight oats if the run is first thing
ThursdayLegs + shouldersStandard to slightly higher protein (egg scramble, pesto chicken bowl)
FridayArms + absStandard portions
SaturdayLong runSee below — this is the day to scale up

The night before a long run

Make it the Whole-Wheat Pasta with Pesto, Grilled Chicken & Cherry Tomatoes from the dinner list, and go up to 3oz dry pasta instead of 2oz. Pasta is already one of your most reliable pre-long-run dinners historically — this just keeps it in the Mediterranean framework instead of reverting to a heavier, higher-sodium version.

Before the run

If the long run is early, a smaller version of the overnight oats (or just a banana with a spoon of yogurt) 60–90 minutes out beats a full bowl. Save the full Greek yogurt bowl for after.

During, 10+ miles

This is the one place added sugar and higher sodium are the right call — gels, chews, or a sports drink. Don't apply the rest-of-week sodium caution to fueling mid-run; sweat losses in Dallas heat change the math entirely.

Within 60 minutes after

The full Greek Yogurt, Granola & Blueberry Bowl works well here regardless of time of day — roughly a 1:3 protein-to-carb ratio that fits the post-long-run recovery window.

Long-run dinner

Sheet-Pan Greek Chicken with potatoes, or the beef & lentil skillet with an extra half-cup of lentils — replace what the run burned rather than restricting.

Race week (late November)

Standard taper logic applies inside this framework: keep protein and vegetables where they are, increase the grain portion in each dinner over the final 3 days, and go easier on legumes and cruciferous vegetables (lentils, broccoli, chickpeas) in the 48 hours before race day if you're prone to GI issues — swap them for rice, potatoes, and lower-fiber sides during that window only.

Worth tracking against your CGM

Since you're already logging glucose with Lingo, the useful experiment is comparing your response to the pre-run oats versus a gel-only start, and comparing post-long-run recovery meals against post-OTF ones. That's the "personalized diet from CGM data" idea from Super Agers in practice — the plan on this site is the starting hypothesis, your CGM data is what actually confirms or adjusts it over the next few weeks.