Nutrition and training

Since before my surgery all I heard was no or very very very little carbs. If I'm training for a marathon I know that this will have a major affect on my training and stamina. So, how do I approach this. Do I still eat dense protein first then just add carbs after that point. However, with my band I'm pretty well full after eating a chicken breast. I'm still in shorter runs so it's not affecting me yet, but as my runs get longer I'll need to review my diet. Any advise? I am going to see my nutritionist in a couple of weeks. However, not sure if she is a sports nutritionist. Does that make a big difference?

 I didn't really add carbs in any bul****il  I was up around 6 or 7 miles in my long runs.  Even then I would still have been considered low carb, maybe 60 carbs a day.  Most of them from Greek Yogurt and a banana.

Only when I was running 20+ miles a week AND when I was at the weight I wanted did I start adding a lot more in, so closer to 100.  I only go higher in big race or really long training run weeks.  I still stay away from white flour, most of the carbs come from fruit and un-processed grains and nuts, and during race weeks whole grain pastas.  

Everyone is different.  Carbs are a bit of a trigger so gotta be a bit careful.  I'd suggest processed carbs high in sugar are a big reason most of us needed WLS in the first place.

I have a healthy fear of processed carbs. Like I said I'm still a long way from having to worry about this but wanted to address the questions / concerns.

BTW I started a blog. The link is in my signature.

 I went to a nutritionist too, both a sports and also one at my surgeon.  I gotta tell you, neither really had a clue how to deal with an endurance athlete that had WLS.  I think we're a pretty rare breed still.  The best source of info for me was right here on this board.  The surgeon nut, while at least she understood my wls issues, recommended I stay low carb, and not fuel at all for the long runs - no gels, no gatorade etc etc.  The sport nut, well, you can guess, they said lots of carbs, standard normal person athlete diet.  I guess right now I am closer to that "standard normal person athlete diet", but if you still have 50 pounds to lose, you really don't want all those carbs for sure.

In terms of performance, it definitely makes a big difference to me on the longer runs to have fueled up right.  I have run 10+ mile runs with and without carbing a bit, and I can tell you I notice a big diff.  Gel shots too also definitely pick me up on the really long runs.

For now, I would focus on losing those last few pounds and building up a nice base of miles, and not change much if anything as you are doing - but having a plan as you get stronger is the way to go.  It gives you something to look forward too as well (I remember being psyched when I finally was running enough to eat some pasta with no guilt at all, even if it was whole grain!)

For carbohydrates in your daily diet, primarily get them from fruits, veggies, and complex carbs (Wheat, grain, oats, pasta). These are slower burning carbs that will help keep sustained energy. During a race, you may need simple carbs (Sugar) to rapidly replace depleted Glycogen stores. Best of luck with everything, I think it's great!

I think I remember the Nova channel doing a special on average people who were training for a marathon.

During the run the "high carbers" actually petered out before the "higher fat" eaters. They burned up their Glycogen stores fairly quickly and then they were SOL for energy.

The higher fat eaters had much longer sustain energy, and their bodies were used to burning fat and fat stores for energy. No surprise there.  

Either way, I wouldn't make any drastic changes prior to your run,cycling, whatever.

I do PowerPump and BodyBlast aerobic classes (very P90X'ish) 5 times a week at my gym. I love them. But I was only eating like 60 grams of carbs a day and was feeling really shaky.

I upped them to about about 100-115 grams a day and feel great.

My NUT said with all the weight training I'm doing, I should be fine at 125 grams of carbs.

My metabolic doctor explained to me that starchy and sugary carbs are a quick source of energy, and really only benefit competitive runners who need to get a burst of initial energy. After that, they start to use their fat stores for endurance energy.

He said unless you are really trying to gain an early competitive advantage, there is no need to "carb-load."

He did say that peanut butter is a good food source an hour or two before the race; I found a brand that has little packets about an ounce and change; contain no added sugar; and provides 7 grams each of carbs and protein. Its called Justin's - and it also comes in Almond butter. 

He said to be careful about sports drinks. (I don't really do refined sugars much, so I wouldn't drink a regular Gatorade anyway, but even artificially sweetened ones can make you sick.) Unless you are sweating a lot and the day is really hot, electrolytes are not a big concern, and water is best.

I, too, have found it very difficult to get a lot of good sports nutrition information for the post WLS body. Many people, even other post-op athletes, have said that its kind of trial and error. The important thing is to evaluate things during training, and not take your chances on the course on race day!