Pre-race low residue diet - why it works

There are several scenarios in which athletes do things that may appear unhealthy to an "outsider" in order to keep the body in good health. For example, someone who exercises 60-minutes a day does not require 200+ calories to fuel the workout. But an athlete preparing for a 4-hour ride will plan for at least 60g of carbohydrates per hour in the form of sport nutrition to prolong endurance capacity. 

Another scenario athletes apply is drastically reducing fiber-rich foods (like vegetables) in the 24-72 hours prior to an endurance event.

If you've ever had an upset stomach, you have a gastrointestinal condition such as Crohn's or diverticulitis or prepared for a colonoscopy, there's a good chance you understand the purpose (and benefits) of a temporarily limiting dietary fiber. 

Before discussing the benefits of a low residue diet, first it's important to understand how poop is made. 

The digestive system includes the liver, pancreas, gallbladder and gastrointestinal (GI) tract. The GI tract is a connection of organs - mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestines, large intestines, anus.

The food you eat goes on an incredible ride through your body - from your mouth to your anus. The purpose of the digestive system is to turn food into nutritients and energy. This is a very important process because the food we eat and the liquids we drink keep us healthy and help our body function properly. Anything left over is turned into waste (or stool) and is then disposed of as a bowel movement. 

The digestive system moves food through the intestines, which can take between 24-72 hours. After food goes through the stomach, food passes from one area of the intestines to the next. Food stays in certain areas for a specific amount of time so the gut can do what it needs to do - absorb nutrients, absorb fluids, process waste, expel waste. 

When food is passed from the small intestines to the large intestines (colon), much of the liquid has been removed and it is now of soft consistency. The colon can now store, process and get rid of waste. The colon hosts a large population of bacteria, which help break down undigested food and neutralize some of the unwanted by-products of food breakdown. As an example, most carbohydrate digestion occurs in the small intestine. Digestion occurs with the help of enzymes. Any carbohydrates that weren't digested in the small intestines (ex. fiber) passes into the large intestines. Unlike the small intestines, there are no enzymes to break down the fiber. Instead, bacteria in the large intestine (gut microbiota), ferment the carbohydrates. To better understand the role of enzymes and bacteria, if someone is lactose intolerant, they don't make enough lactase enzxyme to digest lactose effectively. As a result, lactose passes to the large intestine. Water is drawn in by osmosis and is then fermeted by bacteria. This often results in gas, bloating and diarrhea.  Anytime undigested carbohydrates pass into the large intestines, bacteria needs to break them down - which results in gas. And if the bacteria in the GI tract are imbalanced, bloating, cramping and gas may be extreme. 

When the descending colon is full of stool (feces), it empties contents into the rectum (connects the colon to the anus) and eventually, a bowel movement occurs. The frequency and type of bowel movement can tell a lot about your health. Additionally, because the majority of the immune system is located in your gut, there's a strong relationship between gut health and physical health. 

So now that you understand how a bowel movement is formed, it's time to talk about fiber. 

Dietary fiber is an important indigestible carbohydrate that slows the transit of foods through the large intestine and promotes regular bowel activity. Residue refers to any type of solid substances that may end up in the large intestines after digestion. High fiber foods, like whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds increase colonic residue. Once the fibrous material enters the colon, water is drawn into the space and binds to the fiber to create stool. 

It's important to remember that digestion is a normal process that takes place in resting conditions. Exercise shifts blood flow away from the GI tract and towards the muscles, skin and lungs. As a result, there are significant changes in gut motility, tone and secretion. It's not uncommon for athletes to experience GI distress during exercise. While fiber is extremely important in the daily diet, minimizing foods that could promotes bowel activity, pose a threat to gut bacteria, and increase fecal volume can help reduce the risk of painful and potentially performance-limiting issues on race day such as diarrhea, stomach cramping, gas, reflux, vomiting, nausea or bloating. 

A few things to know: 

• Even though you are minimizing fiber, you will still have "normal" bowel movements (depending on your regular fiber intake). A low residue diet does not interfere with existing gut contents - those will still be expelled in the mornings during your normal bowel movement. 
• A low residue diet may result in a slight decrease in body mass as you won't be accumulating stool for a few days. When combined with carb-loading (which adds weight due to additional muscle glycogn and stored water), athletes may mitigate feeling "heavy" alongside a high-carb diet. 
• The period of implementing a low residue diet ranges between 24-72 hours and depends on the athlete, usual fiber intake, normal bowel movements, and past experiences. Following a low residue diet for more than a few days is not encouraged as it may lead to nutrient deficiences and constipation. 
• The ultimate goal of following a low residue diet is to reduce the risk of gut discomfort/upset during an event. 
• Remember - carb loading is not calorie loading. Here's a helpful blog post on the topic. 

Although bagels, pasta, oatmeal and pretzels are common go-to foods for athletes, here are a few of my favorite low residue, carb-rich, pre-race foods. 

• 1 package Organic Ramen Noodles (without seasoning) - 200 calories, 40g carbs, 1g fiber
• 2 Pop Tarts (unfrosted) - 420 calories, 74g carbs, 1g fiber
• 30 Saltine Crackers - 210 calories, 60g carbs, 1g fiber
• 1.5 cup cooked Basmati rice - 480 calories, 108g, 3g fiber
• 2 Belgium Waffles - 320 calories, 46g carbs, 1g fiber
• 9 tbsp cream of wheat - 360 calories, 75g carbs, 3g fiber

Sources: 
Love your gut
Is the gut an athletic organ?

Symptoms and Causes of Gas
Digestive System: Function
Digestion of Carbohydrates

Pre-race nutrition: Train like you compete

Training is easy. You feel great when you get your endorphin boost, you can control your environment (or select your terrain), there is no pressure because no one is watching or tracking you and you know that if a workout doesn't go as planned, you always have tomorrow to try again.

On the other hand, race day is stressful! Competition, and being in an unfamiliar and/or uncontrolled environment, brings anxiety, nerves and expectations. It's easy to compare yourself to other athletes and experience a heightened fear of failure. Never in training do you feel what you feel on race day and that is why only a select number of athletes can compete better than they train. Far too many athletes will finish a race feeling like they underperformed, relating back to all the amazingly great workouts that they crushed, yet feel defeated as to why they were unable to perform on race day, despite feeling so prepared. 

One of the great challenges for triathletes is translating training into a great race day result. With three sports to master on race day, in unpredictable environmental conditions, this can be difficult. Thinking back to this quote posted above, far too many athletes are overly confident in training yet lack the necessary confidence, physical skills, nutrition readiness and mental strength on race day.

Competing like you train seems like an obvious strategy to bring confidence on race day but a better approach is to train like you compete.

If you think about all that you (try to) do on race week/day in order to set yourself up for success, why not put that same focus, energy and attention to detail into training? 

• Restful sleep
• Organized and planned diet
• Good mobility
• Relaxation and visualization/meditation
• Good warm-ups
• Proper fueling
• Great daily hydration 
• Reviewing the course maps
• Rehearsing race strategy/execution
• Ensuring gear/equipment is in great condition

It seems obvious that if you are going to do something on race day, you should repeatedly do it in training, but far too often is this not the case. Rushed and busy schedules, poor planning and lack of application causes athletes to gain confidence is subpar performances by the body. In other words, you are simply getting by rather than making physical investments for race day. 

If you want to perform well on race day (who doesn't?) it is important that you nail the little things in training. In reference to this blog, this means practicing your pre race and race day nutrition many times in training to ensure confidence for race day. The purpose of training is to build physical and mental skills, habits and strategies that will translate into an optimal performance by your body on race day. Sadly, many athlete get really good at performing workouts underfueled and undernourished and expect to put together a fail-proof pre race and race day fueling and hydration strategy. I think of this like riding a bike - if you are always riding with poor bike handling skills, you can't expect to master bike handling skills on race day, simply because it's race day. The same is true for nutrition. If you are putting together a complex, detailed and precise diet and fueling/hydration strategy for the 48 hours before a race and for race day, but you never practice this approach in training (repeatedly), you've been training half prepared but you are expected to compete 100% prepared. Unfortunately, success doesn't happen this way. You must give 100% to your training if you want to compete well on race day.

The more you treat training like it's race week/ race day, the easier you will find it to perform at your highest level when it counts. Simply put, don't do anything drastic on race week/day that you didn't practice in training. 

In route to my first half ironman (IM 70.3 Florida) to kick stat my 11th season of endurance triathlon racing (with Karel also racing), I made the effort to practice my pre-race fueling strategy similar to what I plan to do this coming Saturday (4/8), on the day before the race. With a 3:45 hr brick on Saturday this past weekend, Friday was the perfect opportunity to gain confidence in my well-practiced meals for race day. Considering our travel logistics (staying in a rental home with a full kitchen), knowing the area (Publix grocery store near by) and traveling by car, I put together three meals to ensure that I would easily meet my carbohydrate needs without feeling too full or uncomfortable. All of these meals have been consumed prior in training, but never all in one day. I gained a lot of confidence in practicing my nutrition for a full day as it kept me from overeating or second guessing what/how much I was eating.  Because I never worry about eating too much on a daily basis, I always want to make sure I am eating "enough" to ensure that my body is primed and fueled to perform in every single training session. I gain a lot of confidence from high quality workouts with my healthy, strong and fit body.

Here is what I plan to eat next Saturday on the day before IM 70.3 FL. 

I will first have a small snack before my pre-race workout, likely some saltine crackers w/ nut butter and a hardboiled egg and ~200 calories of sport drink on the bike and run for a ~75 minute morning brick. After the workout, I will have a recovery drink w/ a pre-made protein/carb mix along with milk. Then, I will have homemade pancakes (which I will make ahead of time and then freeze for our travel) topped with lots of syrup, butter on some and nut butter on the others, topped with fruit.

For a mid morning snack, I will likely snack on more fruit. Of course, lots of water and I will salt my food.



For lunch, breakfast tacos w/ eggs, spinach, avocado spread and cheese with a side of pretzels (or chips) and fruit. This goes down really easily and sits better in my belly than a sandwich or wrap. I will make the stuffing for the shells ahead of time and bring the tacos shells with me.

For an afternoon snack, I will likely snack on some granola and raisins along with a little nut butter (probably straight off the spoon) and some more fruit. I try to keep my veggies low in the 48 hours before the race to reduce the residue in my gut.



For an early dinner, I will either have pasta w/ tempeh and marinara topped with cheese or basmati rice. Although I practiced with pasta to see how it sat (felt fine), Karel and I both like pizza/pasta two nights before a race so I may stick with rice on Saturday evening. 

I'm looking forward to using IM 70.3 FL as a great opportunity to dust off the rust, take some risks, put the past 5 months of consistent training to good use and experience the hurt of half IM distance racing (I haven't raced an endurance tri since winning Lake Logan 70.3 in August!). Although my mind keeps taking me to St. George 70.3, which is on May 6th, I'm trying to keep myself in the moment, understanding that this race is a great opportunity to be in the race environment and compete like I train.
I'm also excited to share the course with Karel, along with several of our Trimarni athletes (Chris, Stephanie, Kim, Julie and Freddy).

If you are racing, volunteering or spectating at IM FL 70.3 next weekend, I hope to see you. I don't mind hellos pre-race or cheers on race day! :) 

Pre-Ironman fuel - rock your race-day meal

My Ironman pre race meal:
4 WASA crackers
Smuckers Natural PB
Banana
Granola
Raisins
Maple syrup or honey
Cinnamon
Large glass of water
Cup of coffee

Ask a dozen triathletes what they like to eat on the morning of an IRONMAN and you'll get a baker's dozen different answers. There are easy and convenient options, like a bagel and banana with peanut butter, a liquid meal replacement for a nervous belly, or a bowl of oatmeal and eggs, compliments of a kitchenette. Washed down with sports drink and coffee, most IRONMAN athletes swear by one of these early-morning menus. 

But with so many unique needs, there are a few atypical breakfasts for thought out there. For example, have you ever considered a baked potato with fish, white rice with figs and honey, or applesauce with protein powder? Passing on the caffeine jolt, how about a cup of hot water to get the system going or kombucha tea for a happier gut?

For over a decade, research consistently shows that the perfect pre-race meal includes most the following:

• 100 to 200 grams of carbs (400 to 800 calories) plus a little protein
• 12 to 20 ounces water
• Low glycemic, low fat, low fiber (liquid or solid consistency) 
• Consumed three to four hours prior to the start of the endurance event
• 
  

As experienced IRONMAN triathletes know all too well, after eight hours of racing the gut and taste buds become turned off of gels and sport drinks. Because the depletion of glycogen in the muscles and liver affect the body's ability to maintain adequate blood glucose concentrations for muscle and brain fuel, the goal of the IRONMAN athlete is to slow down the least possible on that day. Therefore, the complexity of sport nutrition to support a body in motion for 140.6 miles is much more than what you consumed at 3:30 am race day morning. 

To read more of my Ironman article: CLICK HERE

Breakthrough IM swim and baked pasta casserole

The funny thing about training, or fitness in general, is all the highs and lows that come with it. Of course, who doesn't love to have a good workout but then again, considering the complexity of the human body, perhaps we should be thanking the body more often for any workout for it is easy for the body to fail and I think many times, we take it for granted. All the muscles, organs and metabolic processes working perfectly just for us to swim, bike and run or zumba, yoga or jazzercise. 

As a long-time athlete, I recognize that great performances are not made in weeks or months but overtime. The key is consistency and always giving your best effort. I find that for many athletes, there's an expectation as to how the body is to perform each day and for others, just getting out the door is success...anything else that follows is a bonus. But no matter your reason for working out (or training), the most important component is making progress to reach your short and long term goals. There's no point of an action plan if you don't have a goal to reach. 

As usual, I have been enjoying my swim sets in the pool. I have designed swim sets to help both Karel and I improve in the water but also to improve our efficiency as triathletes. The past three weeks have been challenging and they were all leading up to the big set which was done yesterday (Friday). 

3 x 1000's @ IM pace

I have had mostly good days in the pool over the past few weeks but I did have a few days when I couldn't get into the groove. Although I found myself a bit frustrated based on my own fitness level at times, it's really hard to for me to regret any workout  for I love using my body and if I am not able to "train" I still love to exercise. Oh, and the fact that I have been swimming for about 20 years makes me a big lover of water....I'm a fish. It's not hard for me to get in but very hard for me to get out. 

After a 500 warm-up, I told Karel we would go right to the main set. Karel was having an off day (which is normal and expected due to 3 tough weeks of training so he was just being smart by backing off) so I kept to my side of the lane and Karel did his own thing.

Having the extra motivation of high school (and young) swimmers in the pool made it easy to push myself but I sure to wish I was young again! Those kids were just blowing by me in the other lanes!!

Not knowing what my body would give for this set, I made up  my mind that I would not count myself out until I tried...for all three of them. I didn't have the best swim (to my standards) on Thurs so I found myself getting into doubting thoughts during warm-up but I  knew if I wanted to have a good set, I would need to jump out of self-doubt and enter a place of "I can". 

1st 1000 - 1:26 pace per 100 yards

Wow, shocker. I could not believe it!! I was so thrilled considering I didn't think I had it in me as was just hoping for 1:30 pace.

After resting 2.5 minutes and sipping on my sport drink (I fuel before and during every  workout in endurance training), it was time for #2. 

2nd 1000- 1:23 pace per 100 yards. 

Holy cow! Again, another shocker! I started to get my groove on for #2 and I felt so smooth in the water and I was able to pace myself so well which was a great confidence booster. I use my Garmin 910xt in the pool and I am able to look at my watch to see my pace (and distance and time). As a long-time swimmer, I think this is just natural in that I can feel my pace, just like an experienced biker can control his/her watts and a runner kinda knows varying paces without looking at his/her watch. 

Ok - so time for #3. I figured I had surprised myself enough that anything around 1:25 would be great. BUT, I told myself, just try and see what happens. 

After 2.5 min rest....

After catching my breath on the wall and Karel telling me I was swimming way to fast in the water, I decided, time to call it a day for me. Scratch the 4500 yard workout planned on the schedule. I warmed down after this last 1000 and went for a recovery spin (90 min) with Karel. Training is a lot like gambling. Stop while you are ahead before you dig yourself into a hole. 

I must have looked at my Garmin 10x's in the morning after the swim because I seriously did not think I had it in me to do those times because I have not been able to execute like that in training. But then again, it only took my mind to help me step up to another level. Amazing how the mind can play an impact on our actions. Positive or negative......be careful with your thoughts. Thank you Gloria for continuing to help me realize the power in our/my thinking in all areas of my life. 

After a busy day, it was nearing meal prep time in the evening and I still had a few more emails to respond to. Karel and I have been eating similar foods before weekend training as we would/will before race day, for the past few weeks so for his Friday evening eats, I know he likes either rice or pasta. I have a few favorite pre-race foods but I know what always works best for me before an endurance event (sweet potato, egg, salad, bread/rice) so I am happy to enjoy Karel's pre race meal with him....sacrifices in marriage :) 

Rather than the standard pasta, I decided to do a pasta bake. What made this even better was that I could forget about it for a while and didn't need to "cook" while answering emails. Feel free to add your own veggie options and protein. Enjoy!

Baked Pasta Casserole

(ingredients to serve 2)

Pasta - 4 ounces dry (2 ounces equals about 1 cup cooked - plan for leftovers)

Marinara sauce (1/2 - 1 cup)
Veggies - spinach, corn, peas, onion

Bread crumbs (a few spoonfuls)
Cheese (I used asiago for a nice peppery taste)
Garlic (1 tbsp powder or 1 clove chopped)
Protein of your choice (for animal protein, ~3-4 ounces per person, for other protein, about 20-25g per person of protein)

*Preheat oven to 425 degrees

1. Cook pasta as normal. Drain. 

2. Lightly spray bottom of casserole dish with cooking spray. 

3. Place protein on bottom of dish. 

4. Layer veggies. 

5. Spoon pasta on veggies until covered (I used about 1.5 cups I think). 

6. Spoon marinara on pasta until covered. 

7. Sprinkle breadcrumbs on marinara (light covering). 

8. Top with garlic and a little cheese. 

9. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until pasta is a little crunchy on top. 

Fueling oatmeal creation, wild rice side dish and pre-race dinner

 

While at our friends house (Stefanie and Kenny Swanger) from Thursday evening until Saturday (for our race - which I will be writing our race report soon), we enjoyed lots of delicious food creations. Seeing that Stefanie has been a long-time nutrition and coaching athlete, and Kenny is an amazing cook, we are always incredibly spoiled in our belly's when we go to visit them for a race in Georgia.

 

To start off the morning before a pre-ride warm-up on the Rock N' Rollman race course, we both enjoyed a delicious oatmeal creation. Stefanie and Kenny set up their kitchen like an oatmeal buffet with all the fixings on the counter and us to create something delicious.

 

I measured out 40grams of oatmeal on their scale (150 calories) to ensure I was getting enough to meet my needs for the morning. I then added 1/2 large banana (sliced) + 3 large strawberries (sliced) and a little each of cinnamon, PB2 (chocolate kind - delicious) and ground flax seeds. I mixed it with milk and just a tad of water and voila - a delicious Trimarni creation. I added some of my homemade trail mix granola (granola + peanuts and sunflower seeds) on top for a little cold crunch on the warm oatmeal. My belly was super happy and it did what it needed to do - it keep me satisfied and fueled for the morning activities.

 

On Wednesday, I made a trip to Whole Foods to buy several items from bulk (nuts, seeds, granola) for our trip to Macon and as usual, I just love buying whole grains and coming up with a delicious creation for them. The wild rice really caught my eye as it was so beautiful in it's unrefined form. I LOVE wild rice because it has a great nutty taste to it and mixes well in stir fry's or on top of a salad.

 

 

Since I was planning to fill our bodies with medicine (salad) that evening as the main part of our meal, I decided to do the rice as a side dish, combined with steamed  broccoli and veggie crumbles and after it was prepared, I topped it with a little asiago cheese. If you are trying to make dietary changes, I encourage you to not try to eliminate food...especially food that can be beneficial to your workout routine and overall health. Wild rice is a good source of carbohydrates to help keep your body energized and without added sodium or preservatives or food coloring, you can't go wrong with this type of carb. It contains protein and dietary fiber to help keep you satisfied. You will never find yourself "missing" out on anything while having a salad as the main part of your meal for having a side dish of whole grains is the best compliment to create a balanced meal - instead of making the "carb" or starch the main part of the meal, which often leads to people blaming "carbs" and starches for weight gain due to oversized portions.  Wild rice also contains vitamins B1, B2, B3 and B9 as well as iron, potassium, phosphorous, zinc and magnesium. No need to pop pills when you can get your vitamins and minerals from real food. Plus, I absolutely love cheese that is so tasteful that you only need a little to be satisfied. Asiago cheese does just that as you can't eat a lot of it at once for it has just enough salt taste to cure your cravings and it is so delicious that you have no choice but to savor a little of it.

For cooking rice, you want to first rinse the rice. Generally, the ratio is 1 cup of rice + 3 cups of water. Boil the rice over high heat. Once the water level drops and the rice is visible, turn the heat to low and allow the rice to steam for 30 to 45 minutes. I usually keep my rice covered while cooking.

For serving sizes as a side dish, I recommend 1/2 - 1 cup of rice + ~1/2 cup veggie crumbles (or around 2 ounces protein of your choice) + broccoli (your choice of amount)  + 2 thin slices of asiago cheese.

 

For our pre race dinner at the Swangers, we kept it light and simple. Easy to digest, delicious and the right balance to keep us fueled for race day (Especially with a 4am wake up call).

 

 

When I work with athletes on race week/day nutrition as well as sport nutrition for training, it's important that I recognize that every athlete is different. We all train for different events at different intensities and our bodies are unlike our training buddies. Nerves, stress and sleep can all affect appetite and your relationship with food and individual fitness needs can also affect your dietary choices. Therefore, although the science is there in terms of how to eat before a race, I don't believe that there is a cause and effect - one size fits all (especially when research is often in a controlled setting) with how you eat before a race and how you will perform on race day. There are things to reduce (fat/fiber) as well as emphasize (carbs with a little protein) but in terms of what you choose to eat, this will always vary. My pre-race, happy tummy meal always includes a sweet potato and veggies and a little protein. I do bread and rice as well on the day before the race if it is available.

 

Kenny prepared chicken for Karel as well as all the other items on my plate. It was so absolutely delicious!

-Sautéed asparagus and mushrooms with sesame seeds (thinking back, every time I Have had asparagus before a race, I have done very well - perhaps my new good-luck food :).

-Hard boiled egg and cottage cheese - for protein.

-Salad with bell peppers and avocado with a little shredded cheese - topped with balsamic and olive oil.

-Sweet potato with cinnamon and a little butter.

-Sliced potatoes (Karel isn't a sweet potato lover like me so he typically does white potato or rice pre-race but I am happy to enjoy both).

 

I finished the dinner satisfied, around 6:30pm and felt energized and ready for a good night sleep before the race.