Although the Real Fitness Nerd already knew about most of these "secret" runner's foods, this msnbc.com article is a cool little list of odd things endurance athletes consume in hopes of getting an edge.
Pickle juice caught me off guard, but it makes complete sense, given it hydrates and replenishes sodium lost from sweating. And I bet it tastes delish!
Personally, I'm a banana and water man when it comes to powering through exercise, but there's plenty to experiment with here. Let me know if you try any of it. I might set up a stand at the LA marathon next year and hand out French fries to the runners. I wonder how that'll go over?
That's nasty. Are you familiar with Organic Athlete. Got this from one of the member's posts:
ReplyDelete"My best ultramarathon was last month at the Chuckanut 50k. Race nutrition was about 25 ounces of coconut juice and 10 ounces of raisin soaked water (best tasting sports drink I’ve ever had). I grabbed an additional 22 ounces of water at the 20 mile mark. This resulted in a 31 minute improvement over the prior year."
I'm still sticking to Hammer Gel and endurolytes in water (yes, I put my gel in my water bottle). Perhaps one of these days I'll experiment with something more "natural," but you won't EVER catch me drinking pickle juice -- GAAACKKK!!!
/michm