@rasheid Sure!
I started incorporating hydration and fuel on any run that was +90 min. I found that water was the only thing I could drink. I tried Gatorade, Powerade, Propel and found that they all gave me stomach aches. I think it was the sugar, but not totally sure. But through trial and error, I found that I needed to separate liquid (water only), electrolytes (salt tablets) and fuel.
For intra-fuel, the 2 best things that worked for me were Cliff Blox and Swedish Fish. I have issues with texture and I could not do the gels. They were just too gooey and I couldn't get them down. Bars required too much coordination to keep running and actually eating, chewing, etc. Plus when they were in my pack, they became sticky. The Cliff Blocks worked really well, they were super easy to grab 1 or 2 at a time, and as needed. Same with the Swedish Fish. I could just pop one in every so often to keep a steady stream of sugar going.
For my "morning of" pre-nutrition, I found that toast/english muffin/bagel with a little bit of peanut butter and banana was the best combination. I experimented with all variations of this and also tried hard boiled eggs, protein shake with fruit, oatmeal. All the usual suspects for pre-workout. The simple carbs of the bread & banana with the little bit of protein and fat from the PB sat the best and kept me full the longest.
For the "night of" pre-nutrition, I actually found that less carbs worked better for me. I know people talk about carb load and pasta or rice, but those were too heavy for me. I felt like they sat in my stomach all night long and then it didn't translate well on the long run. I just felt heavy and sluggish. Surprisingly enough, my favorite meal was a large salad, red meat (usually steak) and a starchy vegetable- like potato, sweet potato, corn. I was still getting plenty of carbs, but they weren't as heavy as a grain and they didn't sit for a long time in my system. I felt light on my runs with this combination.
Post long run, I would take a protein shake as soon as my stomach would allow, and then followed up with a full meal around an hour or so after. I can't eat or drink anything right away after a hard effort, but I could sip on a protein shake within 10-15 min. of finishing. I was training with a friend, so I would always drive to a common meeting spot. By the time we cooled down, stretched and I got back to my car, I was able to sip the shake during my drive home. Then I would get home, take an ice bath, a shower and then would be ready to eat a full on meal.
I found all of this out through trial and error, trying something different each week until I found what worked.
