Welcome Donna Marlor, Sports Nutritionist

For those of you that have followed this for a while, you know that sometime last year I started changing what I ate and trying to shed those extra pounds I don’t need to carry around with me during a marathon (every pound = a minute!).  See blog post here. 

That led to my first trip to Just Food Co-op where I was completely overwhelmed by vegetables I didn’t even recognize, a few meals that looked like this, and a whole lot of learning.  There’s still only a few snacks and main dishes I know how to make and I still struggle to know what to eat, when, how much, etc.  But, for how hard it’s been, it’s been a lot of fun!  I’ve been introduced to new vegetables and healthy foods I love (Brussel sprouts! Greek yogurt for protein! Baked sweet potatoes!).  And who knew how GOOD these healthy foods could taste?  I never enjoyed food before!  I’m telling you, I still gasp at the price of organic/local foods sometimes… but I honestly think it’s worth it.  They taste so different and I honestly feel like the food is either more satisfying or stays with you longer.

I know I over-think the whole nutrition/racing weight thing – the reason I know is because when I try to “care” about it, I only drop about 3-4 pounds to get to race weight vs. if I don’t care at all.  So – I’m definitely not doing something right. I think what I’ll find with nutrition is the same thing I found when I started with a coach – for all I knew about running/training/etc, I really sucked at putting together a plan.  I’d be motivated some days, very unmotivated others.  Mileage was all over the board, which led to multiple injuries.  I over-thought “the plan”, constantly changing things, worrying about what was “right”.  Once Jerry came along and laid everything out and I just trusted his plan, it came so EASY.  Within 6 months, I had my Olympic Trials Qualifier.  I just had to DO it, which is the easy part.  I really think it’ll be the same with nutrition.  I know the basics (broccoli = good, fried mozzarella balls = bad), but am obviously over-thinking the whole thing & cycling through being motivated/not caring (YUMM, those brownies look good today… let’s have one… ah, what the heck, two…)

So, I wanted to reach out to someone professional.  Enter into my training team Donna, a registered dietitian and competitive athlete who specializes in athletic nutrition.  I can not tell you how excited I am to see what she has to say!  And, if nothing else (maybe I won’t ever, and shouldn’t try to, look more like the elites I race against), this will be one of those many “little things” that I have learned a lot about throughout this journey (and can pass along to others – coaching?).

I thought about posting the picture I sent Donna and posting my weight every so often… might keep me more honest/accountable to post here… but I was too scared to :).