Eating and Running

I've enjoyed eating for over 30 years. I've enjoyed running for the better part of 10 years (off and on). I guess one could call these passions. Or at least hobbies. Still, in 10 years of simultaneously engaging in both, I have never found it necessary to mix the two. It never occurred to me that one might need to eat while running, or run while eating. That is until I became noticeably hungry about 9 miles into today's 14-miler. I'm not a person who often experiences physiological hunger. I often crave certain foodstuffs and do eat routinely, but I've rarely known the sensation of raw hunger. I knew it today after completing a particularly long hill in the 90 degree sun.

Fortunately, I was less than a mile from my sister's house. Upon arriving there, I was greeted by a naked 2-year-old bearing a large Tupperware container of what appeared to be Froot Loops [sic]. Actually, come to think of it, they were not loops, though they were certainly composed of Froot [sic]. I was not offered any Froot by the naked toddler. I did, however, help myself to a Kashi TLC granola bar. I don't remember how it tasted as I ate it in about 3 bites. In hindsight, I realized that this is really a 7-8 bite bar. But, I needed calories. And quick. After being told about 200 times by a naked toddler "I go with you", I continued on my way (unaccompanied), finishing the final 5 miles of the run.

Miraculously, the granola bar worked wonders. No cramps. No stomach distress. Just a noticeable increase in energy. I finished the run with a pace well under 8:00 (excluding the pit stop, which is cheating, I know).

So, for all the many readers out there who are wondering if it is okay to mix running and eating: It is! You probably won't die. You likely won't develop cramps. You will feel better and stronger (assuming you eat the right things. Don't eat a knife or a bomb or even Froot Loops). In fact, if you're running a significant distance, your body will almost definitely require some solid fuel while running.

My next adventure in running and eating will likely involve the goo, or the gel or whatever that not-solid-not-liquid energy source is called. That and Twizzlers. I think the 2-year-old would approve of the Twizzlers.