Feeling the burn..

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Off we go!

Running 13.1 miles without stopping is really hard. Running 26.2 miles is really, really hard. It requires a lot of energy. What we eat before and after our training runs, during the week leading up to a big event and on the morning of race day matters. The energy we fuel our bodies with can be the difference between hitting the wall or running through it.

Unfortunately for gluten free athletes, when we think of carb loading before a race we think of pasta. Almost all big running events have a ‘pasta dinner’ the night before the race. We can’t do these but the good news is we can get the same energy from lots of different gluten free foods!

I’ve run in a variety of different running events around the world since being diagnosed as celiac and these tips have given me the energy to keep running until the end. I ate 100% gluten free and I hit no walls. I didn’t win any races either ( or come anywhere close) but in my mind I’m a winner if I can run the distance without stopping. Success!

Gluten Free Training Tips

• Replace pasta with rice.  Many athletes eat pasta the night before a long run and rice the the obvious gluten free replacement. Rice is available almost everywhere and goes with most things the way pasta does. It’s also high in carbs and will give you lots of energy for long runs! Whilst brown rice is perhaps the more nutritious option, white rice can be good before intense training as it contains less fiber.
• If you want your pasta dinner then have it. There are plenty of different gluten free pastas out there. Many varieties of GF pasta contain around the same amount of carbs, protein and calories as wheat pasta, taste great and cook even faster than ordinary pasta!
• Sushi can be a good option for a gluten free night before your race meal. This delicious mix of carbs, fat and protein will provide your body with the energy it’s going to need to run the distance. Adding some gluten free soy sauce can be a good way of getting some extra sodium, a lot of which your body will lose after running for a long time.
• Try some tasty new grains. There are lots of interesting gluten free grains out there that you may not have tried, or even heard of before. Quinoa, buckwheat, teff, millet and amaranth are delicious, healthy alternatives which will provide you with lots of energy.
• Always have a snack with you. Keeping a gluten free snack with you at all times is always a good idea but it’s even more important when you’re in training. With all those extra calories you’re burning, you will find yourself getting hungrier than usual in between meals and you don’t want to be left with nothing to nibble.
• Research your energy drinks and sports gels. Water just isn’t enough when you are running long distances but you need to ensure that any energy drinks you use are gluten free. The same goes for any sports gels you plan to use on race day. Find gluten free ones and try them out on long practice runs to ensure your body can handle them. You don’t want to do the right training and eat the right things to then waste it by getting glutenated because you forgot to check your sports drink.
• Research race day. If you can, find out which sports drinks are being given out during your race. If they aren’t what you are familiar with, do some research to ensure they are gluten free. If fruit or other snacks are on offer too make sure these are things your body can handle and nothing that gives you problems.
• Simply salt. To some long distance athletes, over hydration is a concern. Serious sweating plus consuming too much fluid can dangerous lower the bodies salt levels if you aren’t careful (This probably isn’t a concern unless you’re running a marathon, ultra marathon, triathalon, etc). Athletes to whom this is a concern often use gels which replenish them with salts and minerals to counteract this. Do your research to find out which gels are safe for celiacs. If this isn’t for you then simply eating a pack or two of pure salt during your event can give your body the salts it needs to make it to the finish line without hitting the wall. (It may sound disgusting but it worked for me during my first full marathon. Salt packets from McDonalds at miles 18 and 22 gave me the extra kick I needed to make it to the end.)
• Don’t try anything new on the day. No serious athlete wants to test out a new night before meal, race morning breakfast or energy bar/drink during the race and this is even more important if you are on a gluten free diet. You don’t want to try something new, have your body react badly to it and have it prevent you from achieving the goal you have set for yourself!
• Have something waiting at the finish line. At the end of a race there are almost always snacks being handed out. These tend to be glutenous things like cookies, cakes and energy bars. You’re almost certainly going to be starving at the end of a race so be sure to give whoever is there to cheer you on something gluten free and full of energy. For me a huge carton of chocolate milk is the perfect end to a race.
• Enjoy your day. You’ve done all the hard work and preparation. You’re ready. Now all you have to do is put one foot in front of the other until you reach the finish line! Yay!

Tasty flavours

Rise Bars

I’d never heard of Rise Bars before but when they contacted me to ask if I wanted to try their gluten free bars I did some research and they come in quite the selection of flavours. They make three types of bars; breakfast, energy and protein. Their breakfast and energy bars are delicious! You may be familiar with Boomi and Prana bars and if so then you will have an idea about what these bars are all about. They just have a new name and a new look now. As the gluten free traveller I’m often on the move so I’m always on the lookout for tasty new gluten free bars that I can pop in my purse when I’m off somewhere. I’m very happy I got to try these ones.

The breakfast bars are made from a sweet mixture of fruit and nuts. They are definitely my favourite of the three types. Each bar has around 160 calories and the Crunchy Macadamia Pineapple and Crunchy Honey Almond are my favourites. They are really tasty and I would eat them at any time of the day.

The energy bars are again made from a mixture of mostly fruits and nuts. They each have around 190 calories and contain 5g of protein. The Blueberry Coconut is definitely my favourite. Anything with a coconutty taste does it for me and it goes really well with the taste of blueberry. Double yum!

All Rise Bars are gluten free, soy free and kosher certified. They are labelled with NFC Gluten Free Guard which is new to me and looks like it’s a certifier which specialises in the natural and organic product industry. The label also includes information that the bars are manufactured in a gluten free, soy free and peanut free facility so celiacs don’t need to worry about cross contamination issues. Yay!

The protein bars are quite the chunky bar at 1.5 times the weight of the other bars. The Crunchy Carob Chip bar contains 260 calories and 17g of protein whilst the Almond Honey Protein bar has 280 calories and 20g  of protein with the only ingredients being almonds, honey and why protein. At almost 300 calories per bar I can picture many other things I’d rather eat for these calories (possibly even two of the breakfast bars!) so personally I think  these bars would be better saved for before/after intense activity when I’m really looking for extra energy. I plan to keep the protein bars for munching after one of my long training runs leading up to my next half marathon.

My gluten free bib

Last weekend I ran the San Francisco Half Marathon. There were more hills than I was expecting (Yes, I know we’re in SF but a runner can hope can’t she) but it was a great race and I didn’t stop for a second. The 13.1 mile course covered some amazing views and I got to run over the Golden Gate Bridge which was amazing!

As usual, the night before the race I filled up on lots of gluten free carbs. Dinner was a large plate of rice, egg and black beans. Simple and delicious. The race was to begin at 5.30am which meant getting up insanely early to nibble a large bowl of gluten free breakfast before making my way down to the start line. What did I eat? CHEX of course! They say not to change things up on game day.

As it was the half this time rather than the full, I wasn’t concerned about  my salt levels. At the Buenos Aires marathon I ate pure salt on two or three occasions to ensure I didn’t over hydrate myself but this wouldn’t be an issue for a 13.1. I would drink the Gatorade they were giving out at hydration stations and I’d be set. I saw on the website that they would also be handing out GU Gels at mile 7. I knew from the expo that these were gluten free but as I hadn’t used them in training I’d give them a miss unless I was feeling really low energy levels.

Running in a huge crowd in a marathon or half marathon is such an amazing feeling and it’s pretty emotional too, especially in a race with a huge turn out like this. Waiting at the starting line, the atmosphere is a mixture of nerves, excitement and giddiness. All those miles and hours of training that have brought us together on this summer morning, and the sun hasn’t even risen yet! No one has had a good night of sleep but that’s not important. As soon as the countdown reaches zero the adrenaline kicks in and there’s no looking back. It’s beautiful. It’s an amazing thing to be a part of. The next 13.1 or 26.2 miles are the fun part. It’s all the training that makes you who you are on the day.

The run was amazing! It was hard work but it was worth it. John won husband of the year by waking up with me at 4am and biking the whole race route to meet me at the end. He was there at mile nine waiting to snap a photo of me and he was there at 13.1 with chocolate milk! Perfect. One of the drinks we were given at the finish line was Zico Coconut Water. Not bad but as I’m a big fan of coconut I thought I’d like it more. It’s labelled as gluten free.

Gluten free coconut water

My medal

Free..and Gluten Free!

SF Marathon Expo

Last Friday I went to the San Francisco Marathon Expo to pick up my bib number and running shirt for the half marathon. I also went to check out what they had to offer in terms of energy filled samples in the hopes that there would be something gluten free for me to nibble. I was very impressed. There were lots of gluten free goodies…

The queue (line for Americans) to get in was around the block and then some so Nesquik took this as an opportunity to get some of their delicious chocolate milk samples out to runners. Yum-my! And gluten free.

Inside the expo there were lots of different vendors promoting various bars, gels and drinks aimed at helping us run better, faster, more easily or with more energy. Personally I don’t really buy in to all that. Game day for me involves drinking what is usually Gatorade at various stops en route and then gulping down a big cartoon of tasty chocolate milk at the finish line. Delicious! Some people do the gels but not me. I’m always up for samples though..as long as they’re gluten free!

Lara bars

GU Energy

GU Energy were there with samples of their Chomps. I tried the watermelon and the peach tea..yummy energy jellies! I was told that all GU Energy products are gluten free. Great!

Wild Veggie were also there with samples of veggie drinks. I’m not a big fan of liquid veggies so I gave this a miss but I was still very excited to see they had gluten free signage.

Lara Bars were there with mini sample bars of a selection of flavours. All of their products are gluten free which is awesome! And what’s even better, they are really tasty, especially the Coconut Cream Pie and Peanut Butter and Jelly flavours! Yum-my gluten free goodness!

Clif were there too with a variety of tasty looking energy things to try but when I asked whether anything was gluten free I was told that only one thing was. They also informed me that everything was made in a factory which processes products containing wheat so if I was celiac then to stay away. Sad that I couldn’t try anything but yeah! for well informed staff!

A fun trip to the SF Marathon expo with more than a couple of gluten free surprises to try! I’m full of energy and ready to run the half marathon. Plus, my new t-shirt is awesome!

My sweet Half Marathon shirt

Pure Fit Protein Bar

A couple of weeks back I received another box of protein bars to sample. I’ve never eaten so many different protein bars in my life! This time it was Pure Fit protein bars. Five different flavours. Granola Crunch,  Chocolate Brownie, Almond Crunch, Peanut Butter Crunch and Berry Almond Crunch. I was impressed primarily by the fact that all of their bars are gluten free and not only a selection. This is not the norm but it’s something I’m very happy to see as it takes away contamination worries. All of these bars are gluten free, wheat free, dairy free, vegan and kosher…That’s a lot of things but the question is do they taste good?

Yes they do, they’re pretty good. Once again, as you know I’m a fan of peanut butter related things so I was impressed by the Peanut Butter Crunch and the Almond Crunch, the taste of which could easily be mistaken with nibbling spoonfuls of peanut or almond butter out of the jar. Crunchy and tasty.

Like most protein bars they are around 200 calories per bar making them a good snack for before or after a medium to long run. Personally I’d rather save my calories for half a bag of Haribo or a couple of handfuls of jelly beans but this isn’t because these bars don’t taste good, it’s just that I love Haribo and jelly beans! If you’re looking for a quick fix of protein then these bars wouldn’t be a bad choice with 18g of protein per bar which sounds like a lot to me. Perfect for munching before or after a gluten free run to provide you with or give you back some of your energy! Again they contain gluten free certified oats which I don’t seem to be having any issues with so far and as mentioned on the packaging they indeed do not melt so you don’t need to worry about keeping one in your purse for later if you live in a hot climate.

Luna Bars

Last week I received a couple of Luna Bars to sample. Chocolate and Mint Chocolate Chip. I haven’t tried many protein bars but I was excited to try these as they are gluten free.

According to their site – ‘Starting in early 2011, we will be transitioning the LUNA Protein line to be gluten free – it will contain no gluten ingredients and will be manufactured on a line that is validated to make gluten free food. During the transition, you can tell if your LUNA Protein bar is gluten free by looking at the packaging.’ Fantastic! What a great thing when companies discover the possibility of making their products gluten free and then actually go ahead and do it. Now more of us can enjoy these Luna Protein Bars!

Luna is part of Clif Bar but whilst they do a wide variety of products for now it’s only the Protein Bar that is safe for celiacs. Be sure to look out for ‘gluten free’ on the packaging to ensure you’re buying the right bars. The Chocolate and Mint Chocolate Chip bars were pretty tasty and personally they are the kind of thing I would eat after a long run to both give me back some energy whilst at the same time enjoy something yummy. The Chocolate Cherry Almond and Chocolate Peanut Butter from the same range sound ever better although I haven’t tried these yet. Hopefully the original Luna Bar will go the same way as the Protein Bar and become gluten free in the near future. I would love to try their Dulce De Leche bar!

Maraton de Buenos Aires

Last week I ran my first marathon and it was an amazing experience!

I woke up at 4.30am to eat a bowl of gluten free and carb filled Polenta with a couple of pinches of salt. I never add salt to meals but today I was going to need it considering the amount of salt my body was going to lose through sweat. I drank a glass of gatorade (all flavours are gluten free) and set off for the start of the race.

The marathon was to start at 7.30 so arriving at 6.20 I had plenty of time to psyche myself up. Half an hour before the start I ate a gluten free cereal bar to give me some extra energy. I had a few more sips of Gatorade and I was ready to run….

From the starting line right through to mile 26.2, it was an amazing run. Trying to communicate with a Brazilian in broken Spanish when he is speaking Portuguese and you are both approaching mile 18 of your first marathon is an interesting experience.

I stuck with Gatorade for the entirety of the run. It would prevent me from becoming dehydrated just as well as water and it would also give me at least some of the electrolytes I was losing. I had read a lot about slower athletes being susceptible to overhydration during the length of a marathon so I hoped that keeping to Gatorade would lessen my risk. I also ate a couple of salt packets (from McDonalds) at miles 16 and 20 to avoid allowing my salt levels to get too low. At 5 occasions they handed us orange slices and their sugary deliciousness gave me that much needed extra energy to get me to the end.

I ran my first marathon in 5 hours on the dot. Not exactly Olympic running but I was very proud of myself for running the whole way without resting. The huge chuck of chocolate cake filled with dulce de leche and covered in cream was the perfect after marathon treat!

A well deserved kiss after 26.2 miles!

All of this training means that I’m hungry pretty much constantly and finding interesting and varied gluten free meals to eat gets pretty difficult. Much of what I’ve read talks about loading up on carbs and since many carb filled foods tend to also be filled with gluten, I’m careful to ensure I still get enough carbs whilst remaining gluten free.

I’m doing the first half of my training in Iowa and my second half when we move to Argentina, 2 months before the race.

Tasty Chex for breakfast

Vegetable sushi

My tasty tortilla lunch

Cream of Rice with pineapple and cinnamon

In Iowa

I like to start my day with a bowl of Chex. On a short run day I’ll nibble a few pieces of fruit before my run and leave the cereal for afterwards but on a long run day I’ll fuel up with cereal first thing when I wake up. I’ve starting mixing corn, rice and honey nut Chex and I love it. Some days I substitute Chex for Cream of Rice, which tastes great with fruit and cinnamon.

For lunch, I’m all about corn tortillas with various fillings. Recently my favourite is ham with cucumber/spinach and cottage cheese. If we go out for lunch, I like to fill up on lots of Sushi with wheat free soy. New Pioneer Co-op in Iowa City does some great, fresh Nigiri and Maki sushi sets, which are gluten free. They also have wheat free soy. When buying pre-packed sushi, always check with whoever prepared it that it’s gluten free and stay away from imitation crab meat and any sauces. Fish Nigiri and either fish or vegetable Maki are usually the best bet.

Blue Bunny with strawberries

Yoplait yoghurt

Glutino breakfast bars

Envirokids snack bars

I find myself getting hungry between meals, especially on my long run days, and I try to keep my snacking pretty healthy. I eat a lot of yoghurt (normally Yoplait as the fat free is gf and says so on the label) with rice cakes for dipping, gluten free bars, lots of fruit, and sometimes a bowl of Blue Bunny vanilla Ice Cream.

For dinner I find myself eating lots and lots of rice. Lucky for me I love the stuff but I still like to bring new ingredients in to eat with it to spice it up. Some of my favourites are Chilli with rice, ground beef with pineapple salsa and rice, black beans with rice, Kimchi with rice and Bolognese with rice. On the few occasions I don’t have rice, I eat various omelettes, tasty Iowa sweet corn or gluten free sandwiches (although I’m yet to find a great tasting gf bread in the States)

Tasty chilli

Yummy Iowa sweet corn

Running around 40 miles a week means that I can eat pretty much whatever I want but I try my best to eat the right things to fuel my body and prepare me for long distances. I don’t eat as much variety when it comes to my meals as I did in my pre-coeliac days but I’m working on this….

In Buenos Aires

My marathon training diet had changed quite a bit since moving to Argentina but thanks to a few great gluten free stores and eateries, I’m managing to keep my carb intake high. Cereal was such a huge part of what I was eating in the states but as there is no gluten free cereal to be found here, I’ve had to make a few changes to my diet. Before short runs I eat a cereal bar and if I’m going on a longer run I like to have a bowl of crushed up rice cakes with milk which is the nearest thing to a bowl of cereal here. Almost every day, the first thing I eat post run is a big bowl of polenta with fruit and cinnamon.

Pre-run cereal bars

Polenta with apples

For lunch, I’m all about the empanadas (usually ground beef or chicken) or gluten free baguettes with ham and cheese from Celigourmet. As my weekly mileage is increasing I’m all about eating between meals too so I find myself eating a lot of yoghurts, fruit, nuts and chocolate covered gluten free snacks. My favourite snack here is Chocoarroz which is two small rice cakes stuck together with a layer of dulce de leche and covered in milk or white chocolate!

Choco Arroz

Empanadas de carne

Celigourmet baguettes

Tasty yoghurts

Dinner in Buenos Aires, like in the States, is almost always something with rice (or rice with something the night before a long run). Here I eat a lot of rice with egg and cheese, rice and veggie stir fry or my favourite, chilli with rice. Again, not a huge variety in what I’m eating but I try to vary it as much as possible and I enjoy everything that I eat.

Sweet potato and kimchi pizza....

...Ready to eat

The night before a big race, runners everywhere are filling up on pasta, spaghetti and various other high carb foods. On race day they will need all of the energy they can find and a carb heavy meal the night before and a decent sized breakfast 2-3 hours before the race are as important a part of a runner’s preparation as a good night’s sleep!

I’ve been running for about two and a half years now and before being diagnosed as celiac, my pre-race routine would involve going to my favourite pizza and pasta bar the evening before to stock up on my carbs with a huge bowl of chicken and pepper penne arribiata.

Now that this is not longer an option and whilst there are some restaurants I could probably still go to for my carb fest, I feel much safer preparing my own pre-race dinner. I definitely don’t want to be glutenated at a time when I need every single piece of energy that my body can muster! These days my carb fest tends to be either a rice based dish or gluten free pasta/spaghetti with lots of veggies and a home made sauce.

My favourite night before simple gluten free carb fests:

Chilli con carne with rice (garlic, mince, kidney beans, tomatoes, peppers and/or various other veggies, chilli powder, black and red pepper, rice)

Gluten Free Spaghetti with spicy bolognese (gf spaghetti, mince, tomatoes, basil, garlic, red and black pepper, peppers, carrots)

Sweet potato, spinach and chick pea curry with rice (sweet potato, spinach, chick peas, tomato, chilli, garam masala, peppers, rice)

Tuna, bean and veggie rice with chilli, soy and horseradish sauce (rice, tuna, mixed beans, sweet corn, peppers, pineapple, chilli powder, gf soy, horseradish sauce)

Gluten Free kimchi and sweet potato pizza (gf pizza base, tomato puree, grated cheese, sweet potato, kimchi, basil)

GF chilli con carne

What’s your favourite pre-race meal? Share your ideas in the comments..

I was very impressed by the gluten free options that many restaurants and cafes in Malta, and specifically the town of Sliema, had to offer. I was very happily surprised to find that many of the eateries in Sliema not only had gluten free options clearly stated on their menus but a whole variety of gluten free things to choose from!!!

Mint's menu board

As I was in Malta to run my first half-marathon I was worried about being glutenated and not being able to run at my best but on wandering around Sliema on our first afternoon in town, menus and signs saying ‘Gluten Free Options Available’ and ‘We serve gluten free food’  filled me with excitement. I started to feel much happier about eating out in the days before the race. We decided to cook dinner on the evening before the race at home just to be 100% safe but most other meals we ate in local restaurants/cafes.

GF section of local supermarket

Maltease supermarkets and even a few small convenience stores stocked gluten free foods, similar to those found in the UK. A couple of Medium sized supermarkets we visited in Sliema had gluten free sections with cereals, breads, pastas, cakes, biscuits and various other treats. Yoghurt has been one of my saviours since becoming gluten free and at home I like to eat Muller Light with rice cakes for dipping (surprisingly yummy!). Since I can’t be certain which yoghurts in other countries are safe I tend to go for natural stuff but the ones I found in Malta looked as though they had added ingredients that I wasn’t sure of and I couldn’t understand what I was reading enough to risk it. Luckily I found they stocked my Muller Light! 1.09 Euros for one tub…crazy but at least I knew they were safe!

There are lots of small convenience and fruit stores as well as a large number of fruit and vegetable vans all over Malta so finding fresh fruit is very simple!

Gluten Free eatery Highlights (all of which can be found on Tower Road, Sliema):

Mint – This small cafe has a fantastic selection of both savoury and sweet gluten free dishes. We went here for lunch on our first day in Sliema and returned after the half-marathon to fill out hungry tummies. Every day the cafe has 4 or 5 savoury dishes on offer and they are

Mint's tuna and potato pie

delicious. I tried their tuna and potato pie with creamy bechamel sauce and their potato and chorizo gratin. Both dishes came with a salad and dressing which, as I was getting ready to ask, the waitress confirmed was gluten free. Dessert wise, they again had 5 or 6 different gluten free options, which all looked amazing..there was choco-coconut brownies,

Chorizo and potato gratin

cookies and flourless cake. I tried their dried fruit, chocolate and coconut brownie which was ridiculously good! Savouries ranged from 4-7 euros and desserts were 1.50-3 euros. Good value for money and a great selection for coeliacs!

Kara’s Cafe – A busy cafe with both indoor and outdoor seating, which sells various snacks, sandwiches, drinks, desserts, smoothies, yogurt and alcohol. There weren’t a whole lot of gluten free options on the menu but a variety of their sandwiches (toast with jam, ham and cheese, egg mayo, chicken and tomato, salmon, prawn mayo and the club house) can be made gluten free at an extra cost of 1.15 euros. Their fruit smoothies are pretty good too. They do 5 different mixes at 4 euros each. 100% fruit so 100% gluten free!

The Kitchen – A restaurant serving some interesting, unique dishes, quite a few of which are gluten free (these are marked by stars on the menu). I had carmelised risotto with cheese and brazil nut powder. Pretty tasty but a little expensive. If you’re willing to spend a wee bit more for a nice meal then you will find some good gluten free choices here.

Frescos – I didn’t eat at Fresco’s as they had stopped serving when we were hungry but their menu has a few gluten free options which sounded good.  Their menu also states that they can prepare their pasta dishes gluten free – this gluten free pasta, which they say is prepared seperately, is 1 euro extra and takes 20 minutes.

The long weekend we spent in Malta was a gluten free success! Any Coeliacs travelling to Malta, and specifically Sliema, need not worry about a lack of safe places to eat. Although we did all of our eating in the pretty town of Sliema, we visited some other towns that also had gluten free options on their menus. Sliema however was the most Coeliac friendly.

John and I at the end of our first half-marathon

Our first half-marathon was fantastic and we finished in 2 hours 9 minutes. It was a beautiful run across Malta