I attempted a 12-miler on Saturday morning and thought I was going to pass out on the side of the road, as my stomach was ripped out of my body by three fists grabbing and twisting it until it snapped. Or because I ate a big egg-white omlette with ground beef and turkey bacon and then went on a run, and apparently not eating carbs before running is indeed a bad choice.
You might remember that my nutritionist said that the body will start burning fat instead of carbs, so I should be fine running the half marathon on this low-carb diet. This is a lie. I never want to feel like I did on Saturday ever again. I am not running the half marathon this Sunday. Coincidentally, my boyfriend, who I was running the half marathon with-ish (he was running the full), hurt his achilles tendon and isn’t running either.
I dug a little into the research about burning fat instead of carbs, and apparently it DOES work. It just take two weeks for your body to truly convert. Two weeks?! She knew my marathon was in two weeks, why on earth would she prescribe this?!
I am learning more and more how to eat on the diet, so that’s going better, but I am frustrated by the length of time it takes the body to adjust. Truth is, I’d rather be playing sand volleyball than running 13 miles, so I don’t really mind not running the half marathon, but it’s just the insensitivity to my plans that’s bothering me.
Moral of the story: Low-carb is doable, and doable while exercising, IF you give your body time to adjust. I’m not as grouchy this week, so that’s good too. The body is amazing, and can adjust, but must be given time!