Yesterday was one of those days. I've been really hungry ever since hiking Timp and couldn't seem to satisfy my belly. I finally decided that perhaps my body was trying to tell me something and that I should eat a bit more than my standard 1200 calories per day for just one day. So rather than a small dinner, I made up some whole-wheat pasta carbonara and ate a decent sized portion. I haven't tallied it up yet, but I probably finished the day around 1600-1700 calories. Definitely higher than normal, but nothing to be horribly ashamed about. Guess what? I finally feel like my body is satisfied. And this morning when I did a spot check weigh-in I weighed less than I did yesterday, so obviously it wasn't damaging and it was what my body needed. I call it a "gimme day."
Sometimes I think we get so focused on the details that we forget to listen to our bodies' needs. Admittedly, I ate only 1180 calories on Saturday which was the day of my big hike. I wanted to stay so close to my calorie goals for the day that I didn't listen to my body telling me it needed more to recover. My muscles paid for it--I was much sorer than I expected and it lasted longer than expected.
I'm going to take this lesson and apply it this weekend. I'm going to properly feed myself before my 10K and after. I also think that improper food timing has been what is causing my pains while I run. I'm testing that theory today with my 3.2 mile run. I'll let you know what I find out!
I've probably mentioned this already this week...but I am REALLY nervous for my 10K. AAHHHH!! Sometimes I wonder why I sign myself up for this things, but then I remember that it is the races/challenges that keep my motivated to run every other day and stay in shape. I'm going to need another challenge after this one!
I'm all for "Gimme Days" as long as they are periodically :-) Good for you for listening to your body for cues on what it needed.
ReplyDeleteGood luck on the 10k! You will do great!
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