Several people have made comments about my physique. They've noticed it's changed recently, and their feedback is varied, and interesting. At the office, someone said I was too thin. It's true, I've lost body fat around my waistline, and have to pin all my work pants. My sister-in-law said I looked 'cut.' My mom thinks I might be taking this training too far.
She was worried because I looked 'too thin' (I wore a strappy summer top to a backyard BBQ, and she said my ribs were showing). To reassure her, I told her I'm not dieting, not in the conventional sense of trying to 'lose weight' by calorie restriction. This is true.
But when I thought about it later, I decided I am indeed dieting. I'm very carefully noticing (if not always successfully controlling), what I put in my mouth since I started training in April.
My 'diet' has swung from good to horrible these past three months. Good meaning I'm concentrating on ingesting certain foods that support my performance---more protein, less alcohol, less fried food, fewer cookies and chips.When I eat at home and the office, it's mostly vegetarian stews, homemade leftovers, Greek yogurt, and fruit.
Unfortunately, I've lost almost all control at three different family gatherings this spring.(At the BBQ I ate a whole bag of clams, a full lobster, a roll dipped in butter, lots of cheese and crackers, a couple handfuls of chips, two beers---and two pieces of birthday cake. Big pieces. Clearly my mom didn't take note of all that passed my lips that afternoon).
So I wonder as I approach the half-way mark in my training. Am I getting enough calories? If so, does this mean bigger portions, or more frequent healthy snacks throughout the day? Do I need to adjust the nutritional balance toward or away from carbs, protein, fats?
I don't know the answers. But I will do more reading. I'm tinkering a lot during this training, seeing what I need to do mentally and physically to get my body to run 26+ miles efficiently, without pain, at a satisfying pace.
