Why Should Your Endurance Training Include Gut Training as Well?

“If you fail to train, you train to fail.”

A modified version of the quote by Benjamin Franklin that holds significance when it comes to training for endurance sports and races.

But when it comes to endurance training, you shouldn’t limit it to your mind and limbs, right? Your gut needs to be trained as well. Here’s why.

Your Body’s Energy Stores Are Insufficient!

Endurance sports usually demand high performance levels for long durations from your body. From an energy point of view, your body has just enough energy stores to sustain activity for a couple of hours. This also varies depending on the intensity of your activity. This means you need to constantly keep replenishing your energy stores during a race to sustain performance and cross the finish line successfully.

While running, you can choose to consume dates or energy gels or even a sugary cola drink to replenish your energy. But eventually, it is your gut that needs to digest and absorb it all.

THIS is why gut training needs to form a part of your training plan.

Most runners think that fueling is simple: when you feel tired on your race day, just down a food item that packs carbohydrates and you will be golden. That approach works, until it doesn’t.

Here’s Why Your Fuelling Gets You To The Loo and Not The Finish Line!

When your body is in motion, your muscles are constantly working and need oxygen to keep working. This oxygen is delivered to your muscles via the blood. Now, your body is pretty ingenious. If you are running a marathon, your leg muscles are being used and your body dedicates or diverts large amounts of nutrient and oxygen-rich blood to these muscles.

Now, the moment you consume any food item while running a race, your body needs to reconfigure. It needs to divert some blood to your gut to digest and absorb the food you’re ingesting while also ensuring that the supply to your working leg muscles is constant. Your body is now at a crossroads.

If you haven’t trained for this, things can go south pretty fast.

Quite Simply Put, Your Body Needs To Get Accustomed To Consuming Food While Running.

If you practice consuming food during your training runs, your body begins accepting the fact that along with your legs, your gut will need to be performing as well on race day. Trying out different carbohydrate options also allows you to figure out which source works well for your gut and which doesn’t.

And of course, we always go back to the old adage: Don’t try anything new on race day. Use your training runs for that.

So What Are A Few Guidelines You Can Follow To Train Your Gut?

Training vs. Racing: Different goals, different fueling

In training, not every run needs fuel. Easy runs can be done without carbs to encourage certain adaptations.

But racing is different.

Race day is about maximizing performance, which means keeping your energy levels stable from start to finish. That requires a consistent intake of carbohydrates, something your body needs to be prepared for.

Your gut is trainable. But it does take time.

Here’s what many runners overlook: your gut needs time to adapt just like your legs.

With regular practice over long durations, your gut can adapt to absorb more carbs efficiently and with less discomfort.

Here’s what you could incorporate into your gut training plan:

During training:

• Skip fuel on short, easy runs. Practice fueling during long runs that exceed 2 hours.
• Start simple and build gradually. Begin with small amounts of carbs during long runs. Increase carb intake over time.
• Use the same products you’ll use on race day
• Have a few practice sessions where you are consuming carbs at race intensity

Use these techniques to train your gut to help you get across the finish line feeling like a champion.