Question:
My running partner and I trained all summer for the upcoming Boston marathon. We drank our blended salads and ate pretty close to the Eat to Live diet, but we have to make too many pit stops on long runs due to all the fiber we consumed. We are both looking to gain seconds as we are really close to our goal times to qualify for the marathon. We will be drinking our usual gatorade and taking GU at intervals throughout the race. We usually have a whole wheat bagel with peanut butter and a banana or muesli with soy milk a couple of hours before long runs. I don't believe that this is the problem, but instead, it's the large amounts of fiber we eat the day before a long run. What should we eat the day before we race that is relatively low in fiber and will give us energy? I am thinking of either white pasta, bagels, or just juice the day before the race. Can you give us the magic formula?

Answer:
I never recommend white flour and sugar for athletes. It is better to consume potatoes, bananas, and iron fortified, brown rice baby cereal as your starch source before the day you run and eat the date nut pop-ems, too. Mostly, stay away from salads and cruciferous veggies the day before a race.

Question 2:
I keep reading that, for vegan athletes, sodium is so important they will benefit from sea salt or other sodium supplements during hard training or during any hard event, and if they don't get this extra sodium, they risk getting muscle cramps. Is any of this true or only misinformation? Does hard training or demanding events require additional sodium? And, are muscle cramps caused by lack of enough sodium?

Answer:
It is misinformation. If you are on a high sodium diet, you will excrete a lot of sodium in your urine and sweat and have a need for more of it under times of stress, such as a marathon. If you are accustomed to a low sodium diet, your kidney and skin will not excrete lots of sodium, and supplementation during heavy and prolonged exersicse will not be necessary.