Pre-running: the 3 Cs

Everyone has their pre-run or race rituals and I’m no different. It has however taken me years to finely tune these down to just 3 key elements. Sure, I get my gear on, splash water on my face, feed the cats and tie up my shoes in a certain way, but there are three items that are even more essential than those.

I used to roll out of bed for a morning run about 20 minutes before the scheduled meeting time, just in time to dress and greet my running buddy at the door. Occasionally I’d have a coffee or a slice of toast, if for instance I was up and the run was delayed for some reason, but generally eating was less important to me than the extra few minutes of sleep.

I’m not sure when the turning point occurred, but once it came and I realized what I needed pre-run, it became essential. Well, actually, there was a run when I, um, how do I put this delicately… I had to have a bowel movement, like NOW. Go ahead admit it, it has happened to you! With some concentration, the moment(s) passed and I made it home in time for relief. After that I vowed to not have that happen again. In other words, it was important to get up early enough to deal with that particular bodily function before leaving home. And it was then that I discovered the three Cs that made this all come together nicely.

Caffeine
I love coffee! It is my caffeine source of choice (other than chocolate of course, but that is another post, I’m sure). I love coffee first thing in the morning. I love the ritual of grinding the beans and the waiting for the drip, drip, drip of the wonderful brown elixir to flow into the carafe. I also like a nice French press coffee and on occasion a great latte. I’ve read and I’m sure you too have heard over the years that caffeine, and indeed coffee, is bad for you and then the next year it is discovered that it is good for you. Whatever…, I like it and it seems to not do me any harm. Mind you, I do stop at 2 cups and always before noon, so I do have a bit of restraint in my habit. I’m also not one to have the jitters if I don’t get my coffee fix in the morning, so I think I’m pretty grounded.

I was just reading the latest issue of Runner’s World (March 2014) and voila, there was just the latest vindicating article on page 34: “Coffee Perks: A cup of joe jolts your mood, reduces disease risk, and adds a kick to workouts”. Well, well, doesn’t that say it all! Of course you can get your caffeine fix from tea, but that just doesn’t do the same thing for me as coffee, but if it works for you, go for it.

Carbohydrates
As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, I love bread. I mean what better way to get that pre-run or race boost of carbs than a delicious slice or two of toast with honey or peanut butter or occasionally, when it is available, nummy cashew-macadamia nut butter? Or if you are feeling a little bit French, go for a buttery melt in your mouth croissant (sorry, I digress…). For those of you with gluten intolerances, carbohydrates can be had by numerous other means, including gluten-free breads and cereals.

I also like to have a bit of fruit with my toast and this could be half a grapefruit, a banana or some grapes. Or if you are in the tropics, papaya is a wonderful morning starter fruit. All good for their carbohydrates as well as their body building vitamins and minerals.

Carbohydrates are the fuels our bodies need to run and exercise so don’t skimp on them and especially not before a run or exercise session. I do not intake any more protein than the bread or its accompanying spread provides as this can require too much energy to digest and is best taken after a run to help restore the muscle fibers.

Crap
As I alluded to earlier, it is always a good idea to have a bowel movement before a run, I mean why carry the extra weight? And it will be much more pleasant for you and perhaps your running buddies too, if you do this pre-run. Oh and please excuse me for the crude terminology for my third C. It did take me a while to come up with that one, but once I put all these bits together, it just made sense to me to group them as the three Cs.

In the aforementioned Runner’s World article about coffee, the author also mentioned this delicate topic, but connected the two, “[Coffee] wakes you up, energizes your work out, and – how can we say this nicely? – gets your systems moving, too.” So there, there is a connection between my first and third C and how poetic that it all can come together for a wonderful morning pre-run ritual.

For me to implement my 3Cs routine, I have to get out of bed at least an hour, or sometimes an hour and a half, before my run, but this also gives me plenty of time to relax, check emails, plus feed, pet, and talk to my cats, get dressed, etc. I highly recommend this and I’d love to hear from my dear readers if you do this too or have other rituals that are equally important.

About Denise

I am a runner.