Before all the monkey business with my wrist started, I was on a quest to find more runner-friendly recipes—those nutritional power-house meals that taste delicious and sit easy in the stomach for upcoming workouts. I’m revisiting that goal now, and trying a new regular feature sharing whichever of these recipes, with an added twist: They’ll also involve whatever goodies I get in my weekly CSA (community supported agriculture) share from Norman’s Farm Market.
Last week's CSA included lots of squash—perfect pre-race fuel!
The first week’s edition isn’t a recipe so much as my new go-to lunch before an evening run. I enjoyed one of these tasty little pitas before the Clifton Caboose 5K last Saturday, and found it was enough to fill me up for the afternoon without sitting like a rock in my stomach come race-time.
I started by cutting a few summer squashes into chunks, sprinkling them with sea salt, pepper and garlic powder, and cooking them in a grill pan …
… until they were criss-crossed with grill marks …
… then, stuffed them into a toasted, whole-wheat pita. Suggested additions: red pepper strips (totally not in season; sorry, Michael Pollan!), tomato paste (thanks for the idea, Angela at Oh She Glows!).
My pita was so delicious, I couldn't resist taking a few bites as soon as it was ready!
Unnecessary disclaimer: I’m not a nutritionist or a chef or anything; just a home cook and middle-of-the-pack runner with a finicky stomach.
Another unnecessary disclaimer: I admittedly don’t have the whole stomach-friendly thing down just yet, as illustrated by my ill-fated decision to snack on almonds and cashews at 5:30 p.m. yesterday afternoon, leading to a puketastic 7 p.m. group run.
Which runner’s-stomach-friendly foods and recipes are you relying on right now?
Amy Reinink 
Looks awesome. Maybe too much fiber for me the night before a run but man do I love squash.
Joe
oooh, your poor tummy! this is weird, but I chew some kind of mint gum when I run, which seems to soothe my tummy – I used to have a lot of problems, and they’ve been resolved by some combo of the mint and a much better diet. probably the diet, but, you never know! 🙂
Interesting … is it regular, mint-flavored gum, or some special gum that actually contains mint? I tried peppermint capsules at one point (tummy issues=long, ongoing problem for which I’ve seen doctors and seemingly tried everything), and while they didn’t really seem to help, I get the idea behind them ….
Have you tried chia seeds? I can definitely tell a difference when I incorporate them regularly into my diet. Plus, they’re supposed to give you more endurance!
I’ve been curious about chia seeds in general, but hadn’t thought about them for a stomach-soother. How do you use them? Do you eat them pre-run, or just regularly throughout the day?
Check out this website – http://chiaforhealth.com/
You’ll also find some information if you google “chia for ibs” or “chia for stomach issues”.
I try to get 1 scoop per day either in a smoothie or in my oatmeal or cereal. When I am consistent with that, I notice things are way more “regular”. 🙂
Good luck!
I pretty much avoid dairy when I’m training because it upsets my stomach. Otherwise, whole grain carbs and nut butters are my favorite fuel
That sounds delicious! Not this this a stomach friendly recommendation, but I’m gonna try making pizza crust from riced cauliflower…have you ever heard of that?
No … but it sounds amazing. Tell me how it goes!