Finding Ultra (36 page)

I've shown you the scientific underpinnings of the PlantPower Diet, and now you understand
why
I eat the way I do. But the question remains,
What precisely do I eat, and when?

The best way to answer this question is to walk you through a typical day in my life with food.

But before I begin, a disclaimer. I spend the majority of my year training for ultra-endurance events, often upward of fifteen to twenty-five hours per week. Depending on the phase of my training cycle, in a typical week I log 10,000 to 30,000 yards in the pool, 100 to 250 miles of cycling, and 25 to 80 miles of running. And throw in some gym work and yoga to boot. So you might be tempted to assume that my portions and caloric intake so far exceed that of the average person that a look at my daily diet is pointless. To some extent that's true. I ask a lot of my body. In turn, it places a considerable nutritional burden on me. My caloric and nutritional needs are indeed higher than the average person's. And many things I eat are consumed for the express purpose of fueling my training and enhancing athletic performance.

But as previously explained, over the last few years my body has become incredibly efficient in bearing this exercise load. An aerobic bike ride of, say, forty to fifty miles, once daunting, now to me feels equivalent to a light jog to the mailbox. And because of the high nutrient density of the foods I eat, my daily caloric intake isn't as
high as you might think. The gap from me to you is actually not that vast—the principles remain the same.

And all science aside, I
enjoy
my food. Far from following a bland deprivation regime, I follow a diet that includes a wide variety of delicious dishes developed by my wife and me to fuel my endurance endeavors
and
please even the finicky palates of our children.

You can find the specific recipes for many of the dishes described below—and more—in our
Jai Seed Vegan eCookbook
(see
Appendix III
, Resources).

MORNING / PRE-WORKOUT
KICK-START THE METABOLISM

ALKALIZE
.
Upon waking, I immediately drink a tall glass of water with two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar. This alkalizes my body pH.

ENDURANCE ELIXIR
.
Prior to a morning training session, I typically drink one-half cup of Ascended Health Endurance Elixir, a thick, dark green concoction I've developed in partnership with microbiologist Compton Rom over the last four years. Containing dozens of live and fermented plant-based ingredients, it's a critical component of my nutrition program and deserves ample credit for keeping me strong, healthy, and fresh while enabling me to bear a rigorous training load. Composed of probiotics, organic greens, marine phytoplankton, the purest form of endurance-boosting maca, fermented seeds and beans, Cordyceps mushroom extracts, enzymes, adaptogens, and some of the purest and most potent antioxidants sourced from all over the world, like resveratrol extracted from the finest Bordeaux grape skins, this get-up-and-go concoction provides me with an immediate source of energy more than
sufficient to get me through a morning workout of ninety minutes or less. If you're interesting in learning more about this and other Ascended Health products, see
Appendix III
, Resources.

PRE-WORKOUT VITAMIX
.
I also blend a light drink that typically contains dark leafy greens (such as kale, spinach, beet greens, and Swiss chard) as well as a modest amount of organic fruit. Pineapple, grapefruit, orange, apple, blueberries, strawberries, and spirulina regularly find their way into my rotation. Also, chia seeds, beets, and maca root to boost endurance. Another thing I'll add is a few almonds or walnuts, as well as a tablespoon or two of oil (coconut, hemp, Udo's 3-6-9, and Vega EFA top my list) for bioavailable fats to fuel my ride, run, or swim. But let me be clear: I have no singular recipe. Each day is different. I don't wed myself to any particular brew or get overly caught up in exact proportions. Variety is important. I like to cycle and experiment, and the mix generally depends on my level of fatigue, the intensity and duration of the looming workout, and, more often than not, what we happen to have in our refrigerator or pantry that day. The take-away is
don't be rigid
. Stock your kitchen with a wide variety of the healthy items described in this book, then experiment. Pay close attention to how different ingredients impact your energy, mood, and appetite. Find what works for you, which items best suit your taste, and expand from there.

PRE-WORKOUT BREAKFAST
.
In general, the Vitamix more than suffices. But if I'm feeling worn out, have a big day ahead, or am simply still hungry, a slice of gluten-free toast with almond butter does the trick. Alternatively, cold quinoa with coconut milk and berries serves as a great high-protein breakfast cereal. Sometimes I'll mix in a teaspoon of coconut oil or EFA oil (such as that offered by Vega Sport or Udo's). And I'll feel free to sprinkle some chia seeds on
top for a superfood kick. When I'm facing a short workout (1 hour or less) as opposed to a long endurance slog on the bike, higher glycemic (simple sugar) foods such as dates work great for a quick energy boost.

THE FAT-BURNING SESSION
.
There's evidence to suggest that you can enhance the body's ability to efficiently burn fat as fuel—critical for excelling in endurance sports—by occasionally doing what's called a “calorie deprivation” workout. This is a session—typically a run or a bike ride of varying length—in which you dispense with breakfast altogether and just get out for a morning training session on nothing but water and electrolyte tablets. But this is hardly a daily practice. I recommend only doing it once a week, tops. It's something to integrate very slowly and incrementally into your routine, and a regimen I advise against until you're in solid physical condition. Once the exercise session is complete, it's important to immediately replenish the body's electrolytes and glycogen stores to properly recover in time for the next workout.

DURING WORKOUT
HYDRATE—AND TAKE IN ENERGY

ELECTROLYTES AND HYDRATION
.
No matter how short the workout, I always make sure I hydrate and replenish my electrolytes every twenty to thirty minutes throughout the session. I prefer coconut water for electrolytes, primarily because it's natural. Vega makes a powdered product called Electrolyte Hydrator, which is also a great source of electrolytes and other natural plant-based nutrients that help sustain energy levels. Alternatively, I'll use an electrolyte supplement such as SaltStick or Endurolytes capsules, readily available at most bike shops and running shoe retailers. But my general rule of thumb is to drink a minimum of twelve ounces
of electrolyte-laced water every thirty minutes, depending on heat, humidity, and workout duration.

CARBOHYDRATES
.
My rule of thumb is to take in about two hundred calories per hour while performing workouts that exceed two hours in length (with the exception of the occasional calorie-deprivation workout). Often this is a challenge for me, since I don't like to eat or drink too much when I'm training. But it's important to do so, not so much to fuel that workout but to avoid feeling depleted or lethargic for the remainder of the day, or the day following. I always prefer to eat “real” foods for this. A lightly baked yam, bananas, almond butter rice balls, and avocado or almond butter sandwiches all work well for cycling. As previously discussed at length, I shun popular sugary drinks and gels. But there are a few bars out there I like—organic and natural varieties such as those offered by WildBar, Vega Sport, ProBar, and Clif (not all Clif Bars are vegan, so check the label). And many people create their own homemade vegan energy bars. If you're so inclined, check
NoMeatAthlete.com
for some good recipes or do a simple Google search. For running and high-intensity interval-oriented cycling workouts, I find liquid nutrition is most easily digested and assimilated. Amazingly, I can pack up to nine hundred calories of non-GMO maltodextrin-based complex carbohydrate powder, such as Perpetuem by Hammer Nutrition, into one sixteen-ounce bottle. Maltodextrin can also be bought in bulk online. It tastes like pancake batter, so I like to lace it with some fruit juice or coconut water for flavor. On hot days, prepare and freeze the bottled concoction overnight so it slowly thaws throughout your workout, staying cold for several hours.

THINGS TO AVOID
.
Again, I generally refrain from eating any of the artificially colored sugary products popular among most endurance
athletes—like those gooey gels and Gatorade-type drinks such as Cytomax or Powerade. Or “energy” bars (other than those listed above), most of which contain a ton of artificial additives as well as whey protein, a dairy extract derived from cheese production. Chemical additives aside, the high glycemic “simple sugar” content of these products causes a rapid spike in blood sugar. To the extent that a short workout or race induces low blood sugar, this spike can be a good thing, giving the body access to a quick-burning fuel source. But be advised: Once you've boosted your blood sugar in this manner, you must then continuously put into the bloodstream high-glycemic-content foods for the duration of your training session. Fail to do so and the concomitant spike in insulin levels—the body's natural response to a sudden increase in blood sugar—will rapidly pull these sugars out of the blood, causing you to “crash” or run out of steam. Because the duration of my training sessions often exceeds several hours, I prefer to get my energy from a lower glycemic (complex carbohydrate) source (like yams or maltodextrin), which is more effective in maintaining an even and stable level of blood sugar over extended periods of time.

All that being said, I do carry one or two of those gels with me just in case I feel myself starting to “bonk,” a common energy crash that occurs if I miscalculate my caloric needs and under-fuel. And to be fair, there's some scientific evidence to suggest that the mere taste of sugar alone sends signals to the brain that fuel is on the way. The brain in turn messages the body that despite fatigue, there's no need for metabolic panic—or shutting down the body. Thus, in certain situations—again, in the context of a race or the onset of deep fatigue in the latter phases of an extended or particularly challenging workout—simple sugar products in the form of gels or drinks have their place. But as a general rule, I do my best to avoid them.

POST-WORKOUT
REPLENISH, REFUEL, REBUILD

Studies have established that the optimal period to begin the post-workout recovery process is within thirty minutes of ending a workout—a time when the body is most capable of directing the appropriate nutrients toward repairing the damage induced by exercise stress. It's thus critical to replenish the body's electrolyte, glycogen, and protein stores within this window.

Because they're most easy to digest, begin with liquids, then add whole foods slowly over the following hour. Immediately after returning from a workout, I drink a tall glass of cold coconut water for electrolytes, plus a quart or two of water, the amount varying depending on heat and duration of workout.

Consensus opinion states that post-exercise one should consume about .75 grams of carbohydrate per pound of body weight—and about 1 gram of protein for every 3 to 5 grams of carbohydrate ingested. But again, I never give these numbers too much thought. Using them more as a thumbnail, I simply pull out the Vitamix. I mix up dark leafy greens, like kale, spinach, and spirulina, with some lemon or apple cider vinegar to quickly alkalize my system. I add foods high in antioxidants, like strawberries, blueberries, acai, and goji berries, to fight the exercise-induced free radical damage. Also: pumpkin seeds for iron, plus fruits high in vitamin C to aid the iron absorption. I'll also maybe add some avocado and chia and hemp seeds for omega-3s. Plus a scoop of Jai Repair Performance Recovery Supplement to ensure a full array of essential amino acids to expedite the rebuilding of weary muscles. There's no need to drink an entire blender's worth in one sitting. Sometimes I'll do that, but not generally. As I said earlier, have a glass or two and thermos the rest.