By Angela Sbodio, dietetic intern. If you are a runner, you know what I mean. Have you ever heard the phrase “hitting the wall.”? Do you know what that means? Well, I can tell you my personal experience about “hitting the wall” I remember how excited I was about running my first marathon. I thought to myself: “I am going to break through the limitations of my mind and successfully complete my first marathon.” I had heard about “hitting the wall” when running a marathon, but I thought that with proper training, it would never happen to me. Well, it did. It happened in mile 23. I remember getting tired on mile 20, but I still got game and life was good. Little did I know, what was awaiting ahead…..all of the sudden, I felt like I was going through the Bermuda triangle. My body and my mind were being tested at the same time. I could feel my whole body falling apart with every stroll. I could feel every muscle in my body hurting, screaming for fuel. Every bone in my body aching. I had chills. It was unbearable. I remember thinking why am I doing this to myself? I couldn’t go much longer. I was about done. I could only concentrate on looking at my feet going one in front of the other. At this point, not only I had to deal with my body’s systemic exhaustion, but also with disappointment and frustration from being so near, but yet, the unreachable end….that was when the reality set in and with tears in my eyes I realized that I might not be able to complete my first marathon. I wasn’t in charge anymore.
According to an article in Runner’s world magazine, “Hitting the wall” is defined as “a collapse of the entire system: body and form, brain and soul” Every long distance runner will experience it at one point or another. From what I learned, “hitting the wall” occurs due to depletion of glycogen stores. Glycogen is the way our body stores glucose for energy; an analogy would be putting gasoline in your car, so it can take you places. Our muscles and our brain operate on glucose. When our body runs out of glycogen stores, our liver goes to plan B mode: convert fat into glucose. But there is a problem: this process needs oxygen, and when runners are running a marathon or a half marathon, most of the oxygen available is being used up leaving not enough to complete the deal. The result is muscle cramping, a burning sensation from the lactic acid build up that occurs from running anaerobically. Also, from the lack of glucose, mental confusion, and lack of energy are among “the treats” from “Hitting the wall” experience. What happened to me was that I underestimated the importance of nutrition, I did eat carbohydrates before the race, but I didn’t pay attention to the famous” spaghetti dinner” the night before the race, or the so-called carbohydrate load. To make matters worse, I did not bother eating during the race. I only drank water, paying only attention to hydration. So if you are training for a race, tip number one I am giving you: load on carbs the night before, and number two: don’t forget to eat during the race! After eating a banana and glucose solution that were being handed down to runners (which, I gulped down even though I felt like laying down and dying on the spot) I continued on and focused on overcoming the pain and the voice in my head that wanted me to quit so bad. I did my best and after going through the valley of death, or “hitting the wall” moment, I can proudly say that I did break through the limitations of my mind and body, and completed my first marathon. I learned a very good lesson that day: when running or training, physical training, hydration and nutrition are equally important. Learn from my story, and my mistake of underestimating the importance of nutrition when training for a race….. I thought I would know better since I am a nutritionist!
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