Final Reflection

Now that my project is over, I have been able to make some interesting discoveries. I wanted to look into the effects of a Low-Carb diet on long distance running. After testing this I was able to realize one very important benefit of the diet. When training for a marathon, it is very hard to train yourself until you hit the wall. Most people hit the wall for the first time during the actual race. A Low-Carb diet allows the runner to train within the wall. The wall is a result of exhausting your glycogen stores, which normally takes about 18-20 miles of running to do so. These glycogen stores are made almost exclusively of carbs, so by limiting the carb intake, a Low-Carb runner can easily hit the wall after only 5 miles instead of the 18 it normally takes. When I went to run my first marathon, there was so much running through my head before the race started. The most terrifying thing was the unknown. Since it was my first marathon, I had absolutely no idea of what to expect over the next roughly 4 hours. Would it start raining, when should I eat snacks, when should I drink water, when will I hit the wall, what will it feel like? The most intimidating part of the race was the infamous wall. I had never hit the wall and all I knew is that I will be four fifths of the way through the race and I’ll feel awful. If I had spent a week out of my six months of training doing a Low-Carb diet, I would have been more prepared for the wall. If you are able to get more training runs in where you hit the wall, your body will become more accustomed to making the transition from using carbs as its main source of energy to using fats. Some elite runners will actually fast themselves to get the same effect, but after my experiment I realized that by cutting carbs I can reach ketosis, while increasing protein consumption so that my muscles will be able to recuperate and grow stronger instead of eating themselves as a source of energy. This was the most interesting discovery out of my experiment because I had never heard of anyone being able to do a short-term diet and see potential athletic benefits. I would recommend this diet to anyone looking to gain an advantage during the hardest part of a marathon. Not only does it add a physical advantage, but the psychological benefit of knowing what’s ahead allows the runner to be more comfortable in a very stressful situation. Furthermore, I would not recommend this diet to anyone looking to lose weight. It is not a feasible diet for weight loss because in a general sense, fat burns in the flame of carbs. This being said, I was using fat as my energy source, so essentially I was just processing more fat, because in order to eat enough calories to stay active without eating carbs, you have to eat more fats. When I did the diet, I had to sacrifice my day-to-day life because I always felt tired. That is what makes the diet feasible for short term, athletic gains.