When to use this
Setting the distance group's weekly fueling routine — preseason, or the first week workouts go flat for no training reason.
- A runner fading in interval sessions after a light school lunch.
- Building the pre-practice snack and post-practice recovery habit for the distance group.
- A race-day plan that keeps unraveling because the week before it was under-fueled.
Advanced lab
The daily carb plan for the distance group
The sheet names the habits. What they look like as real meals across a school day is here.
This guidance is derived from adult endurance research and scales conservatively for growing athletes. A runner who cannot reach steady daily fuel without distress, or whose intake keeps drifting down, should see a sports dietitian rather than push harder.
Evidence sources
These references support the handout’s general education. Individual medical, supplement, laboratory, or injury questions should be handled by the appropriate qualified clinician.
- Thomas DT, Erdman KA, Burke LM. Nutrition and Athletic Performance. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2016.
- Burke LM, Hawley JA, Wong SHS, Jeukendrup AE. Carbohydrates for training and competition. J Sports Sci. 2011.
Where to go next
