Sports Nutrition 234: Four Ways To Avoid GI Distress On Race Day, Frequency of Fasting and Carb Refeeds, and To Wash Your Veggies or Eat 'Em Dirty

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On this show with Ben Greenfield:

What's the deal with Veggie Wash and washing our produce?

• Are spray fruit washes to better-clean produce worthwhile? Does it remove pesticides more than hot water would? Is it worthwhile? Pros and cons.
• In choosing organic vs. non-organic the rule of thumb to go by (hint: does it have a protective layer of skin that is edible or not?)
• Do we really need to be so anal about washing our produce? For example, there are many benefits of soil-based probiotics. If you’re buying from a reputable source like a Certified Organic Farmers Market vendor, or growing produce in your own backyard how does the need to wash food change?

On intermittent fasting (IF) and carb refeeds:

• What are the suggested guidelines for IF frequency for males and females.
• How to schedule in carb refeeds for endurance athletes to avoid chronically too low carb, and using carbs strategically.
• With a carb refeed every day:

1. Women need 100-150 gram/CHO a day
2. Men need 150-200 g/CHO a day

• This is assuming the athlete was LCHF in prior meals that day.
• With frequent carb refeeds, is this ok for athletes looking to improve health and blood sugar management? It comes down to GLUT 4 Regulators and insulin management.
• Supplements to manage BG and/or make you insulin sensitive:

1. Ceylon Cinnamon
2. Bitter Melon extract
3. Apple Cider Vinegar (before meals)

• Then in your year or season if you're an athlete in training and racing aim for cyclic ketosis, not year-round ketosis.

For fat-adapted athletes, how do you “train the gut” for longer endurance events

• Is it different than "traditional" sports nutrition approaches?
• Practice once every 2 weeks or so, or at least 3-4 times total before an A race
• Tips to mitigate gut permeability (i.e. leaky gut) and maintain gut barrier function during training and racing so it's not compromised and we absorb our nutrients and fluids while feeling ok.
• Upregulating nitric oxide production as a way to reduce GI issues commonly experienced, i.e. if gut is experiencing lack of blood flow that is common during exercise and this is causing severe GI problems as a result, then manipulation of blood flow to the gut by upregulating nitric oxide production could be a way to reduce symptoms according because nitric oxide amy cause vasodilation in the gut according to some research out there. The use of glutamine–arginine–citrulline or nitrate supplementation could help.

4 Ways to bulletproof your gut before a race (starting 2 weeks in advance):

1. Load with probiotics (get 10% off Sound Probiotics with code "enduranceplanet" here)
2. Pair with colostrum
3. Take Restore for Gut Health
4. Avoid NSAIDs

More resources on upregulating nitric oxide in the literature:

• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4008808/#CR19
• http://ajpgi.physiology.org/content/303/2/G155