Ask a Sports Dietitian: What to Eat on Rest Days, Holiday Nutrition Tips, and More
Should you eat less on rest days? How do you keep your fueling on track when holiday chaos hits? And are trendy supplements like ketones worth the hype?
These are just a few of the questions you’ve sent me lately, and in Episode 149 of The Eat for Endurance Podcast, I’m answering them! It’s also my last full episode of the season, and I couldn’t think of a better way to wrap things up than with your questions.
Here's what I cover:
How to eat on rest days and lighter training weeks
Holiday nutrition tips for staying fueled without the stress
A quick take on exogenous ketones and sodium bicarb
General strategies for fueling long runs when you have reflux or GERD
Returning to running after an eating disorder, and why you can't always rely on hunger cues
How to find a dietitian who accepts insurance
What to do when your healthcare providers give you conflicting advice
Since some of these questions involve health conditions, I keep my answers general and educational. Think of them as a starting point for a conversation with your own care team, not a replacement for it.
What to Eat on Rest Days (It Depends on Your Training)
A listener in grad school asked how she should eat on rest or easy days versus training days, when her busy schedule only allows her to train longer a couple of days per week. It's a great question, because a rest day doesn't mean the same thing for everyone.
Should You Eat Less on Rest Days?
The short answer is, not as much as you might think! While it depends on the bigger picture of your training, rest days are when a lot of your recovery happens. Cutting way back can leave you feeling flat for your next workout and can backfire with intense hunger later on.
When figuring out what to eat on rest days, zoom out and look at your whole week:
Rest days during a moderate to high volume training block: Eat similarly to your training days. Your body is still busy repairing muscle and restocking glycogen stores for your next session.
Rest days during a lower-volume stretch: Think balanced, everyday eating for an active person, with regular meals and snacks that include protein, carbs, fruits and vegetables, and some fat. You may scale your carb portions down a bit, but carbs don't disappear!
Athlete performance plates are a helpful tool, and can give you a sense of how to adjust what you're eating on rest days depending on your total training volume.
What a Rest Day Plate Looks Like
Protein: Include it at every meal and snack, just like on training days. It supports muscle repair and keeps you satisfied. This doesn't change much day to day.
Carbs: You may be able to pull back a bit, but scale your portions to upcoming sessions (e.g. are you doing a longer run tomorrow?) and your overall training week rather than dramatically reducing.
Fruits and vegetables: Load up for fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.
Fats: Things like olive oil, nuts, seeds, and avocado add flavor and help you feel full. They're also very energy dense and can be scaled up or down depending on your needs.
Fluids: Keep sipping throughout the day, especially after a big training day.
What About Training Days?
Even if there are only two main days per week, it's important to fuel before, during (if it's longer than 60-75 minutes), and after. The harder and longer the session, the more carbs you need.
I have many resources on what to eat before a long run, during a long run, and after a run for anyone who would like to learn more.
And one more thing: Long days and commutes also make it really easy to under-eat without meaning to. If you're starving at night or on the weekends, that's often a sign you didn't eat enough earlier in the day or week. Pack an actual lunch (not a bar!) and keep snacks on hand (you know I never go anywhere without mine).
For more help, check out my Everyday Fueling masterclass, which shows you how to adjust your meals for rest days, easy days, and hard training days.
Holiday Nutrition Tips for Staying Fueled
Another listener asked for advice to get through the holidays without his nutrition completely going off the rails. What I always tell my clients is that the holidays don't call for a whole new nutrition approach, just a little more flexibility.
Here are a few quick tips:
Don't skip meals or "save up" for a big dinner. You'll show up ravenous and more likely to overeat.
Check in with your hunger, energy levels, and how you feel during and after holiday meals.
Plan ahead for travel days, and pack your snacks!
Move because it feels good, not to "earn" or "burn off" food.
For a deeper dive, check out my holiday nutrition blog post and bonus episode.
Are Ketones and Sodium Bicarb Worth It?
A listener wrote in asking if supplements like exogenous ketones and sodium bicarbonate were worth trying. My short answer: probably not, for most people.
Performance supplements are always the cherry on top. If your everyday eating and in-workout fueling aren't dialed in yet, that's where you should start because that's where you'll see the biggest gains.
Here's a bit more info:
Exogenous ketones are expensive, can cause GI issues, and have limited evidence in real-world endurance settings. The most promising research points to using them after exercise for recovery. If you're curious, try them in training!
Sodium bicarbonate has good research behind it, but mostly for short, high-intensity efforts, and GI distress is a real risk. It's being used among some endurance athletes, but even Maurten's own sports dietitian advises against using it if you haven't dialed in the basics.
I've covered both in more depth in Episode 117 with Vic Johnson and Episode 122 with Lauren Thomas.
Fueling Long Runs with GERD
A listener who was recently diagnosed with GERD (Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease) asked how to keep fueling her long runs.
While I can't give individualized advice on a podcast, here are some general strategies that tend to help:
Look at the overall concentration of what you're taking in. Very concentrated carb drinks (or gels on top of a carb drink) may worsen upper GI symptoms.
Stay hydrated, since dehydration can make GI symptoms worse.
Test common triggers like caffeine, acidic (e.g. citrus) flavors, and carbonation one at a time.
Choose smaller, lower-fat, lower-fiber meals before long runs, and allow more time to digest.
Just don't stop fueling altogether! Under-fueling comes with its own set of problems.
If you're taking a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) for GERD, keep the conversation going with your doctor about how long you need it. Long-term use may lower absorption of nutrients like vitamin B12, magnesium, and iron, so it's worth reviewing regularly.
Learn more about GI issues in Episode 137 with Kylee Van Horn.
Returning to Running After an Eating Disorder
Another listener emailed me about returning to running and how to fuel after recovering from an eating disorder. Recovery looks different for everyone, so this is a conversation to have with your team of providers, including a dietitian who specializes in athletes and eating disorders.
A few general principles to keep in mind are:
Hunger and fullness cues often aren't reliable after an eating disorder, and hard workouts can blunt appetite even more. Structured, regular eating can help.
Exercise isn't automatically off-limits, but if you did take a break from exercise, reintroduce it gradually with your team's guidance and support.
Fuel before/during/after your runs, don't compensate on rest days, and plan ahead (e.g. easy meals/snacks) for transitions and stressful periods.
Reaching out for help early is not a step backward. It's part of staying well.
How to Find a Dietitian (and What to Do When Your Providers Disagree)
Lastly, I received several questions from a listener who wanted to work with a dietitian, but remarked that his insurance company only covered one in very specific medical circumstances. He also asked for advice when you're receiving conflicting information from different healthcare providers.
Some dietitians, including some sports dietitians, accept insurance, and coverage often depends on why you're seeing one. The Find a Nutrition Expert tool on eatright.org is a great place to start your search. I do not accept insurance, but I do provide superbills for anyone with out-of-network benefits or FSA/HSA accounts.
When advice from providers conflicts, you have to consider which type of provider is giving you what type of information. For instance, physicians typically receive very little nutrition training, while dietitians go to school specifically for nutrition. Red flags include a PT or trainer writing you meal plans, giving you supplements to take, and reviewing labs, or a physician telling you to cut out all carbs or that your ferritin of 15 is normal.
And please remember... we're all unique individuals. We respond differently to medications, training plans, and even the same foods, which is exactly why individualized support can make such a big difference.
Ready for Personalized Sports Nutrition Support?
I'm currently accepting new 1:1 clients for December, January, and February! If you're ready for a fueling plan that fits your training, your schedule, and your life, here are a few ways we can work together:
Fill out my new client inquiry form to apply for virtual 1:1 nutrition coaching
Join my Fuel for Life Crew membership for $39/month (cancel anytime) and get access to live Q&As, masterclasses, mini guides, and a private community
Browse my sports nutrition masterclasses and Nutrition Mini Guides
Check out my free nutrition downloads
Other Easy Ways to Support the Podcast
This is my last full episode of the season, and I'll be back with new episodes in early January. Thank you so much for listening this year!
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Disclaimer: All information provided is for educational and entertainment purposes only and is in no way meant to replace individual medical and nutrition recommendations.
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