Kinda Long Run Season

Okay, glycogen is our term for what does that even mean? And we've talked about this word a few times on the podcast.

It's going to come up later in today's show, but I don't think we've actually said what it is.

So, Travis, what is glycogen?

Simply put, glycogen is your body's stored form of carbohydrates.

Think of it as your body's fuel tank for running.

So when you eat foods like pasta, rice, potatoes, fruit, bread, sports drinks, really anything that's good, you know.

Your body converts those carbohydrates into glycogen and stores it primarily in your muscles and in your liver.

Now, during a long run, or any run for that matter, especially at faster efforts, the body relies heavily on those glycogen stores for energy because that's the quickest fuel source that is available.

Here's the catch, though.

Your glycogen tank isn't unlimited, and most runners only have enough stored glycogen to fuel about 90 to 120 minutes of of running.

And so maybe, and that can be extended a little bit, but that's when you start running low.

And that's really all, even when you hear about the wall in a marathon, 20 miles in, it's really like, it's that point where most people, if they're taking no, extra nutrition or any extra carbs on a marathon race, that's when like your glycogen stores are bottomed out and you got nothing left and you just hit this wall.

It's really more about the glycogen stores than it is the mile number 20.

It just, that's just where it happens to hit for a lot of people there.

But those are some of the basics of glycogen there.

And that's why we practice fueling during long runs too, to kind of help that not bottom out, I guess you could say.

Yeah, taking gels, chews, sports drinks, any of those things that's got carbohydrates in it before your tank gets low keeps, you know, gas in the tank essentially.

And so that's how you can kind of think of it from that standpoint.

All right.

Well, that was our what does that even mean segment.

If you guys have a term you want defined, send it to us and we will be happy to add it in one of the future shows.

Okay, glycogen is our term for what does that even mean? And we've talked about this word a few times on the podcast.

It's going to come up later in today's show, but I don't think we've actually said what it is.

So, Travis, what is glycogen?

Simply put, glycogen is your body's stored form of carbohydrates.

Think of it as your body's fuel tank for running.

So when you eat foods like pasta, rice, potatoes, fruit, bread, sports drinks, really anything that's good, you know.

Your body converts those carbohydrates into glycogen and stores it primarily in your muscles and in your liver.

Now, during a long run, or any run for that matter, especially at faster efforts, the body relies heavily on those glycogen stores for energy because that's the quickest fuel source that is available.

Here's the catch, though.

Your glycogen tank isn't unlimited, and most runners only have enough stored glycogen to fuel about 90 to 120 minutes of of running.

And so maybe, and that can be extended a little bit, but that's when you start running low.

And that's really all, even when you hear about the wall in a marathon, 20 miles in, it's really like, it's that point where most people, if they're taking no, extra nutrition or any extra carbs on a marathon race, that's when like your glycogen stores are bottomed out and you got nothing left and you just hit this wall.

It's really more about the glycogen stores than it is the mile number 20.

It just, that's just where it happens to hit for a lot of people there.

But those are some of the basics of glycogen there.

And that's why we practice fueling during long runs too, to kind of help that not bottom out, I guess you could say.

Yeah, taking gels, chews, sports drinks, any of those things that's got carbohydrates in it before your tank gets low keeps, you know, gas in the tank essentially.

And so that's how you can kind of think of it from that standpoint.

All right.

Well, that was our what does that even mean segment.

If you guys have a term you want defined, send it to us and we will be happy to add it in one of the future shows.