Need for grains

[runningwild]

Question I'm hoping some can weigh in on.

I've been on a nutrition plan (as laid out by a nutritionist) for the last 3 months due to an injury that kept me sidelined from all activity except walking.  The plan was designed to help me keep from gaining weight, as I went from very active, to not at all active!

This plan only allows for 1-2 servings of grains per day, getting the remaining carbs from fruits and veggies.  I've been cleared to get back to running, slowly, and was wondering whether or not 1-2 servings of grains will be enough to sustain running.

I am a beginner, and was when I got injured, so my runs will be short, especially since I've been off for 6 months.  Is it true that a runners primary source of energy is through carbs?  And if this is true, can I sustain running 3 times per week (for only about 30 minutes) without eating much grains?

Any thoughts are welcome!!

Thanks!

[Sandy]

Glad to hear your have been cleared to run again.  You are correct that carbs are the gas that takes us from point a to b.  As long as you are getting at LEAST 55% of your daily calories from carbs you will be fine.  It sounds like you are getting in lots of fruits and veggies which are great sources of carbs so I don't believe you will have a problem.  Remember that grains are complex carbs and take longer to break down to simple carbs which is what is absorbed and used.  When you begin running you need to go at an easy pace which will allow your body to tap into body fat and rely solely on available carbs.