Chicken Soup for the Runner’s Pre-Race Meal
The Chicken Soup for the Soul series is one of my favorite books to read. There is even a Chicken Soup for the Runner’s Soul with Dean Karnazes on the cover. But it’s not just the book that is great for runners. Research shows that chicken soup is really good for runners when taken before a run.
Scientists in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, found out that runners who ate two cups of chicken-noodle soup before a run had better hydration and electrolyte levels after a 90-minute run than runners who drank only water before the run.
Researchers credit this to the salt content of the soup making runners more thirsty and making them drink more water while running.
In another research, chicken soup is also great remedy for colds and runny nose. You can check out the recipe used in the published study here. It looks healthy and delicious with all the vegetables that makes up the soup.
It doesn’t matter if the chicken soup is home-made, frozen, or from the can. It also doesn’t matter if the soup has noodles or none. They all show similar effect. However, do check the labels on commercially available soup for its nutritional value and fat content.
Runners World recommends having soup with about 800 mg of sodium per cup before a run.
Hmmm… I wonder if chicken tinola works just the same for a pre run meal. 😀
Photo Credit: Cooking Light
About The Author
ManokanRunner
Jinoe Gavan is the founder of this award-winning blog Takbo.ph, The Filipino Running Community. Known as ManokanRunner, he is a computer addict on weekdays, a church leader on weekends and a runner in all days of the week. He wants to run and cover as many miles in many places as he could. Read more about his life in the urban jungle with all the distractions and the fun of raising his son in DaddyandtheCity(dot)com.
Chicken Tinola sounds good as alternative for the noodle soup 🙂 plus malunggay leaves for more protein. 🙂