176. Peak Performance Nutrition: Understanding Carb Loading, Hydration + GI Issues with Meghann Featherstun

This episode of the Female Athlete Nutrition podcast is with  sports dietitian, runner, and mom of two, Meghann Featherstun. As well as helping other athletes with their fueling, Meghann is a rockstar athlete in her own right with multiple marathon finishes. We talk about how she uses her professional knowledge to help her own performance, leading to her best races aged 40 after having kids. We dive deep into marathon and endurance nutrition, focusing on pre-race nutrition. Meghann gives listeners great travel nutrition tips, as well as advice for dealing with gastrointestinal (GI) issues. Meghann and I talk all about carbohydrate loading: the what, why, when, and how. We then focus on understanding your hydration needs by measuring your sweat rate, and the importance of replacing sodium losses, avoiding over- and under-hydrating. We bust some myths around sodium fears, weight gain during a carb load, and emphasize the reality that athletes likely need more carbohydrates than they think. To better understand your unique carbohydrate and hydration needs, Meghann has some amazing resources: Meghann’s quick carb calculator and sweat rate/ hydration calculator. TOPIC TIMESTAMPS: 5:50 Meghann’s dietetics and running story  10:30 Marathon running and pursuing athletic goals for fun  15:50 Meghann’s nutrition philosophy and fueling performance  18:25 Nutrition travel tips and pre-race fueling 24:00 Carbohydrate loading 101 28:30 How many carbs do you really need? 31:20 Carb loading myth busting: gaining weight and water retention 34:40 Rebalancing meals: prioritizing carbs over proteins and fats 37:50 Hydration needs and tech for calculating sweat rate 48:00 Debunking a fear of sodium  49:30 Under-hydrating vs over-hydrating  54:30 Dealing with GI issues and gut symptoms 58:45 End of the podcast questions Check out Meghann’s website: https://www.featherstonenutrition.com/ and her podcast: Fuel for the Sole Follow Meghann on Instagram @featherstonenutrition and me, your host Lindsey Cortes, @female.athlete.nutrition  If you find value in this podcast and would like to support the show, join our patreon community! Become part of our Fiercely Fit and Fueled community today, and receive bonus episodes, merch, monthly recipes, access to an exclusive community message board, and have the chance to ask Lindsey your questions and get a podcast shoutout, and more! Head to patreon today patreon.com/femaleathletenutrition Your support means a lot! Need help with your fueling? Want to get in touch with Lindsey? Interested in the Female Athlete System of Transformation?  Head to www.RiseUpNutritionRUN.com to learn more & book a call! THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS: Previnex: https://www.previnex.com/ use code RISEUP for 15% off at checkout InsideTracker: www.insidetracker.com use code LINDSEYCPRO25 for 25% off the entire store  THIS PODCAST IS ALSO SUPPORTED BY: Orgain, head to www.orgain.com and use the code RISEUP30 for 30% off your first order. Repeat customers can use the code OA2203 for 25% off future orders. Practice Better Click the link below to view plans and get a 14-day free trial. Then use the code RISEUP20 for 20% off your first 4 months: https://practicebetter.grsm.io/runp  Jen & Keri: https://jenandkeri.com/ use code RISEUP10 for $10 off your order