General Fitness & Nutrition: diarrhoea when running more then 1 hour

Hi,

can some one give me some advice with my very annoying and embarassing problem :

i'm training to participate the 20km of Brussels the 25th May 2008.
Since i run more than 1hour (10k) , i feel the need to go to the lavatory.
When i train 1hour and a half, it ends in a sprint to the toilet to avoid an "accident".

The sportdoctor i went to, never heard of the problem and adviced me : no fruit or vegetables the days i run and a medicin against diarrhoea (Immodium) just before i start. But last time it didn't work.

This way, i can't participate, because there are no toilets available on the road.

Help

Runner's World has a blog called "Ask the Running Doc," which addressed this last August: http://runningdoctor.runnersworld.com/2007/08/whats-the-deal-.html .  It seems like pretty good info...

Interestingly enough, I experienced something similar last weekend, on my first run longer than about an hour and ten (I was out for 90 minutes).  A little over halfway through, I started to feel a bit odd in the stomach department, and it came in mild waves until I finished the run.  I had to do my usual pushups and crunches in spurts between trips to the bathroom.  The stomach problem lasted most of the day, so I'm not sure if it was related to running, or just a stomach bug.  This is the only time this has happened to me, but again, it was the farthest/longest I have ever run (9 miles).

I didn't eat anything before I ran (I try to run early on Saturday mornings, and if I eat something I have to wait a good hour and a half before I can do anything), but I did carry a water bottle with me, and downed about half of it during the run.  The waves "down there" seemed to coincide with drinking.  Do you drink anything while you run?

Unless you have problems with your bowels on a fairly regular basis (and not just while running), I would doubt it is Crohn's.  I have a friend with Crohn's, and she concurs.  If you do experience problems at other times, though, I would definitely check with a doctor. 

Good luck on your 20k!

Hi,

thanks for your advice everybody.

Till now i never drunk during my training, but now i will train more than 1 hour (and warmer weather coming soon) i know i've to learn this, to avoid deshydratation.
I read that you better drink small bits to avoid the dashing in the stomach and that sportdrinks absorb faster than water

Concerning my bowels : i used to be rather constipated (going to the bathroom on demand, just before the run isn't that easy), but training two times / week "helped" me + my daily fruit.

With your advices and those in the article cpcrouce sent me, i'l make me a personnal diet or foodprogram. I'll let you know my experiences.

I've got 3 weeks to experiment, isn't it? 

Thanks,

Nancy

I have a friend who has run many marathons and a few of the Comrades ultra marathons (90km).  He told me early on in my training to have small amounts of fluid consistently every 15-20 minutes.  I've found that 20 minutes is ideal for me and just have a couple of sips of water (I wear a hydration pack for runs of 90 minutes or more or go a route where I know where water taps are).  The secret seems to be keeping to around this timeframe and not having too much.  When you get use to it you know how much to drink and you don't get the bloating or sick feeling from putting too much into your stomach.

Try adding nutmeg to your food before you run.  Or you can buy empty capsules and fill with bulk nutmeg (1 to 2 per day).  It binds your intestines.  A friend had part of his colon removed and had major diareah.  this was the only thing that worked for him.

You all should come train with our group, Team Challenge.  We are running and raising funds for the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation!  We make sure to include lots of bathrooms in all of our routes, and have the race directors double the number of port-a-potties on the day of the half marathon!

I cannot imagine a true distance runner who does not or has not experienced this condition.  Muscle fatigue, shin splits, and the occasional stomach problem come along with running just as your problem, its all part of the activity (I really don't want to say experience because that would sound a little sick).  I feel that no matter what you do with your diet, near the hour mark of a long run your body is in a whole different state, so your body is not worried about maintaining a regular bowel movement.  I always felt the main cause was diet, but that is the diet you need to have to be healthy runner. It is the simple strain of the workout and the natural stress on your muscles that works itself into the rest of your body.  Your at such an extreme when you come near that potential of physical endurance that the rest of your body will follow that extreme.  All I do is run near places that have easily accessible bathrooms like fastfood restaurants or pack a little toilet paper in a fuel belt, when it comes to that point you go and then keep running. 

If you don't feel dehydrated after, it could be that you are just drinking too much fluid before setting out, and all that bouncing up and down is flushing through your system - fast.

hi,

i promised to tell about my experiences..

 This month i ran 3 races in very warm weather : 15 km at 26°C, 10 km at 29°C, and the famous 20 km at 27°C.

The first race , i was pretty excited, so in the morning i went a lot to the bathroom. :-) always thinking : that can't bother me anymore!!

At breakfast, i ate two slices of bread ( home made light brown, i really don't like white bread) with jam, at noon i ate also 2 slices with ham. The day before i drunk more water than i'm used to and that morning i also drunk almost  2 liters. I avoided cheese and milk, coffee and fruit or vegetables. I stop drinking at 1 hour before the race, took an Immodium to be sure, restarted drinking at the first supply (in the race (little bits/ we got bottles of water) and finished the race without any problem. But it took me three days after (race was on sunday and i went the first time to the toilet on wednesday afternoon) and a lot of fruit and fibres to go to the bathroom again.

Second race : i followed the same diet, took also an Immodium, finished the race, but started sooner with fibres. So i went tuesday to the bathroom :-)

Big race : same diet, same drinking rituel, also an Immodium,
and i went the next day to the bathroom.

So far so good. i 'll continue this method, as long as it works for me. Although, i also think there is a lot of psychology involved. Since i do this for the race, i didn't had problems during my training neither. Without the diets ??  And i found out that i get the"feeling" when i run up a hill and / or ran faster. So when i slow down, the feeling goes away.

And i found out another problem : after a race i can't get sleep. But that's another topic.

Thank you all for your advices and have good runs!!

My runner's trots seemed to disappear after eliminating peanut butter in my pre-run meals. I saw some people mention peanut butter, which I enjoyed on untoasted bread quite often, so I cut it and haven't had a serious bout of it since.