Welcome to another installment of the LubDub show (formerly the Run Pub Podcast), brought to you by the Providence Heart to Start Program and the Oregon Brewery Running Series!
The LubDub is a weekly podcast and interactive video show where we talk to experts about running and walking and learn from program champions who provide motivation and inspiration as we embark on this 12-week journey as a community united in becoming our best, healthiest selves.
The Oregon Brewery Running Series hosts family-friendly, 5K fun running and walking events that start and end at some of Oregon’s best breweries. If you’re looking for an un-timed 5K in Portland or around the state, click the link below and join us!
In This Episode
In this episode, Dr. Robert Quintos, a cardiologist based out of the Providence Heart Clinic – Bridgeport location, will share some inspirational words. Dr. Quintos is the Heart to Start Champion for the Portland-South Group.
And our main guest this evening is Niki Strealy, a registered dietitian who helps people as part of Providence Sports Medicine along with her own nutrition consulting business, Strategic Nutrition, LLC.
Also known as the Diarrhea Dietitian, Niki specilizes in digestive health and in this episode we talk about proper nutrition for optimal health in general and more specficially about nutritional needs before, during and after any workout or race – like our Follow Your Heart 5K & 10K in February!
Enjoy!
What do we need to know about Nutrition?
If you’re like me, you more or less know what you’re supposed to eat. Stay away from too much processed food, fast food, and anything your mom would classify as “junk” food. But once you’ve done that, then what? You can still subscribe to those three basic rules and not be eating all that healthy.
Niki’s overall nutrition advice is pretty simple:
“So I try not to talk about diets in extremes. I really like to talk about moderation and balance and variety and to eat all the colors of the rainbow… …fruits and vegetables and whole-grain breads and cereals and using lean protein (chicken, turkey, fish, not eating red meat quite as often), using healthy fats, like olive oil and avocados, and then avoiding trans fats. So instead of saying “don’t eat this and only eat that,” we’re talking more about general principles for overall health.”
We cover a lot in this short interview, but here are a few of the highlights:
What is food? <<18:57>>
Food is basically carbs, fats, and proteins.
- “…carbohydrates can be thought of as fuel”
- “…muscles are made of protein. They’re also a component of enzymes, hormones. They’re part of your immune system. They’re the building block of your bones, your eyes, your skin, and your blood.”
- “…fats are our long-term storage of energy.”
What diet is best? <<20:35>>
- “…the diet I use for my patients with gut issues are don’t always match up with a diet that might promote all the best health… the most important diet each person is going to have their own.”
Where do supplements fall into any diet? <<24:28>>
- Vitamin D!
Food Goals?<<28:28>>
- SMART Goals… she emphasizes specific goals like 5 – 9 servings of fruits/vegetables a day vs. more abstract goals like eating more healthy food.
Fueling for activity (race or workout) <<32:01>>
- Before – a small meal that is easy to digest about an hour before.
- During – it depends on how long you will be out. Less than 45 minutes, you don’t need anything. More than 60, you do. “You need to practice your fueling strategy before you go out and do your event, your race.“
- After – healthy food that will replace what you lost during activity. Whenever your body will accept food, eat!
Why do runners have to poop so much? <<42:38>>
We discuss a lot in this section. Just go listen!
Additional Resources <<54:58>>
- We do Science (podcast)
- Sweat Sports Science (website)
- Real Nutrition (website)
- The Diarrhea Dietitian: Expert Advice, Practical Solutions, and Strategic Nutrition (book)
- Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance (book)
About Niki Strealy
Each week, we are joined by an expert who shares a bit of their personal and professional story to help all of us become stronger, more confident runners and walkers. In this episode, we were joined by Niki Strealy, a registered dietitian who helps people through Providence Sports Medicine and also specializes in digestive health through her private practice, Strategic Nutrition, LLC.
Niki received her bachelor’s degree in nutrition and food management from Oregon State University and completed a dietetic internship at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She has worked as a registered dietitian since 1996, providing nutrition counseling in both hospital and outpatient clinics.
Niki is a longtime supporter of Heart to Start and brings a tremendous amount of enthusiasm to the trackside conversations each season and I’m looking forward to experiencing that energy in this virtual format.
Although she is injured right now, Niki is an avid runner, who has completed a bunch of marathons along with running after three kids and a flock of chickens at home.
Her specialty is poopy, or more appropriately gastrointestinal diseases and disorders and as the author of the book, The Diarrhea Dietitian! You can probably guess she loves talking about diarrhea and all things poop especially with athletes – which if you’re listening to this, you are one.
As a life long runner myself, I’ve deal with a plethora of GI issues over the years, and so I’m really excited to talk to Niki about my bathroom habits… but since that’s probably gross for everyone else, we’ll be spending the majority of our time discussing what different types of foods do to our bodies, specific diets for optimal health, keeping food goals simple, and also some tips about how to fuel before, during, and after your race or workout.
About Dr. Robert Quintos
Dr. Quintos earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame. He went on to receive his medical degree from the University of Texas in Houston and completed his residency at Loyola University in Maywood, Ill. He came to Oregon for his fellowship at Oregon Health and Science University, and is board certified in cardiology, nuclear cardiology and coronary CT angiography and has a special interest in heart disease in athletes.
As a physician, Dr. Quintos considers his most important role is to educate and raise awareness of cardiovascular health. “Heart disease is not inevitable and is many times preventable,” he said. “The greatest challenge is helping people understand that change may be necessary, even when they feel healthy. Prevention starts with awareness of your risk.” He enjoys building long-term relationships with patients and their families. “I am always humbled each time a new patient trusts me with their care. This is a responsibility to I do not take lightly,” he said.
Originally from Michigan and raised in Texas, Dr. Quintos enjoys being active in the Pacific Northwest. In his free time, he enjoys running, competing in triathlons, playing basketball, and snowboarding.
During our conversation, he urged us not to compare ourselves to others.
“…try not to compare yourself to anyone else! You’re doing your own race, do your own thing. The last thing you want to do is kind of belittle what you’re doing by comparing yourself to someone else. Keep doing what you’re doing.”
As we wrap up the training program, he also reminded us that the hardest part is behind us.
“…making the decision to do something is the hardest step, and you’ve accomplished that already. So everything else it’s just showing up, just showing up and showing up and you can do amazing things. I would just encourage everyone to keep doing what they’re doing.”
About Providence Heart to Start
We’re excited to be partnering with our friends from the Providence Heart to Start program to offer you a FREE 12-week running/walking training program! Rather than focusing on pace or ability, Heart to Start encourages taking several small steps (i.e. weekly training) and working toward a remarkable finish (i.e. goal event) where we celebrate each other as a community.
Unlike our previous monthly challenges, this challenge starts Monday, November 16, and ends on Friday, February 5. Set a challenging 12-week mileage goal and work really hard to reach it by the end!
