Hi Chris,

I am definitely not an advocate for low carb diets when running is in the mix. That being said, my daily intake of carbs overall ranges anywhere from 45% to 60% of my daily calories. That is a pretty large range and I'm guessing the 45% is close to what you are at when referring to the Zone diet. I find that I do ok with this range, I'm not a stickler for making sure I get in 60% of my carbs every day, sometimes it just seems like too much. I do however, make sure I fuel my longer runs with carbs to keep me going and this has really helped me make it through those longer runs. I use energy chews, but gels and drinks will do the same thing. If you are out running for more than 90 minutes you should make sure you are taking in carbs during your run. I would also suggest you take in a good snack of carbs before your runs, I'm a fan of oatmeal, bananas and bagels as a pre-run snack.

Hope this helps, good luck!

Hi there. I am definitely on low carb (30g /day) following Atkins. One planned slip per week: a pizza.

I am running 130-150km per month at 6min/km avg.

Melting weight and happy about it. Long runs are 10-15km.

Honestly, I am not missing carbs at all and I have plenty of energy to run with: maybe it is due to the fact that my body is switched on to fat burning already for the whole day.

If I eat many carbs, I got headaches and feel a little nauseous the rest of the day.

I will probably increase the carbs if I try a HM in the future. So far my goal is improve my well being, not winning the olympics

I am also a low-carb runner and recieve a lot of criticism from it from the more seasoned runners in my life.  I have an endocrine disorder and it is doctor-mandated.  My limits are probably a lot more stringent than yours, but I've been having good success increasing my fruit allowance (including higher GI fruits like bananas I generally avoid) and eating much of my day's worth before my run.  I also eat these crips breads they sell in the cracker section, they are basically seeds and rye.  They are a godsend to me as a low-carber in general.  I'm still trying to find a balance.