If you’ve ever been sidelined by injury, you know how frustrating it is. You’re showing up, doing the work, pushing your limits - so why is your body pushing back?
Here’s something most runners don’t hear enough: injuries aren’t always about training load, footwear, or biomechanics. Sometimes, it’s what’s missing from your plate that’s holding you back.
Fuelling enough, and fuelling well, is one of the most important things you can do to stay healthy and injury-free.
Injuries aren’t always about training load, footwear, or biomechanics.
Under-fuelling Is More Common Than You Think
Whether you're training for a 5K or your third marathon, it’s easy to think “lighter is faster” or forget how fuel-demanding running can be. This leads many runners, intentionally or not, to under-fuel. However, chronically under-eating, even slightly, can lead to low energy availability. That’s when your body doesn’t get enough fuel to support both your training and the daily work it does behind the scenes like hormone regulation, muscle repair, and bone health.
The result? Fatigue, burnout, and a higher risk of injury.
Injuries That Can Be Nutrition-Linked
Nutrition isn’t the only factor in injury risk, but it’s often overlooked - especially in slow-healing or repeat injuries.
- Bone stress injuries (like shin splints or stress fractures): can be related to low calcium, vitamin D, or simply not enough total energy coming in.
- Soft tissue strains or tears: protein and carbohydrate intake affect your ability to repair muscle and tendon tissue.
- Delayed recovery and lingering soreness: if you’re always sore or taking days to bounce back, your nutrition might be lacking.
Food might not be the only factor, but it’s often part of the picture, especially in repeat or slow-healing injuries.
How to Build a Meal That Supports Training & Recovery
Fuelling properly isn’t just about eating more. It’s about eating with purpose. Every meal is an opportunity to give your body the building blocks it needs to train, recover, and stay injury-free. Here's a simple formula I use with my athletes.
Every meal is an opportunity to refuel, rebuild and stay injury-free.
The Fuel-Repair-Recover Formula
- Carbohydrates: the body’s main fuel source. This is essential fuel for your running program, plus any other training in your week. Think rice, bread, oats, fruit, potatoes, wraps and pasta.
- Protein: essential building blocks for muscle repair and immune support during hard training. Spread intake across your day with foods like eggs, meat, chicken, fish, dairy or tofu.
- Healthy fats: anti-inflammatory nutrients that support long-term health and recovery. Include avocado, olive oil, nuts, seeds and oily fish like salmon or tuna.
- Colourful vegetables: Packed with antioxidants and fibre to reduce inflammation and support gut health. Aim for a variety of colours each day.
Each meal is a chance to refuel, rebuild and protect your body.
Check your plate. If it includes all four, you’re on track.
Timing Matters Too
When you eat matters just as much as what you eat. Poor timing can leave your body under-fuelled and more prone to injury, especially on big training days.
Before your run
Eat 1 to 3 hours beforehand depending on what your stomach tolerates. Choose something high in carbs, low in fat and fibre, with a little protein.
- 2-3 hours before: toast with honey and a boiled egg, oats with banana and yoghurt, rice and canned tuna
- 30-60 minutes before: banana and peanut butter, slice of raisin toast, small fruit smoothie
Even early-morning runners should try to have something before heading out. A few mouthfuls of banana or a sports drink is better than nothing.
During your run
For runs over 60 minutes, aim for 30–60g of carbs per hour, starting around the 30-minute mark. This helps prevent fatigue, maintain blood sugar levels and protects muscle tissue. Practice in training to find what works for your gut.
Options include
- Sports gels or chews (20 to 25g carbs each)
- Sports drinks (30 to 40g carbs per bottle)
- Dried fruit like dates (5 to 6 = ~30g carbs)
After your run
Post-run fuelling is critical, especially if you train again the next day. Aim to eat within 30–60 minutes, ideally a mix of carbs and protein. This window is when your body is primed to refill carbohydrate stores, reduce muscle breakdown, and kickstart recovery.
Examples
- Chicken wrap with salad
- Smoothie with banana, oats and protein powder
- Rice bowl with eggs, vegetables and avocado
Signs You Might Not Be Eating Enough
It’s not always obvious when you’re under-fuelling, especially if you're used to feeling tired. Watch for the signs below and If any of these sound familiar, it's worth looking at your food before tweaking your training.
- Constant fatigue or brain fog
- Extreme hunger at night or waking up starving
- Irregular or missing periods (in females)
- Frequent illness
- Struggling to recover between sessions
- Repeat injuries or lingering niggles
If you’re always tired, sore, or stuck in an injury cycle – nutrition could be the missing link.
Don’t Just Train Like an Athlete. Fuel Like One.
If you’re putting time and effort into your running, don’t let nutrition be the reason you end up injured. Eating enough isn’t just about improving performance. It’s about protecting your body so you can train consistently and stay on your feet.
Fuelling well isn’t just for elite athletes. It’s for anyone who wants to train hard, recover well and stay injury-free.
Key Takeaways
- Fuel regularly and enough. Don’t skip meals or delay post-run recovery.
- Use the Fuel-Repair-Recover formula. Carbs, protein, healthy fats and colourful veggies at every meal.
- Time your fuelling around training. Eat before, fuel during long runs, and recover soon after.
- Recognise the signs of under-fuelling and act early.
- Ask for help if you’re not sure what “enough” looks like.
What you eat today sets the foundation for how you train tomorrow. Fuel smart, recover strong, and stay on your feet.
Caitlin Edmonds
A dual-qualified Exercise Scientist and Sports Dietitian, Caitlin combines expertise in nutrition and movement to support health, performance and wellbeing. With experience across a broad range of dietetic fields, Caitlin takes an individualised approach to each client. In performance nutrition, she works with athletes from amateur to elite levels, including roles with professional teams in the NRL, NRLW, A-League, Academy Netball and AFL. Find more about Caitlin and her work here.
