And I’m not talking about trots as in short rapid steps like a horse’s. No, the other kind of trots. Sorry, as gruesome as it may be, we have to talk about it as it affects a fair number of runners. People don’t like to talk about it but it is estimated that 60% of all runners suffer bowel problems.

I have a very fast metabolism so if I don’t want to do a pit stop during a long run (say, over 15km, and to this date up to 21.2km) I need to manage my bowels very carefully.  I also noticed that when I started running again after giving birth it seemed like it was even harder than usual to hold a #2 past 6km! Has any other mum noticed the same? A couple of months and a few hundreds pelvic floors exercises later, it all went better thankfully!

Generally speaking, here is what I have been doing to avoid runners’ trots:

• Drink lots of fluid the days before, as well as during and after the race as dehydration can lead to diarrhoea surprisingly enough.
• Not too much dairy the day before, and no dairy on the day as it looks like I may be slightly lactose intolerant.
• Eat breakfast 2-2h30 before the race. Usually porridge (made with water as per above point), banana and Manuka honey. Or toast with banana and Manuka honey. We usually only have wholemeal toast at home but I think I should use white toast if I wanted to limit my fibre intake and slow down my metabolism further.
• Spend a reasonable amount of time on “the throne” before the race to make sure my bowels are empty.
• I am not using sports drinks or gels but I may have to experiment with those for marathon training and see which ones are best tolerated by my guts.

Now, I’ll have to be even more careful for the marathon if I don’t want to do a “Paula Radcliffe“… Note that I think she is amazing (please let’s remember that on that infamous day, she actually won the marathon in 2:17), but it goes to show that runner’s diarrhoea can affect elite athletes too.

And you, what are your tips to avoid these kind of unpleasant episodes on long runs? Any wisdom to share so that I don’t stop during my marathon?