Although it may not seem like it right now with our recent warm weather streak, winter is coming (WINTER IS COMING!). Most runners (at least those of us in the Northeast) will likely have some offseason time over the next few months, unless of course you’re training for a winter or early spring marathon. But no matter what time of year you take your off-season, a few helpful nutrition tips can maximize the benefits of that time and ensure you start your next training season refreshed, healthy, and ready to train.
Note: This post was originally published in 2015 and has been updated in 2026.
1. Cut back slightly on calories and carbs.
When you’re in the peak of training, your body needs extra carbohydrates to supply your muscles with energy. However, in the off-season, most people reduce their time training, often maintaining a lighter base or maintenance load. You might find yourself cutting back on the intensity or length of your workouts, you may take time off completely for a few weeks, or you may try other activities that you don’t normally have time for.
Because of this, your overall energy needs are likely less than in-season. If you’re not trying to gain weight, you may need to cut back slightly on your calories to account for the drop in activity.
Here’s an example. Let’s say you’re a runner and you’re putting in about 40-50 miles per week in your training season. For a 150 pound person, that’s somewhere in the range of 4000-5000 calories burned each week through running. If you then cut down to 20 miles per week in the off-season, you’re looking at about 2000 calories burned per week, or about 2000-3000 less each week.
Now, some of that difference might be made up in other activities or more NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis; aka just extra random movement throughout the day outside of exercise). But there will likely still be a gap between your peak training load and your off-season schedule.
That makes offseason a great time to put some focus into hunger/fullness cues – eat when you’re hungry, stop when you’re comfortably satisfied – to try to balance out that gap. And to clarify, this isn’t about restriction. It’s about matching intake to output, the same way you’d naturally eat more during a big training block.
2. Prioritize protein.
Even during the off-season, you still need quite a bit of protein to help with satiety after meals, supporting your immune system, and preserving lean muscle mass. And if you’re doing strength training in the off-season – which you absolutely should be! – you’ll need that protein for building muscle.
Aim to eat a good source of protein at most (if not all) of your meals. Think foods like eggs, Greek yogurt, lean beef, chicken, tofu, beans, nuts…whatever you enjoy and whatever fits your lifestyle.
I have some great high protein breakfast ideas you can explore, as well as tips on how to get around 100 grams of protein per day.
3. Experiment with new recipes.
During the training season, you may rely on some of the same meals and sports products each week to help meet your needs and take away decision fatigue. That’s totally fine! But during the off-season, it’s the perfect time to play around with your meals and experiment. Try some new recipes and cuisines. Buy some fruits or veggies that are new to you. Grab a cookbook from the library and have some fun.
This period can give you time to discover new meals that work for your body and that taste great.
Here are a few of my favorite recipes right here on this site – would love for you to test ’em out this season:
- Tuna potato salad
- Sweetpotato cheese wraps with Caesar salad
- Kale shrimp salad with miso dressing
- Spiced lamb, zucchini, and rice
- Sheet pan chicken drumsticks and veggies
4. Get some blood work done.
When you have more time in the off-season, use it to get your annual physical and have some blood work done. There are a few nutrients that runners tend to fall short on:
- Vitamin D – Probably the most common nutrient I see people falling short on in the Northeast, where we get less sunlight for skin production in the winter months. I have personally ended up with a Vitamin D deficiency a few times.
- Magnesium – Research suggests a good proportion of people don’t get enough, and runners may have higher needs.
- Iron – Female runners in particular might fall short on iron needs. Iron deficiency can lead to anemia, causing fatigue and poor training adaptations.
- Vitamin B12 – Deficiencies tend to be more common in vegan runners, but can happen to anyone. Case in point – I somehow ended up with a Vitamin B12 deficiency despite eating ample foods with it. Some people may not process the vitamin as efficiently even if they’re meeting their needs each day, so they could require supplementation to bring levels to the right amount.
While it’s great to eat foods rich in all these nutrients, blood work will be the quickest way to find out if you need to add anything additional (like a supplement) on top of your diet. It’s so important to address these issues now before the stress of a big training block sets in!
In the meantime, though, it’s always smart to prioritize the food sources of these nutrients:
- Vitamin D – fatty fish, egg yolks, fortified dairy and orange juice
- Magnesium – nuts, seeds, spinach, chocolate, beans, oats, quinoa, edamame
- Iron – beef, pork, chicken, fish, tofu, beans, lentils, spinach (*eat plant-based sources with food sources of Vitamin C to enhance absorption)
- B12 – beef, dairy, pork, fish, shellfish, eggs, fortified cereals
5. Use the 80/20 Rule.
When you think about the foods you’re eating, try to make around 80% nutrient-dense choices, and allow room for flexibility with the other 20%. Life is too short to never enjoy a delicious fresh-baked chocolate chip cookie with coarse sea salt (just me?). For real, though, all foods can fit into a balanced diet; it’s just about incorporating them in moderation. This is especially pertinent during the busy holiday season!
If you want more off-season tips, be sure to check out this post about off-season training tips for runners.
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These are fantastic tips!!
Thanks Rachel!
It’s really a cool and helpful piece of info. I am glad that you shared this helpful info with
us. Please stay us up to date like this.
Thanks for sharing.
You’re welcome!