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This month's Hot Seat features repeat guest Steve Winrow of Winrow Performance, answering nutrition questions from our coaching athletes. Steve is a sports nutritionist with a background in exercise physiology, working with everyone from recreational runners to professional tennis players. He's also one of Nick's current athletes, training for a sub-3 Manchester Marathon.

Topics Covered

Overmarketed Nutrition Trends Steve calls out three: low-carb/keto diets (no benefit for endurance performance — the "godfather" keto study was based on just five athletes), fasting protocols (overstated benefits largely based on rodent studies), and the gut health/probiotics craze (not harmful, but a well-balanced diet does the heavy lifting).

Intermittent Fasting & Autophagy The autophagy argument doesn't hold up. Hard endurance training is already a far stronger stimulus for cell repair than fasting. Withholding fuel post-training just impairs glycogen replenishment and increases inflammation. Fasting can work for calorie control — but it doesn't do anything metabolically "fancy."

Appetite Hormones: Ghrelin & Leptin Ghrelin drives short-term hunger (rises before meals, drops after). Leptin reflects longer-term energy status and sits in fat tissue. Rapid weight loss drops leptin fast, which slows metabolism — one reason weight loss stalls. Protein is the most effective macronutrient for managing satiety. Poor sleep and underfuelling disrupt both hormones.

Key Takeaways

1. There is no benefit to low-carb or keto diets for endurance performance. If you want to run fast, eat carbs.
2. Fasting is fine for calorie control but does nothing special for cell repair or metabolism.
3. Aim for 2g/kg protein per day. Use the 3-2-1 method as a starting point and adjust carbs to training load.
4. Fuel the work required — ~0.8–1g/kg carbs either side of hard sessions.
5. Sleep is your number one recovery tool. Prioritise it ruthlessly.
6. Consistency is the biggest predictor of success. Illness and injury kill consistency. Recovery prevents both.

Guest Details

Steve Winrow — Winrow Performance Instagram: @winrowperformance Weekly newsletter every Monday (February focus: recovery)

Right, that's us done. If that was useful… share it. Stick it in your club WhatsApp, send it to that mate who's always getting injured three weeks before race day. You know the one ;)

If you want to go deeper on any of this, Nick puts out videos every week on YouTube, and the entire team of coaches are sharing helpful tips on their instagram channels... links below. And if you're thinking you actually need a proper plan and someone in your corner… we've got Guided Coaching from 97 quid a month, right up to full one-to-one coaching with the coach of your choice. Either way, maximummileagecoaching.com is where you want to be.

See you on the next one.

To work with us - https://join.maximummileagecoaching.com/home-page-9835

Nick's YT - youtube.com/channel/UCgdIPeN3bF7I7-tcspyFbVg/

Faye's IG - https://www.instagram.com/fayejohnsoncoaching/

Rachael's IG - https://www.instagram.com/rachforthelongrun/

Hannah's IG - https://www.instagram.com/coach_hannah_witt/

Matt's IG - https://www.instagram.com/ultracoachmatt/

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We’re back… for the first proper Maximum Mileage Podcast in just over a year. Nick and Faye catch up on what’s changed at Maximum Mileage (new coaches, Faye going full-time, a growing global community)… plus their own running years, highs and lows, and a bit of real talk about health, recovery, and what actually matters.

Then we’re joined by Tina Muir (former GB and Northern Ireland international) for an honest conversation about diet culture, underfuelling, RED-S, and why trying to “cut weight” while marathon training so often backfires. We also get into the current fuelling trend (yes, carbs)… and Tina’s work helping runners and races take practical steps toward sustainability, without the guilt trip.

Key takeaways (the stuff we want you to remember)

• Training hard + cutting calories is a risky combo… performance drops, recovery suffers, niggles appear.
• “Health” is the long game… run well now so you can move well later.
• Underfuelling isn’t just a women’s issue… men get hit too, just with fewer obvious signals.
• Sleep problems can be a big red flag… stress + low energy availability can show up at 3am.
• The goal isn’t perfect eating… it’s a relationship with food that supports training and life.
• Sustainability doesn’t need to be all-or-nothing… start with one uncomfortable “no thanks”.

Quote pulls

• “Training for a marathon and trying to be on a diet at the same time are not very compatible.”
• “Focus on longevity… wellbeing… and performing well in training.”
• “Your body goes into survival mode… what’s less important right now?”
• “The freedom of not having those constant horrible thoughts… is worth everything.”
• “Get used to being uncomfortable… and saying ‘no thank you’.”

Thanks for being part of our running community. Keep clocking those miles, keep pushing your limits, and above all, keep finding joy in the run. See you on the next episode of Maximum Mileage Running Podcast!

You can find more resources including the blog or enquire about having one of our coaches as your Running coach by visiting the website https://www.maximummileagecoaching.com/

Or find us on Instagram @maximummileage

Send us a text

Join us for another action-packed episode of real running talk, pro-tips, and a bit of humour to keep things lively. Tune in, learn, laugh, and take another stride towards becoming the best runner you can be. Remember, at Maximum Mileage, we're all about running long, running strong, and relishing the journey!

Thanks for being part of our running community. Keep clocking those miles, keep pushing your limits, and above all, keep finding joy in the run. See you on the next episode of Maximum Mileage Running Podcast!

You can find more resources including the blog or enquire about having one of our coaches as your Running coach by visiting the website https://www.maximummileagecoaching.com/

Or find us on Instagram @maximummileage