One of  the favorite parts of being both a runner and a dietitian is observing the eating habits of other runners before, during, and after a long training run or race.  The variability is hardly surprising given a lot of people are either afraid to eat, don’t know what to eat, don’t think about it enough, or do think about it and have  adapted a routine that suits them. It gets even more interesting to observe athletes who are traveling to compete or train. I have seen suit cases full of persimmons and most recently met a runner who goes no where without fresh sweet potatoes! She throws sweet potatoes into her suitcase to have just in case she has difficulty finding foods that will giver hear a boost when she is traveling to races. She can eat them whole, cooked, raw, whatever, and be all set to do what she loves, run. Carbohydrate is of the highest priority before (3-4 hours), during, and after a long run, and a sweet potato certainly has …