Okay. I have strong Scottish routes; in fact, on paper I’m the quintessential scottish descendent. I attended the Gaelic College and took Gaelic lessons, highland and step-danced (though not very well); and completed a weaving class with a good pal. Though I dropped out of all three, I feel I’ve done my due diligence to immerse myself in my heritage. However, when it comes to food I much prefer the Irish potatoes to Haggis.
Much to my delight, I learned recently that potatoes are actually just as effective in the carb-loading department as pasta. Amazing, eh? Potatoes, in their natural form (not chips and fries, unfortunately) are gluten free. YAHOO! So for all you gluten intolerant folks out there, push that gluten-free pasta crap out of the way and cook up some potatoes. Seriously. You can have them mashed, baked or broiled. The bonus is that every type of potato offers similar carb intake and nutrition. This means you can eat sweet, yellow, red, russet or whatever you like and still gain the same benefits!
So what are these benefits, you may ask…
- Potatoes are easy to prepare
- Full of minerals and vitamins
- Easy to digest
- They rank higher on the glycemic index in comparison to pasta, which means carbs get into bloodstream faster
- They taste awesome
Also, I’ve always been under the impression that most of a potatoes nutrition is found in the skin – this is not true. So Dad, you can rest easy now that I won’t make mashed potatoes again with skin on (he hates lumpy potatoes.) I just can’t believe my luck at finding out potatoes are great ahead of running – this just made my week! Sorry, Mr Potato Head. I’ll be loading up!
To learn how to properly carb-load prior to a race, click here.
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