I like Hayden’s mind set. He lives on nutritious real food. It does not matter what type of Low Carb lifestyle umbrella you stand under. If you cut out grains and sugar, whilst limiting processed food you are a long way down the road to good health. What is also apparent is that once you become truly fat adapted and have a high carb day, you can easily drop back into fat burning with minimal effort. It is also good to see others exercising fasted, I find the more I have eaten on the day of a run the more sluggish I am. I always have my best runs on a Saturday morning, when I have just got out of bed and left the house straight away without any food.
Hayden Maher. Twitter and Instagram – @irunonfat
Who are you?
Husband and dad of 3 kids. Live in South Australia. Grew up playing Aussie rules football as a kid, never really into fitness until my late 20’s early 30’s. Lived on the typical western diet most of my life, until roughly 4 years ago when I ditched the grains and sugar. Have done everything from Paleo, Primal, Keto, LCHF and a mix of all! Currently my nutrition is Low Carb Paleo.
What is your exercise background?
No big achievements. Used to race in amateur cycling events, mainly graded races up to 80km (no longer do this – was a carb junky back then). Keen runner and mountain biker now, recently did my first full marathon, which was 50/50 road and trail. Finished in 4:24. Have done a few half marathons, my PB is 1:38 for the half. These have all been done low carb. Have also done 4hr and 6 hr enduro Mtb races low carb.
What are your exercise goals for the future?
To continue to remain fit as I age. Set a good role model for my kids (run Parkrun with them when I can). I have entered the “King of the Mount” – a 8km trail run with 600m of climbing!! Looking for my next marathon, not sure whether to go a trail again, or road to aim for a better time.
What is your diet like?
My nutrition is simple. I live a whole food Paleo life. So no grains, dairy or sugar. I live mainly on meat, vegetables, seed and nuts. I remain low carb by limiting fruit and starchy veggies. When exercising, I mainly do it fasted. Though on my recent marathon, all I had was coconut butter, some nuts, a banana and water. I find that simple foods work better for me when exercising.
I find that I can easily cycle into Keto if I focus on my Marcos or by fasting. With my current running volume of 30-40km a week I generally do a carb re feed at the end of each day (normally some sweet potato with dinner).
Back in my cycling days I was a carb addict!! Would throw back gels all day on the bike, and pay the price for it later!!
How do you train generally?
I follow the MAF method of heart rate training. Majority of my runs are at MAF, though do cycle into hard periods to change it up every now and then. Also I really enjoy yoga and meditation – I think over the last 4 years as Paleo/Primal, I have learned a lot about life, my body and the environment we live in. I think everyone should be living a Paleo/Primal/Keto life, we would all be some much better off!!
Disclaimer:
I am an Ambassador for a Ketogenic Sports Drink called KETONE.io by Limited Labs – use coupon STEVEN for 10% off storewide. I also contribute to their weekly newsletter The Ketogenic Playbook.
I am also an Ambassador for IAMRUNBOX, which produces products to help the run commute community.
Photo Credit: Hayden Maher
You can catch me on:
Instagram @ ketogenicendurance
Twitter @ ketoendurance
Facebook Page: Ketogenic Endurance
Reddit sub: r/ketogenicendurance
Strava Club: Ketogenic Endurance – open to anyone on Strava who likes the Ketogenic Diet or LCHF Diet.
Ketogenic Endurance 