Eat Like a Kenyan

Will a Kenyan Diet Help You Run Faster?

Tidbits to Ponder

Like most runners, the Kenyans also strive to balance the calories they consume with those burned off in training. Blessed with physiques perfectly suited for long-distance running, they nevertheless display a great deal of mental fortitude when it comes to their weight. "It is not uncommon for a runner to gain 20 to 30 pounds during the off-season," says Kibe, "but this allows us to come back with a new focus. The weight comes off little by little by doing extra work, such as running three times a day." Spurred on by the desire to keep up with fellow Kenyans here and back in Africa, U.S.-based Kenyan runners stick with familiar low-fat foods and only treat themselves occasionally, such as dining on fast food once a month. "Nothing is bad when you eat it with discipline," stresses Kibe, "but we eat to help our training, not like there is no tomorrow."

John Manners, a writer who has lived in Kenya and coached school boys there in the 1970’s, has a different take on the subject, looking at the availability of food rather than the day-to-day nutritional value of the Kenyan diet. "Compared to the rest of Africa and the rest of the Third World, Kenya is a very agriculturally rich country," says Manners. "While Kenyans certainly lead a hardy life, the key is not the nature of the calories they consume, but that they consume adequate [amounts] from childhood." In other words, given enough calories, the Kenyans would still run fast no matter how that energy was allotted. "Most Kenyans like Western food when it’s offered," observes Manners. That said, he adds, "But they stick to ugali because they believe in it. They may also feel it’s extravagant to eat American food, because they know how far that money can go when sent back home."

Food for Thought

While it is unlikely that most of us will develop a taste for ugali or a desire to celebrate our birthday with a Philly cheese steak, as Philadelphia based Kenyans reportedly do because birthday cake tastes too sweet, we can still benefit from incorporating pieces of the dietary roadmap that Kenyan runners follow. We can be like the Kenyans by eating carbohydrate-rich foods to fuel training sessions. By limiting the amount of processed, packaged and pre-cooked foods that we eat. By snacking on fruit and saving less healthy treats for special occasions.

Recipe for Ugali (Be forewarned, it is definitely an acquired taste!)

Ingredients:
Maize (white corn flour--see Note below)
Water
Salt (optional)

Put 1 cup of cold water in a medium-size saucepan, and mixing continually, add 1 cup of flour and 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil over high heat and slowly mix in 3 cups of boiling water. Reduce to simmer, cover and cook for about 5 to 8 minutes, mixing frequently to prevent sticking. The ugali is done when it pulls from the sides of the pan and does not stick. The finished product should look like stiff grits. Serve with vegetable beef broth, cream, sugar, syrup or melted butter poured over it.

Note: The type of flour used--from white corn flour to yellow cornmeal--determines the character of the ugali.