Again, that involves choosing foods that are high in carbohydrates and easily digested – limiting fat and fibre. For the first four hours post-long run, you ideally want to be eating slightly over 1g of carbs per kilogram of body mass every hour; after that, you can resume your usual eating pattern. To back to our initial example, that’d mean eating a snack containing 65g of carbs every hour. That could include one banana (27g) and four digestive biscuits (37g), for example.

Oh, and remember that rehydrating is also important; aim to replace 1.5 times that amount of fluids that you have lost in sweat (more on which here). “On longer runs, you may want to consider electrolyte drinks to replace the sodium lost in your sweat. But if you have consumed sports drinks or gels already and if you also consume food soon afterwards, you are likely to have already replaced those lost electrolytes,” Newbold confirms.

Of course, it’s not just carbs that play an important role in our fueling and recovery. Protein is hugely important post-exercise and it’s something, Newbold says, that endurance athletes often overlook because their focus is so honed on carbs.

“Your body needs protein to provide the building blocks to rebuild and repair after your run and to support the training adaptations again. Aim to consume 0.4g/kg BM in the first hour after your run.

“Also, consuming protein alongside carbohydrates has been shown to increase the restoration of the body’s carbohydrate stores. In a meal, that might be a jacket potato with a tin of tuna, some sweetcorn and broccoli. Or scrambled eggs on toast with some spinach and tomatoes.”

Running tips: how long before a run do you need to eat?