Mo Farah on marathon fuelling, cheat days and ingredients labels

The Grocer catches up with four-time Olympic champion and Weetabix All-Stars ambassador Sir Mo Farah to find out how he’s staying healthy through his retirement

What do you eat in a day? For breakfast, I’m a bit weird. I’ll warm my milk up a little bit, put in three Weetabix and then chuck in a bit of muesli, chop up a banana, add a little bit of honey – that keeps me going.

At lunch, I might have a bit of chicken or a sandwich. In the evening, I’ll have salmon and rice or pasta. I have four kids, and we always eat together as a family. We sit together at six o’clock and put our phones away.

How do you fuel for a run? I eat a balance of protein and carbs at mealtimes and top up on protein drinks and flapjacks. Before I retired, I would usually eat three hours before my race, but everyone is different. For a marathon, you need to fuel up way before, but if it’s a track event you need to find the balance of fuelling but not feeling too bloated.

“It’s like having a nice car. If you don’t put in the good fuel and take care of it, it isn’t going to last”

What advice would you give to someone who wants to improve their running? It’s like having a nice car. If you don’t put in the good fuel and take care of it, it isn’t going to last. Being an elite athlete isn’t just about your diet, it’s the balance of training and sleep all put together to help you feel good during the race.

The reason I was so successful was that I was putting in 120 miles week-in, week-out, but I was looking after my body. I would get in the ice bath, get a massage, go see the physio, do weights… You do all these little things to help you have fewer injuries.

What’s your ultimate ‘cheat day’ treat? Often, at the end of season, I would have a sticky toffee pudding – that was my go-to. And there’s nothing wrong with it, it’s everything in moderation.

Shoppers are reading ingredients labels more than ever before. Do you think that’s the right approach to nutrition? I think there needs to be more education about what carbs, protein and fibre are and why they’re important. I never really look at the back of pack, as I already roughly know the amount of protein and carbs in something. I would never look at something and go: “This has x amount of calories.” Even when I was an Olympic champion, I just thought: “My body needs this, so I’ll have it.” 

Now that you’ve retired as a professional athlete, what’s your next goal? I want to get more people moving in Britain. Children are less active due to social media, and PE has been cut in schools. Last year, I launched Mo’s Mission with the Youth Sport Trust, asking schools, classes and clubs to pledge 60 minutes of PE, sport and play for kids.

I challenge my own kids every day to be active, to go for a swim, go for a run, go for a walk. It’s important because now, more than ever, mental health is a big issue. Even though I’ve retired, I still run a little bit to clear my head and feel good about myself.