Considering that "gluten free" has become the healthy diet du jour, a lot of athletes probably wonder if giving up gluten, a problematic protein found in wheat, barley, and rye, can help them work harder and last longer. Are gluten-free foods the best foods for runners?

There's no scientific evidence that going gluten free will help the average person become a better runner, says Arthur Agatston, MD, in his book The South Beach Diet Gluten Solution. "There are, however, many athletes who have reported better performance following a gluten-free diet," he says, adding that Novak Djokovic became the top tennis player in the world after giving up gluten. Djokovic claims that going gluten-free gave him more energy, sharper focus, and an improvement in the asthma that had compromised his ability to win long matches.

"It certainly seems logical that if a gluten-sensitive athlete is experiencing fatigue, lack of mental focus, and other symptoms, such as stomach and joint pains, that he or she is likely to perform better gluten-free," Dr. Agatston adds. All of those are symptoms that can plague people who can't tolerate gluten but aren't clinically diagnosed with celiac disease, a disorder in which the body is unable to digest gluten proteins. But even if you're not gluten-sensitive, he says, going gluten free may give you an energy jolt, since the body utilizes extra energy to digest gluten, which can detract from your performance and just generally slow you down.

All the same, wheat provides carbs, and carbs provide fuel for athletes, right? While that is true, you can still get all the requisite energy from whole foods that are naturally gluten free. Joanna Sayago Golub, editor of the new Runner's World Cookbook gave us this list of the best gluten-free foods for runners that will keep you going all the way to the finish line (or at the very least, the end of your workout).

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