March 3rd, 2010 
admin The training is in the bank and now it is time to race! What are your best food choices for race morning?
To help you figure out your pre-race breakfast, review our guidelines for [what to eat before your training run |breakfast recommendations for long run days|what type of foods you should eat before your marathon].
If you are reading this the day before your race, you should probably stick to what has worked for you in the past. If you have a menu that has worked during your training, don’t be tempted to change anything.
But if this is the day before your race and you need a solid breakfast recomendation, you can still find good suggestions here.
Foods to eat before the race should be foods that can easily be found in a regular grocery store. You will want to give each of these a try during your marathon training to see which works best for you. You don’t want to have settled on Ensure High Protein drink and only that and then discover it is sold out when you get to the store (yes this can happen when a lot of runners converge on an area).
How much you eat depends on how early you get up. For every hour between now and the start of the race, you can take in 200-300 calories. So if you get up 2 hours before the race, eat 400 – 600 calories. Take in the higher amount of calories if you ate an early dinner.
Here are specific recommendations:
Fruit with eggs
Boiled eggs travel well and scrambled eggs are often on the menu in hotel restaurants. Choose fruit that is low in fiber such as:
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bananas,
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peaches,
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cantaloupe,
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honeydew, and
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watermelon.
Fruits to avoid due to their high fiber content are:
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apples,
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berries,
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dates,
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figs,
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grapes,
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pears,
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mango,
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papaya and
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pineapple.
If you are travelling remember to pack utensils you will need.
Applesauce mixed with protein powder
Make sure to buy unsweetened applesauce. Add 2-3 tablespoons of protein powder.You can carry the powder in a ziploc with you, no need to bring the whole container.
Baby Food is always a good choice
Baby food is easy to find in the grocery store and it is easily digestible. You can even eat the meats if you could tolerate the taste pre-race.
Liquid meals are my standby
Due to nerves I often find I can’t manage whole foods. I just can’t chew them. This is more true for an Ironman race than a marathon but I always have a liquid back-up just in case.
Make a smoothie from protein powder, fruit juice and 1-2 of the low-fiber fruit listed above. A small blender, such as a Magic Bullet, comes in handy for race travel.
Ensure High Protein drink is one I have used successfully. You can find it in the baby aisle of most grocery stores. This is my pre-bike ride drink. Though Ensure is rather expensive, you can find it on sale if you watch for it.
Sports bar with protein
This doesn’t work well for me as I have trouble chewing them when nervous. I know many runners who swear by sports bars before a run. These must be taken with a good amount of water. Sports bars tend to be dry and your gut can draw fluids in to help with digestion; fluids you need in your race.
Drink plenty of fluid, including water
There is no reason not to have your morning coffee or tea just be SURE you have practiced this beforehand. Caffeine speeds up your metabolism which can lead to upset stomach and nervousness – which is not ideal before your big race.
During the last hour before the race ONLY drink water. Drinking fluid with sugar, such as a sports drink, may cause low blood sugar leading to light-headedness. (Of course that could be your nerves)!
Often digesting carbohydrates lead to a spike in insulin which causes a drop in blood sugar. Sports drinks usually have high-glycemic carbs.
However, 10 minutes before the start is a good time to take in 100 – 200 calories from a sports drink or gel. When the insulin spike from these carbohydrates occurs you will be running and the exercise will blunt the insulin spike. Make sure to drink 6-8 ounces of water with this.
To make sure you get to race morning in optimal shape, read our guide to [what to eat during marathon week|help plan what to eat during marathon race week|help you plan your menu during race week]
After the marathon you will want to be able to celebrate your achievement. Follow our guidelines to [restore food | best food for the restoration Marathon | Planning for the restoration of adequate nutrition marathon], to provide you with energy at a party.
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