Breakfast for athletes: what to eat depending on your training

How long before training should you have breakfast?

If you can, eat between one and four hours beforehand. The important thing is to have breakfast if it agrees with you and fits your day. The more time you have, the more you can eat. If the effort lasts more than an hour, that meal should provide 1 to 4 g of carbohydrates per kilo of body weight [1]. This is the figure from the consensus statement by dietitians in the United States and Canada together with the American College of Sports Medicine.

For someone who weighs 60 kilos and has breakfast two hours beforehand, that could mean two large slices of toast with jam, a banana and a glass of milk. It should be low in fat and fibre, with a moderate amount of protein. This helps breakfast digest sooner and cause less discomfort during exercise [1]. That is why white bread is a better choice than wholemeal, jam than butter, and ripe fruit than nuts.

The timing also depends on the sport. Running jostles the stomach and is where discomfort is most common, especially if you have not planned your breakfast. In that case, allow one to three hours. Many people can eat closer to their workout when cycling or at the gym.

And you can train your tolerance. Eating regularly before and during training improves stomach emptying and comfort, and probably reduces discomfort [2]. If you cannot tolerate anything before heading out today, start with something small and increase it week by week.

What should you eat for breakfast before running?

Easy-to-digest carbohydrates, some protein, and little fat and fibre. The amount depends on the session. Someone who weighs 63 kilos and is going for a gentle 50-minute run will not need the same breakfast as someone who weighs 70 kilos and has two hours in the mountains ahead. Here are three breakfasts that are usually well tolerated:

• Fruit juice and a yoghurt with cereal and a tablespoon of honey
• A banana and two slices of white toast with fresh cheese and jam
• A crêpe filled with cooked ham and whipped cheese, with a fruit salad

Use breakfast as an opportunity to start drinking. In the two to four hours beforehand, 5 to 10 ml of fluid per kilo of body weight is recommended [1]. For someone who weighs 60 kilos, that is between one and a half and three glasses, including water, milk and juice.

If you head out as soon as you wake up

If there is no time, you have two options. One is to split breakfast into two parts, having something small beforehand and the rest when you get back. The other is to switch to liquids, which leave the stomach sooner. For example, a smoothie made with rice drink, rolled oats and cinnamon, or one made with milk, Maria biscuits and a banana.

When you get back, replenish fluids, carbohydrates and salts. A cooked ham sandwich and fruit juice are usually enough. For fluids, aim for 1.25 to 1.5 litres for every kilo of body weight lost, spread over the following hours [1]. If you have sweated a lot, do not remove the salt from that meal, because sodium helps your body retain the fluid you drink [1]. Find out when a sports drink with salts may be right for you in the guide to sports drinks.

What should you eat for breakfast before a long bike ride?

Weekend rides lasting four or five hours start at the breakfast table. The stomach usually copes better on a bike than when running, but the same timing still applies. Breakfast can combine solid and liquid foods, with carbohydrates taking centre stage:

• A turkey sandwich with tomato and a little avocado, and watermelon juice
• Plain yoghurt with chopped fruit, toasted cereal and a small handful of chopped almonds
• Toast with tomato and ham, and a bowl of mixed fruit

Breakfast will not fuel five hours. Pack easy-to-carry foods in your cycling jersey, such as a banana, raisins or dried apricots, cereal bars, or a sandwich for your stop. As a guide, 30 to 60 g of carbohydrates per hour is recommended if the effort lasts between one and two and a half hours [1]. If it lasts longer than two and a half or three hours, up to 90 g per hour [1]. Find what to eat during the ride and when you arrive in the cycling diet guide.

What should you eat for breakfast if you do strength training in the morning?

For a one-hour gym session, energy stores matter less than they do for a long ride. Even so, you may feel the effects of arriving hungry in the final sets. Breakfast should still include carbohydrates and can contain a little more protein:

• Toast with turkey or fresh cheese, and a piece of fruit
• Yoghurt or a glass of milk with rolled oats and banana
• Scrambled eggs with toast and juice, if you have two hours or more to spare

For strength training, what you eat throughout the day matters more than what you eat beforehand. According to the International Society of Sports Nutrition, the intake that best stimulates muscle building contains 20 to 40 g of protein [3]. That is equivalent to 0.25 to 0.40 g per kilo of body weight, repeated every three or four hours [3]. If you train early, make breakfast afterwards one of those protein intakes.

If you have breakfast in the mountains or pack it in your rucksack

If you are leaving from home, everything is easier. Try toast with fresh cheese and honey and a fruit salad, or scrambled eggs with cooked ham, bread and a banana.

If the trek lasts several days and you are carrying breakfast in your rucksack, look for a lot of energy with little weight, without needing a fridge. Dried fruit, such as raisins, dried apricots or dates, and nuts, such as walnuts, hazelnuts or almonds, work well. So do muesli, cereal bars, savoury crackers, fruit purée and powdered milk to mix with water.

Include your drink in the plan and sip it throughout the route. Do not overdo it: drinking more than you lose through sweat and urine is the main cause of hyponatraemia, a drop in blood sodium [1].

What should you eat for breakfast on competition day?

Have the same thing you have tried in training, with the same amount of time beforehand. Test and adjust what you eat before and during exercise while training [1]. If the event starts at nine, have the breakfast that has worked for you at six or seven before your long training rides or runs.

Nerves make many people lose their appetite. If that happens to you, eat less and choose liquid options, which digest sooner [1]. A glass of milk with cocoa and a banana will do, or a drinkable yoghurt with a few biscuits. What to eat in the days beforehand and carbohydrate loading for long events are covered in our sports nutrition guide.

What mistakes do we see in consultations?

There are three mistakes we hear about in consultations almost every week, and none of them comes from a lack of effort.

• Not adjusting breakfast to the schedule. What works for you at ten on Saturday may not work at seven on Tuesday.
• Copying someone else’s breakfast. Your club mate has a different amount of time, a different stomach and a different session.
• Forgetting to eat breakfast afterwards. Training at seven and not eating until two catches up with you at lunchtime.

Can you train fasted?

Many healthy adults tolerate a short, easy run while fasted, if they choose to do so and feel well. For intervals or sessions lasting more than an hour, it is better to have breakfast first.

Training fasted as a rule in order to eat less is different. When this continues for weeks, your energy intake does not cover the energy you expend. The International Olympic Committee consensus on relative energy deficiency in sport describes its effects on bones, menstruation, immune defences and performance [4]. If fasting has become an obligation, look at the list of warning signs below.