Fueling Up PreExercise: Go with your Gut!

When I first joined SIU last fall, I struggled to find the right food to eat pre-boot camp.  I've never been one to eat right before exercise, and I also didn't see myself waking up at 4:30am so I could eat an hour before camp either!

During the first month, I tried various combinations of juices, bananas, toast, peanut butter, yogurt, protein bars, and sports drinks 30 minutes before camp.  There were days when my stomach cramped, days when I felt so full that I had a tough time focusing on the workout, and days when I felt bloated and uncomfortable.  I even tried chewing Tums on my way out the door hoping it would help everything digest.  And yes, there were a few times I threw up.  

After four months of camp, I picked up Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guide to see what a dietitian specializing in sports nutrition had to say.  My take home messages were:

• You will be able to workout harder and you will burn more calories if you have a preexercise snack.
• There is no one magical pre-workout meal.  Go with your gut.  Literally.
• If you are new to exercise, you will be more likely to have side effects (stomach cramping, nausea, heartburn, bloating, diarrhea) from eating.  Over time, your body will adapt and the side effects from eating should get better.  As you train your body, you need to train your gut too.
• 30-50% of the vets not new to exercise will have side effects from eating despite training.

So what's right for you?  If you are new to boot camp and/or exercise, you will need to simply go through the process of trial and error.   To start with, choose high carb, low-fat, low-protein, and low-fiber foods.  Some suggestions:

• 4-6 saltine crackers or small pretzels and a few sips of a sports drink
• 1 small bowl of low sugar, low fiber cereal (Cheerios, Rice Krispies) with skim milk
• 1/2 cup oatmeal
• 1 small banana
• 1 slice toast or 1/2 English muffin (no high fiber) with thin spread of peanut butter and/or jelly

What finally worked for me?   Four to six saltines by 5:15am and G2 powder mixed in 20 oz of water during camp.  The dietitian in me says "you could do better," but my gut no longer feels sick and I have enough energy to get through our workouts!

Join this discussion!  For those of you who eat in the morning preexercise, what works best for you?