For anyone who runs 10km races, what do you normally eat before the race, assuming the race is in the morning? I raced yesterday and had a small bowl of cereal, a banana and 1 piece of toast. Around the 7km mark i felt a bit faintish. Am I not eating enough? I try to restrict how much i eat before a race because i don’t want to feel full. The other explanation is that i just went out way to hard and ran it faster than I should be given my body’s current condition.
I ran a 10-mile race yesterday and didn’t eat before. I meant to have ~200 cals, but my stomach felt a little off. Brought a Gu on course with me, but didn’t end up eating it. Just had a bit of electrolyte drink at 2 aid stations and was hungry when I finished (1:05:40/ 6:34 pace).
Bottom line is that it’s pretty personal - I would prefer not to eat in a 10k, but you might have benefitted from more food before or during. I DO think when you eat plays a key role for shorter running races. I would rather race a little hungry than toe the line feeling “full”.
I’m probably the oddball - for a 10k … I will eat some organic pasta the night before - modest portion - 2 hours before race I do a homemade veggie/fruit juice (celery, carrot, green apple 16 ounces) and 1 honey stinger and make sure I go to sleep the night prior hydrated.
I eat some plain bagels a few hours before I race. Easily digested. Sip on an electrolyte drink like Gatorade. 10 mins before i race i pop a powerbar gel
last 10k I did was 2 eggs 1/2 cup of dry oats 1 cup of coconut Milk 2 hours before start. also night before had 2 slice of pizza at 6pm and then munched on matzo crackers for a bit and some water. 15 min before race had Gu with caffeine. did 6:16pace on 7mpw. 6’5" 178lbs
i do a 10k+ for lunch and I dont eat or drink anything since breakfast which is usually about 3-4 hours earlier. Breakfast is either oatmeal and some coffee or bacon/egg/english muffin and some coffee.
I have a regular sized bowl of cereal, a banana and some fruit juice, which is what I have before just about every morning training run (save for the odd times early in the season when I run fasted). It’s a substantial breakfast, but not a huge one. I’ll eat AT LEAST two hours before the event. Normally 2.5ish. As I wait around at the start line, I’ll usually have some sports drink, maybe 200mL. Before a 10km, I don’t use Gu (although I will for a half-marathon or a marathon)
I’ve been doing this years and I’ve learned what works for my body. Experiment in training. Find what works. Stick to it on race day.
the same thing you’d eat before a normal day of training.
x2 minus anything particularly adventurous or fibrous.
The morning of the race I usually eat a lot since I wake up ~4:30am and races usually start 9-10am. I graze on some combo of cereal, PB, muffins, yogurt, cottage cheese, bananas and lots of tea, shifting to low fiber, high glycemic index carbs (e.g. dates) as the race approaches. Dairy doesn’t work for everyone!
If I am within 3 hours of the start time of any event, I do not eat anything. I will possibly have a gel pack around 10 minutes before the start and would have been hydrating with straight water or electrolyte mix. As mentioned previously, your nutrition leading up to the event is what is most important. Before 3 hours it would be something light like PB on bread or a scone etc. Again avoiding anything with high fiber content.
in a 10k race you won’t run out of glycogen/energy stores unless there’s something pathologically wrong… so the pre-race meal is irrelevant really. Eating too much would slow you down but that’s the only way I can think of the meal could affect performance.
I have run a marathon without eating since lunchtime the day before, no gels or food during the race - can’t recommend it, but it did not significantly impact performance.
Coffee first thing, then drop the kids at the pool.
Around 2-2.5 hours before the race (maybe 3 for a 10k), a small bowl of grapenuts (like half a serving) with vanilla yogurt (4-5 Tbs) and 1% milk (to soften) with a drizzle of honey. It’s enough to keep me from running hungry, which I HATE, but little enough and liquidy enough to have cleared my stomach well before the race. Experiment with amounts and timing before some training runs to ensure that it’s not still sitting in your stomach…
Then a gatorade primer liquid thing (100 cal worth) about 30’ before the race and only sip an electrolyte drink until 15’ before the race. Only sips, though - don’t want much in the belly.
For morning races up 10k and down in distance, the only things I consume are some water, a cup of coffee, and a half of an imodium pill.
I get it, you need to practice fueling during your training. That does not mean you need to fuel for/during every single run. You’d be better trained if the majority of you training was SANS fuel. Have more fasting runs and fasting rides in your training. That means get out the door before breakfast, and don’t take anything during your workout. Teach your body to metabolize all your different energy sources. Even during a fasting run, you’ll have sufficient glycogen stores at your pace to run close to 15 miles.
Also, at the end of a 5k or 10k, if you are racing up to your potential, you will feel faintish at the end no matter what you ate before that race.