i get up at 5am to do my swim workouts before work. i find it difficult to eat a meal that early in the morning (not to mention doing a swim session on a full stomach) so all i have is a coffee in the car on the way to the pool, then i eat breakfast after the workout. now that the season is getting closer and my swim workouts are getting a bit more demanding, i find i’m running on empty and don’t have enough energy to keep up a consistent effort to the end of the workout.
what are you early morning swimmers eating before going to the pool? i tried gels and they help, but i can see that getting old in a hurry. any suggestions for a light energy source that digests easy?
God forbid my coach sees this. Chocolate Ensure Plus atleast 30 minutes prior (or you’ll get a cramp… just kidding). Two cans = 700 cals. Yes it has sugar, but it’s the only thing I can stand that early in the morning… Well, cold pizza but I know I’d see it again floating on the water’s surface. It goes down easy and doesn’t come back up. For me it beats running out of steam.
1 or sometimes 2 bowls of cold cereal with milk. Same pre morning swim meal for at least 10 years now. Everyone’s different though - I’ve known swimmers who never eat anything before a morning workout to others who will get up early enough to have bacon and eggs to others who eat the previous nightsleftovers.
I am 5AM swimmer too. Cliffbar, yogert, fruit, or V-8 juice in the car on my way to the pool. Water or G’ade on the pool deck. At work breakfast, is either oatmeal or cream of wheat.
I get up at 4:45 am for swim practice. I eat as soon as roll out of bed. My breakfast consists of a bowl of cereal with a banana that I slice up and add to the cereal. I also drink a bottle of water on my way to practice.
So far I have not had any problems with dehydration or bonking.
Well, if you’re having coffee you may not want to have a shake, but I always have a phils shake on mornings before I swim. They’re all-natural, quick and easy. Plus they taste like a chocolate shake.
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I swim early too. I usually have a pretty “conventional” breakfast - cereal and milk, some yogurt, a couple of rice cakes and a couple cups of coffee. I’d say that’s my standard breakfast.
I must be carrying too much fat for fuel around with me since I never eat anything prior to swimming early in the morning. I have a glass of water and then go swim. I sometimes will do a swim, then 1 hour spin class and 1 hour run without eating anything … Gotta get rid of some of this winter poundage
Cold cereal with soy milk about 30 minutes before - anything from Apple Jacks to granola. If out of cereal then toast with peanut butter, or low fat poptarts, or if I’m really ahead of schedule some oatmeal with brown sugar, cinnamon and honey. And, a bottle of gatorade on the deck.
I have a t-shirt with Maxwell’s equations on them. I usually get a lot of funny looks, the occasional “cool shirt”. I usually respond, “Its all greek to me!”
