twentysomething

Looking for some advice on eating before a ride. Somehow I'm off on what I'm eating and when. I either feel crappy during the ride or totally out of it after the ride.
For example, I know now Chick-fil-a 90 minutes before a ride is not a good idea.
If you get up early to ride (like before work) what would you eat and how long would you wait to ride?
What kinds of food are you eating before a ride?
That sort of stuff.....

jppe

it's best to not ride on a completely empty stomach (early AM rides). Just eat what you'd normally eat for breakfast, ideally an hour before you start but I can eat and ride immediately. What works best for me is pancakes and eggs for a pre-ride meal in the AM. Whatever you eat, just make sure it always agrees with you, don't go experimenting with foods you have not tried before rides before. Later in the day I make sure I just avoid the spicy stuff......salsa, jalapenos, onions etc and stuff that might cause you indigestion (cucumbers does that to me). And also make sure you just eat normal portions and don't overeat.

I've done tours where they feed you on the ride and I've never had any issues with eating and riding myself. but when in doubt go bland.

OldTryGuy

All depends on the type of ride and how soon it will begin.

Bagel with PB, bagel-egg-cheese-turmeric-cumin powder-cayenne pepper-sweet paprika-garlic powder-ketchup, banana with PB, big bowl of uncooked rolled oats with honey-cinnamon-raisins-almonds-walnuts-ground flaxseed-100% cocoa powder-dark chocolate chips, bowl of fat free Greek yogurt with honey-almonds-walnuts-raisins-cinnamon-flaxseed-dark chocolate chips,

mht7159

I like to get out early with the sunrise when i can so i try to eat a energy bar or yogurt since i don't normally have a lot of time between getting up and riding.

Mobile 155

Oh man, you have opened the door wide now. A lot depends on your metabolism and the diet you are used to. Many of the cycling books say carb load before a ride but if you take that literally you may end up packing on weight. You don't need to carb load for a 20 mile ride. I am on a lower carb program so I have a special oatmeal with 16 grams of Carbs, 11 grams of Protein and 2 grams of fat. If the ride is going to spirited or over 40 miles I will add a piece of fruit. But I do my best to get 5 grams of Fiber. I eat 1 to 2 hours before a ride, got that from Joe Friel's book cycling past 50. I also start hydrating before the ride with at least 16 ounces of water. But I have a coach and a doctor that made my diet for me. Yours might be different.

ol geezer

I've had some of the same issues and have read a lot on these forums about nutrition and hydration before and during a ride. What I think I've learned is that what works for some won't work for others ... there is no "one size fits all." That said, a lot of what I've read here seemed to be good ideas so I've experimented and found what works for 20-30 miles rides for me. I haven't discovered what's ideal for longer rides yet but I feel like I'm getting close.

Anyway ... I eat one packet of instant oatmeal and maybe a banana about 30-60 minutes before my ride (I usually get an early start). I take two bottles of water, the larger one is plain and the smaller one has two scoops of Heed. That's it. I drink all the plain water first by which time I figure I've burned through my energy stores and most of the oatmeal, then I start drinking the Heed. I don't carry any bars or gels or bloks or anything else. 30 miles takes 1:45 to 1:55. Temps here have been running in the 65-70 degree range. When temps get above that I usually carry an extra bottle of plain water. I'm just starting to feel hungry when I'm done and I don't feel trashed.

twentysomething

All at once? (sorry, couldn't resist)

Velo Fellow

We are all different....I cannot eat a huge breakfast shortly before an early morning ride. I'll have some fruit and a slice of whole wheat toast with p'butter... and take along a bottle of Heed. If I'm going out for more than 90 mins or so, I'll take something to eat along the way. If a ride of well over 2 hours, I'll take along a bottle of Perpetuem or Sustained Energy... and maybe something solid and more satisfying.

Definitely recharge soon after you ride......... Recoverite maybe, chocolate milk is "in" these days, or just a good old breakfast.

OldTryGuy

OH, forgot about the bananas with PB.

Mobile 155

I have discovered that after ride nutrition is every bit as important as pre ride. But I do take something to eat and shot blocks when the effort gets high.

DnvrFox

I will affirm that everyone is different as illustrated by my wife and myself. She requires constant nutrition. If I eat before a ride, all my energy goes to digesting that food, and I am so sluggish. So, for up to a 40 mile ride or so, I start out empty and stay empty until maybe 2/3 to3/4 or someone the entire ride before having breakfast. My wife would simply collapse on that regimen.

dalameda

egg white sandwich on a whole wheat english muffin, a little bit of cheese and green chili(what can I say, I grew up in New Mexico and have to have green chili on everything)

NOS88

My daily routine is pretty boring. Up at 5 a bowl of oatmeal and a bit of fruit. I then walk the dog for two miles and then jump on the bike and commute to work. If it's a day I'm not working, instead of a commute, I do a longer ride. During the winter I'll often do a night ride about 1.5 hours after dinner. It doesn't matter much what I eat as long as it's not heavy with oils or fat. Hence, I wouldn't feel great either with fried chicken before riding. I almost always have a fig bar or two with me when I ride. Even if it's a short hour ride, I'll pop one of the fig bars in after about 30 to 40 minutes.

Boudicca

Another oatmeal person here. Steel cut oats in the winter, and raw oats with fruit and milk/buttermilk in the summer. It gives me the fuel for a long ride or for a short one.

I cannot ride after eggs. I have tried riding after eggs and my body just goes into shut-down-and-digest-eggs mode. I ride like a tortoise.

Absolute worst: ice cold chocolate milk, gulped down fast mid ride on a hot day. I thought I was going to throw up.

Chocolate milk after ride is perfect.

JimF22003

I'm bad, I normally don't eat breakfast. When I eat a bunch before a ride start I feel really sluggish, and even get a little low-blood sugar reaction about an hour into the ride. So what I've been doing for many years is to have just a single apple and a banana about 20 minutes before the ride start. Mainly that's because I have apples at home, and I can pick up a banana at the 7-11 That seems a good compromise between over-and-undereating for me.

Yankeetowner

One cup of low fat Greek yogurt with a sliced banana, sliced small peach (1/2 if large), hand full of blue berries, and raw rolled/steel cut oats. Mixed together in a bowl, eaten with a couple of cups of coffee. I can't eat after a ride for at least a couple of hours.

TromboneAl

Before my typical metric, I'll have a big breakfast sausage, some steak, or some chicken livers and/or an egg or two plus coffee.

On the ride, 1-3 Quest bars, and coffee.

After the ride: This smoothie.

CommuteCommando

What works for me- 1oz Peanut butter on a slice of whole wheat. I usually eat it an hour before starting, though have eaten just before getting on the bike with no problems.

I'm jealous. A breakfast like that would send my lipid panel way off the scale, and likely get me another ride in the little red bus to see the man in the white suit for another roto-rooter up the femoral. (The last one was brought on by a post ride Jalapeno Cheeseburger )

YMMV

pvillemasher

For an early morning ride of up to 30 miles or so I don't eat anything, but I keep a cereal bar or something in my pocket just in case.
For longer rides I'll eat a slice of bread with peanut butter, maybe two depending on how long before the ride and length of the ride. I try to avoid things like yogurt although I don't ever remembering having a problem.

PatW

As stated above, everyone is different. My wife can not eat anything solid before or during a ride. She uses those little GU packets.

I used to be able to get up and not eat and do 70 miles without eating. I seem to be able to eat almost anything before or during a ride. I have not tried everything like bratwurst or bourbon. Just recently, I do better if I eat a little about 35 miles into a ride. I still start out on an empty stomach. On centuries, I tend to eat early and often but not much at any one spot.

Rootman

A couple of bran muffins and 6 cups of strong coffee

But seriously, I eat fairly light and nothing to sugary or else I tend to fizzle out real quick. The oatmeal is a real good suggestion and sticks with me pretty good for a good long while. I usually take a granola bar and apple with me for about 20 mies into the ride if going over 30 or 40 miles.

genejockey 

It depends how far I'm riding. If I'm going in the early morning, as in hit the road by 7:30 or 8:00, just two big cups of black coffee, and I'm fine riding for up to 90 minutes.

If I ride after that but before 10:30, I need my usual breakfast of yogurt with walnuts and dried fruit.

After 10:30 (like yesterday), I'll eat half a Peanut Butter sandwich right before riding. If it's a long ride, I'll drink about 1 x 24 oz bottle of Cytomax every 60-90 minutes. Yesterday, I still needed half an energy bar to make sure I got home without getting too empty, after 46 miles.

Then, another bottle of Cytomax from the fridge, a big roast beef sandwich, and a bunch of grapes. And all the water I can drink!

SammyJ 

I went years for 10 -15 miles rides on just coffee, but i was on second shift then, and did not qualify for this subsection!

WC89

For me, 90% of the time my pre-ride meal consists of the breakfast that i eat ordinarily, which is almost always, exactly 1 cup of Puffins high fiber cereal (cinnamon), 1 sliced up banana and fat free milk. I like to eat it 1 - 2 hours before a ride but not usually inside of 1 hour of ride time. I've tried many pre-ride meal types over the years (other cold cereals, pancakes, waffles, eggs, bacon, sausage, etc) but been doing the Puffins for about 3 yrs. If I happen to be doing a short, very intense ride (intervals), that ride is usually in the afternoon or early evening so, I don't eat inside of 2 hours of that kind of ride; that meal may be a typical sandwich lunch or a Clif Bar. Just have to figure out by trial/error what works for you.

Bikey Mikey

Early AM ride starts off with a 16 oz cup of water, a banana, a ˝slice of bread. If I am going further than 36 miles, I eat a breakfast bar while on the ride. If I'm going to be doing 60~70 miles, I have a second one during the ride(first one around the 20 mile mark and the second one around the 40 mile mark for a metric 100K). This seems to work for me...YMMV.