Some athletes have ritual foods they consume for good luck. If you firmly believe that eating a particular food before your competition will help you to perform at your best, this food may be your best choice, whatever its nutritional value. When planning your pre-exercise meals, remember that each person has individual food preferences and aversions. Therefore, the most important guideline is to choose the foods, beverages and meal timing that work best for your body. And if you are a competitive athlete, be sure to test effectiveness of all possible dietary strategies during training before trying them out on an event day.
Meal timing is really important.
The size and type of meal consumed should be related to the amount of time you have before exercise. While the pre-exercise meal does not contribute immediate energy for exercise, it may be useful if exercise continues for an hour or more. Athletes typically run out of stored carbohydrate after about 90 minutes of exercise. Therefore, the pre-competition meal is critical when exercise is prolonged or when a series of shorter competitions occurs over a long period of time, as in a track meet, swim meet or wrestling tournament. In events lasting longer than 90 minutes, eating or drinking an energy-containing beverage such as juice, punch or a sport drink during activity can replenish blood glucose and extend endurance time.