A familiar pre-competition meal can help settle the stomach and absorb gastric juices. This nervousness can be so strong in some individuals that a pre-competition meal is not an option. Athletes who cannot eat before competition need to make a special effort to eat extra food on the previous day. Keep in mind that fasting before to competition has been shown to have detrimental effects on performance, so training yourself to eat before exercise on non-competition days may help. In many cases, the psychological effects of the pre-competition meal may outweigh its physiological value.
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.