I usually go for peanut butter toast and a banana. If I eat anything too dense I end up with stomach trouble, and since this works for me I haven’t really changed it. Have fun on your run!

Ugh, I cannot eat before a workout in the morning. I typically workout first thing and eat breakfast right after. On Saturday I ate one hour before an interval run, and by the end of the run I felt like I was going to throw up! When I’m doing longer runs the only thing I can consume during them is liquid, like gatorade; anything with fiber makes me sick, too.

I try for a carb protein combo like peanut butter on toast. Depending on the length of the run I will take in more calories along the way (Cliff Bloks or sports drink) so I don’t need a heavy breakfast.

have you always been able to eat right before you run?

i know for me, i need at least 3 hours after eating for my food to digest…. i ran 11 miles at 11am on saturday after having a protein smoothie at 6am and not eating until after my run! i do think i need to start adding some sort of food/gu to my long runs… do you feel like that makes you faster???

Usually I have my standard oats before a run. I like to allow at least an hour for digestion. If I drink coffee, then I allow for an hour and a half or more!

Yikes, that’s a monster pancake. I work out after work, so I don’t have to eat anything beforehand. I just eat a snack around 4 pm and I’m good to go.

I still have a hard time understanding how people don’t actually wake up hungry. There are very very few times where I’ve skipped breakfast- my stomach would hate me!

When I have a long run planned, it’s still usually the standard oatmeal I have (which is bulked up with peanut butter, cereal, flax, protein powder, or whatever).

Yumm that looks great! I love adding protein to my pancakes too – it gives them so much more staying power!

I know you can train your body to eat breakfast. Growing up I never liked eating right when I woke up, but now I crave it. It just takes getting into the routine 🙂

It takes me so long to digest, I would have to eat something like that at least 2 hours before I wanted to run.

I never skip breakfast – and also have 2 breakfasts if doing a long run or tough workout. I need 45-60 minutes to digest normally, but 2 hours if I’m racing.

love the pancake recipe! I put my blueberries and some sliced banana in the pancake batter so they cook a ittle, too – yum!

I heart your monster pancake! I love doing that too– making one, huge pancake…Your recipe looks great! Might have to try it…

I usually work out in the evenings (after work) so I try to eat a snack about two hours before– I’ve read that pre-workout meals are most useful when they’re eaten a while before so that you have a chance to absorb the nutrients. It’s usually an apple with almond butter, or fruit with beef jerky.

On the weekends I work out in the mornings (I actually prefer this) and I usually eat a banana with almond butter or a monster pancake about an hour before I work out.

I always eat before a run. If it’s under an hour, I find that I can handle a bowl of cereal as long as I don’t put a ton of milk in there. For my longer runs (I’m at 11 miles right now), Luna bars having been working really well for me so far. I tried a banana once and it did not sit in my stomach well…but then I get up pretty early so my food usually has under 30 minutes to digest.

Before a long run, I always eat a bagel with some type of nut butter and a banana. It is always way more food than I want to eat but I know from experience that my body needs it. I’ve also discovered that if I run more than about 16 miles, I need to have solid food on my run. My first 20 miler, I ended up walking the last five miles home in tears because I hit a wall and just had nothing left. Proper fueling is SO important!

I’ve never really planned a pre-workout snack even for my hour long walks. I drink lots of water during the walk but that’s about it. I may have to rethink it though cuz I”m usually pretty wiped out if I go more than an hour. Thanks for all the comments.

My favorite pre-run meal is half a bagel or toast with some peanut butter and banana. I can handle smoothies and cereal or oatmeal too, but I think bread products are the most stable meal for my stomach. I usually have to wait at least an hour though; if I just have a piece of fruit beforehand, then I can go in 20-30 minutes.

I’m more of a scoop PB out of the jar girl, maybe with some toast, and jammin a banana in my mouth on the way out the door… I really need to get in the habit of planning my breakfast better. I’m not up to long runs yet, but I can definitely tell the difference in my energy levels, even just doing 5ks, when I do not eat properly before.

That pancake looks fabulous!

Before a morning workout I will have a small bowl of oatmeal + banana or toast + PB. If I am working out after work I will have a few dates + PB or 1/2 banana or 1/2 larabar. I need to wait 20-30 minutes before working out, but I do need something in my belly. My husband works out on an empty stomach or he feels ill — I feel ill WITH an empty stomach.

I sadly have to wait a full hour to digest or I cramp up. this means on LR mornings I have to get up really early!

Peanut butter toast is my go-to breakfast.

I think I would have to wait longer to digest a breakfast like that – I’m jealous!
Also, is there something I could use instead of pancake mix? Would just WW flour + some baking powder work?

I also wake up hungry but I’m not a runner. 😀 I don’t eat right away though. I usually sit down with a mug of coffee for 30 minutes, do an hour of yoga, then eat my breakfast. I just can’t get myself to wake up early enough to give myself time to digest before working out.

When I run (which isn’t often) I usually have to do it on an empty stomach, or maybe just something small like half a banana with peanut butter, or a couple bites of toast with PB to get rid of the starving feeling. I’m never running for that long anyways so it’s enough to fuel me through. When I’m just doing a normal workout (elliptical, bike, weights, etc) I can usually eat a pretty normal breakfast (oatmeal, etc) and just wait about 30-40 minutes and I’m good to go.

I hate eating first thing in the morning, but I exercise early, so I do what I have to do. Saturday’s are my long runs, so I make a bowl of oatmeal with chia, nuts, cinnamon, and berries. 30-45 minutes of digestion and I’m outta there. On other running days I typically just eat a date or two and that’s good enough. The other three days are lighter exercise days and I will usually eat a date or nothing. Works for me!

Caitlin, gave your post a shout-out on my blog. I think you brought up a point that I haven’t given much thought to and that’s fueling my exercise. Thanks for bringing it up and all those who commented. I now have a good starting point for when my orthopedic guy lets me walk again.

That protein pancake sounds awesome! I typically go with oatmeal with a banana pre-workout. If I eat that, I can run about 30-45 minutes later. For my triathlon, I chose a brown rice tortilla with banana and Justin’s honey almond butter, and it lasted me for over 6 hours! If I run in the afternoons (on the weekdays), I eat an apple and a mini-Lara bar about an hour before exercise.

I’ve been making those pancakes for a while now. So good and so easy! If you add in a bit of cottage cheese (or whipped cottage cheese in my case) it adds SO much creaminess!

I actually ate an oatmeal pancake for breakfast the day I ran my half marathon. It fueled me perfectly and didn’t feel heavy at all in my stomach. I think I did 1/2 cup oats, pinch baking soda, 1/3 cup egg whites, 1/2 mashed banana and topped with some peanut butter. Normally for smaller workouts I have a piece of toast with PB or banana with PB

For my long runs, I eat a Clif bar (that I put on my nightstand the night before) and 10 oz of water. Then I go back to sleep for an hour! Best of both worlds…fuel for the run, but I get to sleep in a little too 🙂