7:30 AM start time- HELP!

[All Chalked Up]

Provincials are coming up! Yay! We just got our schedule and turns out I am competing bright and early at 7:30 AM! I'm not what we call a morning person though, and I don't want my performance to suffer because of this.

What should I eat/drink in order to have energy and be able to sustain it? Nuts and meat is out of the question as I am deathly allergic to nuts and a vegetarian (though I eat eggs and dairy).

 

[hawaii_gymnast]

No advice really, other than maybe have pasta the night before and bring snacks with you especially if your not a big morning eater. I'm the opposite of you I compete at Zones at 5:30 p.m. so I need to find a way to still have energy then. In my province they have a 8:00 start time rule. No warm up is allowed to start till at least 8
GOOD LUCK!

 

[bogwoppit]

Oh join the club, we have had some 6:30am start times for our teens, I thought it was crazy. They should have the 8 year olds then and the teens at noon!

Try to get to bed early for the week before the meet. Eat very well and stay hydrated. The night before I am with the pasta meal for dinner, try to relax, maybe a bath and a movie followed by an early-ish night.

Breakfast on the day, try oatmeal and dried fruit for prolonged energy. If you need breakfast on the road, maybe Tim's multigrain bagel and a smoothie with yogourt.

Good luck!

 

[pattymello]

Try to get to bed early for the week before the meet.

And get up early! Think of it as training for your comp.

 

[Kiwi]

Yikes! DD and I are not morning people either. We've found Up'n'Go and bananas quite good for the early starts.

 

[Aussie_coach]

A lot of it is your own mindset. If you go into thinking it is too early and you are going to be tired then you will. Go in thinking what an advantage it will be to be fresh from a nights sleep and not have to worry about being tired from the days activities.

 

[wallinbl]

Marathons and triathlons are almost all run early in the morning like that. Don't worry about your ability to physically perform - people do gruelling events at that hour all the time. Start going to bed early about a week ahead of time if you're worried about your ability to fall asleep earlier the night before.

Like others said, eat pasta the night before. Eat a well rounded, but not overly heavy meal that morning (veggie sausage, bananas, toast, and granola). You don't want to leave your stomach empty, but you don't want to eat something like biscuits and gravy that will put you in a fog.

 

[twoofthem]

I would add make it whole wheat pasta the night before, not the overly processed white stuff. My lvl 7 really likes early mornings, my 4, not so much. I have found a nice greek yogurt is a good source of protein, we eat chobani. A whole wheat bagel/cream cheese and something fresh.. I like them to eat a veggie but that doesn't always fly, so a banana or something. A low sugar/high fiber cereal in a baggie to snack on the drive and throw in the bag. You don't want to eat too much but want it to be something of value. I've also tried baked oatmeal (with no sugar added, just applesauce) but they don't eat that as well. I think they eat the bagel because I don't buy them normally so it's a treat. I also let them pick out their little yogurt cup so it's a treat too. I always back an energy bar for what it's worth, a candy bar, maybe some crackers. They never touch what I pack til it's over..no idea why years in to this I haven't learned. My oldest just tried those energy bursts.. I think Cliff makes them..she swears they work. Again, not something I normally get so to her, they work.

When you wake up go for a brisk run, not long, not far just enough to get the cold air in your face and your heart rate up.

Good luck!

 

[wallinbl]

My oldest just tried those energy bursts.. I think Cliff makes them..she swears they work. Again, not something I normally get so to her, they work.

Some of those things have caffeine in them, so check the labels! Almost handed the wrong one to DD before a meet once. Never knew any had caffeine until the wife noticed. 8 year old, never had any caffeine DD surely would have had an interesting meet!

 

[coachmolly]

I agree with the general consensus of getting to bed early the week before, especially the night before, and getting yourself used to that schedule. Relax as much as possible the night before, because if you're too wound up about the meet (or anything) it can make getting a good nights sleep difficult.
As far as morning foods, I am a breakfast person and need something that will get me going for the day and help me to avoid the mid-morning crash. I like eggs (scrambled and sometimes in omelet form with some veggies and cheese), oatmeal with fresh or dried fruit, yogurt with fruit and granola, whole wheat bagel with cream cheese or whole wheat toast along with some fruit and/or yogurt, things along those lines. And having a few small snacks to graze on throughout the morning either in the car or throughout the meet- fruit or veggie slices, granola, or something similar and not messy/sticky.
Good luck at your meet!

 

[CoachGoofy]

I was always (still am) a protein in the morning kinda girl-otherwise I crash ALL. DAY.

If this is you, I'd suggest an omlette. If this is not you, all the other people who aren't OMGPROTEIN in the morning have good suggestions.