Early fuel foods

Ph!l_GeeWhizz

Howdoo all. Now let me start by saying i'm no pro cyclist, just someone who still enjoys riding his 20 year old bike for fun and fitness. I decided to ride part of the journey to work the other day (12 miles round trip) rather than the full 26 miles but ran into a problem with feeling like crap when i got to work. I'd had breakfast before i left the house but it obviously wasnt good enough because once i'd eaten more at work i felt so much better and the ride home was no problem.
So my question is to you guys, what do you eat before your commute to work to stop the hunger pangs?
Phil .

asprilla

I have a granola bar or a banana and a glass of fruit juice before I leave. I then have a proper breakfast when I get to work.

If I ate any more then I'd fell terrible on the bike and probably get indigestion.

If you can eat a proper breakfast then you want simple and complex carbs for quick and medium term energy. Porridge with honey and some fruit juice would be your best bet.

Norky

No doubt I wont be the only one to say this: porridge. Oats are great riding fuel, see this article on the matter and also this forum posting about porridge and alternatives.

This is a 6 mile trip into work in the morning? No doubt you'll have ridden much greater distances (for non-commuting reasons), so I'm surprised you had a problem. Did you (do you normally) eat a small breakfast?

prj45

Very rarely anything.

I might have a bananna before I leave the house.

After my 14 mile ride in I have breakfast at work (porridge or sausage roll).

What you eat the night before is more important.

nich

It doesn't make much difference to me on my 12 miles to work whether I eat or not. I usually have a bit of a Banana or sometimes a whole one.

I do however always have a glass of water before I set off, and also take a bottle of water that I sip on route too.

When I get to work I pig out :oops:

dhope

protein shake at 7.30ish before setting off, mainly because it's quick, then porridge at 10ish at work

prawny

Anything, nothing seems to make any difference to me, crunchy nut cornflakes, porridge or scrambled egg on toast are my usual suspects, but I've tried having nothing at all until I get to work and no change.

I have a 40 mile round trip.

asprilla

prj45 wrote:

What you eat the night before is more important.

In that case my commute is wine powered.

mattrsa

My commute is 22 miles and I never eat anything before heading out. Just have a glass of juice and jump on the bike. Then I have some weetabix once I get to work, or occasionally a bacon butty if the ride was hard : 0

simonaspinall

I have a standard bowl of bran flakes or fruit n fibre...i've just got used to eating and then exercising.

Always eat something...the last thing you want is a sugar crash. Eurgh!

coffeecup

A bowl of Ready Brek for me (with 2 spoons of sugar) and an espresso before I leave the house

lost_in_thought

Asprilla wrote:

prj45 wrote:

What you eat the night before is more important.

In that case my commute is wine powered.

Mine too.

I did feel a bit out of sorts this morning, having been too busy geeking out to have dinner, and now I realise I've also failed to have lunch.

Dammit, self.

Ride home = pootle.

Ph!l_GeeWhizz

Suppose everyone is different but dont think i could ride on empty stomach. I do normally ride longer on a night and never feel bad after but have got all of the days food inside me. Think i'll just try a few different options and see what works best.
And i dare say we are all guilty of at least one or two alcohol powered rides the next day! C'mon, we deserve it after a hard day's graft!

invincible

i have only had breakfast once before a commute & it came back up about 2 miles into 15 miles....

i just have plenty of water & have breakfast as soon as i get to work :?

freakybacon

What invincible said. I have breakfast when I get to work- usuallly cereal- with fruit. At this time i am looking towards the commute home ( with a bit of work/ tossing it off in between),