Following on from my post about your race breakfast I thought it would be interesting to see what everyone eats the night before a race.

Me? I always try to have pasta with lots of bread. I will occasionally have grilled chicken with beans as an alternative.

Pasta,salad,cous-cous,cottage cheese and lots of bread no booze

For marathons and ultras it's always the night before the night before (ie Friday night) that's the most important for both food and sleep...and it has to be a big bowl of pasta for me. Then I'll just snack all through Saturday, and drink loads of water.

But for shorter races it'll usually be a high carb meal...sometimes pasta, sometimes rice...never salad tho coz it plays havoc with my digestive system during a race

Something safe like rice, pasta, white meat or fish. Not the time to go for a curry or experiment in the kitchen...

I really don't eat anything different the night before a race. Maybe I'll eat pasta, maybe I'll eat junk, whatever is put in front of me generally . That said like Greg says I do tend to shy away from anything which may cause a reaction like curry!!

Perhaps I should start eating a bit more sensible the night before though.

I have a ritual of lasagna the night before a race, I always cook far too much so there is plently to scoff down for a post race lunch the next day

I usually have pasta before a race also.

Usually pasta - but without any of the thick, creamy sauces

Sometimes rice with chicken or turkey.

No salad, no fruit, nothing spicy and not too much dairy

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Fetcheveryone

The night before a run i have spaghetti bolognese.

Seems to be a trend, but it's Wholemeal pasta for me - throw in some Quorn pieces too for extra protein along with those carbs..

I'm not a veggie, but my wife is - so i tend to have Quorn with every meal as it's too much hassle cooking the same meal using twice as many pans

more important is to back off on training so even with normal diet muscle glycogen has chance to supercompensate,bit foolish to start experimenting,but predominantly carbs are called for(simple or complex); although do know of someone who would fast 24hrs pre an ultra....not as insane as you may think since his metabolism would switch to fatty acid use and as long as blood glucose was maintained he coped well!

Before a marathon, it has to be Chinese for me with lots of rice & Carbo bars & Jelly babies & Carbo drinks & Flap Jacks, oooh... do I feel fat.

2 days beore its Pasta for me.

Before a shorter race its Pasta again for me. :eek:

If it's a marathon or ultra then I'd have a big pasta meal 2 nights before the race. The following day and evening I just snack on carbs with no big meal on the night before because with the time it takes to digest and process it doesn't actually help during the race.

If it's a half marathon or less I eat normally with a smaller pasta meal 2 nights before