8 Race-Day Breakfast Ideas From Triathlon Coaches

TriDot Podcast Episode 310

8 Race-Day Breakfast Ideas From Triathlon Coaches

Vanessa Ronksley: What fuels triathlon coaches on race morning? Well, we asked 7 coaches, and one food kept coming up again and again. Welcome to the TriDot Podcast, everybody. I'm Vanessa, your average triathlete with elite level enthusiasm. Today, we're going to dive into a fun and practical question. What do triathlon coaches actually eat for breakfast on race day? I think this is something that we all want to know, what everyone else is doing, and so here, we're going to just give you all the answers from 8 of our famous, fabulous coaches. And to join me, here, to help to answer this question, is coach Jasmine Moezzi. Jasmine is Founder, President, and Head Coach of the South Bay Squad. Now, not only is Jasmine an amazing and fun person to talk to, but she's also a certified integrative nutritionist and health coach, which makes her the perfect guest for this conversation. So we asked TriDot coaches to submit videos about their real race morning meals, and Jasmine and I are going to break them down together. What works, what might not, and how you can use these ideas to fuel your best performance. So we're going to start things off, as usual, with the warm-up question. We're going to settle into the main set conversation, and then wind things down by having Jasmine answer an audience question on the cool down. Lots of good stuff. Let's get to it.

Announcer: This is the TriDot Podcast, the triathlon show that brings you world class coaching with every conversation. Let's get started with today's warm-up.

Vanessa Ronksley: All right everybody, so our warm-up question today is something that's near and dear to my heart, because I love food so much. So we're going to go with this one. If race day breakfast did not need to be practical, like we didn't have to worry about gut training, we didn't have to worry about nausea that might come up later, or may come out one or either end later on in the race -- what I want to know is what would be your dream, fantasy breakfast before a race? Jasmine, what is this for you?

Jasmine Moezzi: This is a no brainer for me, but pancakes, pancakes, and more pancakes. I feel like I can live off pancakes, if I could. So that would definitely be it.

Vanessa Ronksley: I love pancakes. My family also loves pancakes like there's no tomorrow. And one of the things that we like to do is we have surprise pancakes on special days, where you put you do the bottom part of the pancake, and then you put a surprise thing on the top, and you flip it over, so that when you eat it, or serve it, you don't actually know what you're getting. So it might be chocolate chips, or blueberries, or we always joke about the seed ones -- we try and give my husband the ones that's full of sesame seeds, and pumpkin seeds, and all the seeds. But anyways, I agree with you. Pancakes are phenomenal. But I think for me, maybe we can combine ours together, because I don't know how anyone could actually choose anything other than ice cream, cookies, and chocolate.

Jasmine Moezzi: I think a combination of the two would be perfect. That's like the dream breakfast.

Vanessa Ronksley: I agree. That's awesome. So, listeners, viewers, wherever you're catching this podcast, whether it's on YouTube, Spotify, or on any of the podcast platforms of choice, if race day breakfast didn't have to be practical, what would your fantasy pre-race meal be? So what you can do to answer this question is head over to any of our social accounts, including our Community Hub, and share your answer, because I, and I'm sure Jasmine, can't wait to hear about what you would choose for your fantasy breakfast.

Announcer: Let's go.

Vanessa Ronksley: All right, Jasmine, it is go time, and we're about to have some serious fun. So we have eight coaches, here, who shared their race day breakfast, and let's just say that there is one food that kept on showing up a lot. So I'm going to ask you, can you take a guess as to which food was the most popular coach pre-race breakfast?

Jasmine Moezzi: So my guess would have to be oatmeal, since that's my go to pre-race breakfast, but I guess we'll see if I'm right.

Vanessa Ronksley: I think, dearest listeners, I'm going to give a spoiler alert, here. Triathlon coaches really love oatmeal. That just was the most popular choice. But it's interesting, because each of these coaches put their own twist on it, so let's just see how creative they ended up getting with their oatmeal. So we're going to go to our first TriDot coach who's sharing their pre-race breakfast.

Jake Graham: Good morning, racers. This is Coach Jake Graham. I'm going to talk to you about race morning breakfast today. So it's important to keep in mind that your race morning breakfast should be part of a comprehensive nutrition plan that starts the week of the race. It should include reducing the amount of fiber you're intaking, as you get closer to the race day, and increasing your hydration, so that you're properly fueled when you wake up that morning. Of course, when you do wake up that morning, you should definitely have something to eat before your race. What I like to do is focus on carbohydrates and making sure that I'm feeling full in the morning. You don't want to start your race hungry, because it's going to be a long day of trying to catch up, then. So what I start with is I have a bowl of oatmeal in the morning. I like to bring the oatmeal packets, the instant Quaker or Kroger brand, whatever you have, so that you're in control of what you're having. You're not reliant on what the hotel might have or what's nearby. Make sure that you bring a bowl and a spoon, as well, and scope out a microwave the night before, so that you can make your breakfast in the morning. I also like to include a bagel in the morning, so make sure you're getting enough carbohydrates. That helps keep me feeling full. It's easy to transport. That's something that I scope out beforehand, as well. Try to find something that's a lower fiber. Bagel content is always best. And then I also bring waffle, or Stroopwafel, as an easy source of some extra carbohydrates. That's going to have a decent amount of sugar, as well. So that's something to consider, depending on what your normal diet is. Like everything on race day, you don't want to do something totally out of the norm. Make sure you're having foods that you know that you can digest easily. And then of course, super important to include in the morning, something for hydration. I like to use a Gatorade bottle, just to make sure that my day is starting hydrated. And then one last pro tip: if you're doing a big event and your swim start might be at 7am, you might not be getting in the water until 7:30 or 7:45. So make sure you bring an extra gel, so that you can have that in the swim corral before you jump in the water and end up having a great race day. Stay fueled, stay hydrated, and enjoy the races.

Vanessa Ronksley: All right. So Jasmine, what stands out to you about Jake's go-to brekkie for race morning?

Jasmine Moezzi: I think, for me, what stands out is just the simplicity of it, with the oatmeal, bagel, waffle, all low fiber, easy to digest, and familiar foods. I feel like it's the golden rule on race morning. Stick to foods that are portable, predictable, and won't cause surprises, hopefully. So I think that's what stood out to me about his food.

Vanessa Ronksley: Yeah, that’s similar for me, as well. Something else that he mentioned, which is an interesting point to bring up, he mentioned that you might not start your race right when the gun goes off, depending on where you seed yourself in the swim, or if it’s an age group start and you’re with your age group, and you end up racing an hour later than you anticipated. And sometimes even, there’s thunderstorms or there’s some thing that might cause a delay in your race start. So he mentioned having a gel handy in case of these start delays or starting later. How important is it to plan for those kinds of curveballs?

Jasmine Moezzi: Oh, I think it's super important. If your race is delayed even 20, 30 minutes, your blood sugar can dip, and that's just not how you want to start a big day. So having a gel handy is like having insurance. It keeps your energy steady until the horn goes off. So I think that that's a good little plan, to have one handy at all times, just in case.

Vanessa Ronksley: I like to have one handy and an extra, just in case, just to be prepared. You can always ditch it if you don't need it, if you're standing there, or you can give it to a friend. That's always a nice thing to do, if they've had it before, because nothing new on race day. But all right, we started off strong with oatmeal, but here comes a twist. Coach Cari Lubenow is about to go off skirt from oatmeal. So here we go.

Cari Lubenow: Hey there, Coach Cari here, to share my breakfast routine for race morning. I like to get some solids into me about three hours before the start of my race. That way I have plenty of time to do what I need to do. For me, this has changed over the years, and particularly as I moved from short course to long course, I found out that the English muffin, or oatmeal, or power bar way back in the day, that served me well for short course, did not sit so well once I moved into a longer day out on the race course. So for me, at this point, it is just a nice banana. I know it works great for me because I train with that all the time. I work out really early in the morning, work four 10-hour days, and banana is usually what I have before I work out. And I'm just going to copy/paste that same thing into my race morning. To top that up, I'm going to have some Vitargo, which is the carbohydrate beverage that I use for racing. And I'm going to give myself a nice little hot tea in the morning. Usually it's chilly race mornings, and so nice hot tea gives me a little caffeine, something to soothe me as I'm getting ready to head out the door and get to the race course. I'll also sip on an electrolyte beverage, make sure I'm topping up the electrolytes. And then finally, once I'm all set up, ready to go, about 15 minutes to the start, I'm going to take a gel, a caffeinated gel, get that last little boost, and then I'm ready to rock it on the racecourse. I can't wait to hear what everybody else's breakfast strategy is.

Vanessa Ronksley: So I think we have to give props to Cari for choosing a breakfast that does not include oatmeal. And now, I know Coach Cari quite well, and she has an interesting meal the night before she races, because she has a sensitive tummy, and it includes white rice and scrambled eggs. So she actually goes the extra mile to ensure that her tum is settled for race day. So tell us, Jasmine, what you think about the last supper and then the pre-race morning breakfast that does not involve oatmeal.

Jasmine Moezzi: I think it's great. I love that she's showing there's more than one way to do it. And for some people, oatmeal just doesn't sit right, and that's okay. So bananas, carb drinks, tea, those can check the same fueling boxes without forcing a food that doesn't work to you. And she keeps it simple in her last supper. So she knows her body, and she's planning her food and nutrition needs accordingly. So I think that's fantastic that she's recognized that and knows how to combat any of those GI issues she was having.

Vanessa Ronksley: Yeah. And I think that the people who have experienced this, and who have -- they've gone through a lot of trial and error with, possibly, some races that didn't go their way because their guts weren't doing so well. So I'm guessing that everyone on this podcast episode, here, today, that does not choose oatmeal has had some kind of GI distress in the past. But I want to know what your take on athletes is, who prep their gut by cutting fiber the night before. And do you even recommend cutting it further in advance than the night before the race?

Jasmine Moezzi: I definitely think cutting fiber the night before is a smart move, especially for long course races. I, probably -- it really depends on the athlete, because I think if some are really used to having higher fiber foods and train on it all the time, then they probably don't need to be as extreme in cutting it out. But for those that don't usually eat as much fiber, maybe cutting it out 24 hours in advance, not just dinner time, also maybe breakfast and lunch the day before, that kind of gives your GI system a head start on being calm and race ready. But I really do think it just depends on how much fiber intake they're having on a daily basis. But it's not something you -- definitely not something you want to overdo for a race.

Vanessa Ronksley: Yeah, I think, fortunately, I haven't been in that situation, to have a poor race as a result of GI distress, but I know that there's a lot of athletes out there who really struggle with it. So I completely love that Cari brought in -- yeah, I know you -- I wanted you, specifically, on this episode, actually, because I know that you've struggled from GI issues for a lot of your races. So I think that you have a really amazing perspective to bring to our audience. And Cari brought in the night before strategy. And I want to hear from someone who has to get creative with some dietary restrictions. So we have Coach Claudia coming up next.

Claudia Rosas: Hi, I'm Coach Claudia, and I want to talk to you about race day breakfast. My race day breakfast has changed over the years. In 2019, I was diagnosed with celiacs, and so I cannot have anything with gluten. Prior to that, I was eating a bagel and peanut butter/banana, and I could no longer do that. So now, my race day breakfast is overnight oats. I don't do anything new on race day, so I train with the overnight oats whenever I have long training rides. My go-to is the Bob's Red Mill gluten-free oats. I know that that's safe. I put a couple of scoops of PB Fit, some chia seeds, maybe some blueberries or bananas, and almond milk or soy milk. And then of course, I have my coffee and my creamer. That's like a must. If my husband is taking me to my race, I will eat on the way, but if not I'll get up 15, 20 minutes before I need to leave, so that I have time to eat before I head to transition. Once I get to transition, then I will sip on a bottle of Tailwind electrolytes. And then about 30 to 45 minutes before I enter the water, I will take a UCAN gel, and that will get me through for another hour or so, at least until I get on the bike. And I can take another gel once I get on the bike. So that's my race day breakfast.

Vanessa Ronksley: So I'm sure there's a number of athletes out there who have dietary restrictions, and they know about it, and so they're able to cater to their needs during training and racing. And I also wouldn't be surprised if there's an even larger proportion of people that have sensitivities, and they don't even know that they have sensitivities. So for athletes who suspect that they have a sensitivity but they haven't nailed it down, from your experience, do you have any suggestions on what they should do in training?

Jasmine Moezzi: Yeah, I would definitely -- this is the best time to use training to experiment with this. Keeping, maybe, a food log, or testing different options and paying attention to symptoms. So if you think gluten or dairy might be an issue, then swap gluten free oats or plant-based milks during long workouts, and see how your body responds. So I think, to me, the key is practicing when the stakes are low, so that race day isn't a gamble. Because I, personally, have struggled with a lot of food sensitivities, and when I cut out dairy and gluten, my athletic performance just all of a sudden shot up, and I was able to keep down my fueling during my training, and I just was feeling so much better and stronger. So it's really just trial and error until you figure out what works. But using that training time is crucial. It's not fun when you have to experiment on race day.

Vanessa Ronksley: Absolutely. Now, out of curiosity, how long does one need to actually cut out a specific food group to recognize that it might be affecting their performance during a training session?

Jasmine Moezzi: Some people can feel it instantly. I felt it pretty quick, especially when I cut it out for a whole week and my inflammation went down, I was able to actually absorb my nutrients, and things like that. I was able to feel it pretty instantly. Some others, it might take a little bit more time and a little bit more trial and error. It might be something outside of gluten and dairy. It could be, I don't know, nuts or other food groups. So it does take some time. You could also go to a doctor and get some blood work done, or allergy tests done, to see if that can narrow things down. But I know a lot of times when people remove whatever is causing them that discomfort and inflammation, then it just makes the training and racing so much easier. So it's definitely pretty crucial when it comes to fueling properly and feeling good throughout the training and race days.

Vanessa Ronksley: Yeah, I think that's really interesting. I know from my own personal experience I didn't realize that I was gluten-sensitive. I got tested for celiacs, but it didn't come up positive. But as soon as I removed it from my diet, it was like, I knew within two days. I was like, oh, this is what normal people feel like.

Jasmine Moezzi: Makes a night and day difference, truly. A lot of people don't realize it until they remove it, and they're like, “Wow. This is heaven now.”

Vanessa Ronksley: Agree with you on that one. Okay, so we're going strong with oats, here, with our next coach, but this time, there's going to be a little bit more added. And let's hear from one of my dear friends from across the pond. It's Coach Matt Davies.

Matt Davies: Coach Matt, here. The guys at TriDot have asked me to talk through my go-to race day breakfast. So here it goes. For me, there's only one option. It's overnight oats with a plant-based milk. Lactose doesn't sit well with me, so definitely don't want that on race day, triggering stomach issues. So overnight oats. Big chug, as much as I feel I'm able to realistically get down. Mix in a whole bunch of chia seeds for a whole bunch of added goodness and additional energy. Then, in goes the plant-based milk and some chocolate-flavored protein powder. This just helps me really get it down in the morning. So that then sits overnight and goes nice, and soft, and edible. In the morning, I add on top of that a whole bunch of sliced bananas, a sprinkling of dried fruit, maybe a dollop of peanut butter, as well, and a few nuts sprinkled on top, and then douse all of that with a big, healthy chug of honey. I do have a sweet tooth, but that is a massive mixture of slow-release carbs in the oats and the chia seeds, quick-release carbs in those different fruits. If I have that on race day morning, I know I'm turning up to the start line, absolutely buzzing, full of energy, and know that my day has got off to an absolute winner. So give it a try, see if that works for you.

Vanessa Ronksley: I do have to say that Matt's oats, they sound quite magical with that addition of chocolate protein powders. You have the chocolate flavor, you have honey, you have nuts. It sounds amazing. I think I'd like Matt to make a pre-race breakfast for me. But I'm wondering these add-ons that he suggested, chia seeds and nuts, do they actually help, or is it just making things fancier? What's your take on that?

Jasmine Moezzi: I think chia seeds and nuts definitely add some healthy fats and fiber. But on race day morning, if you haven't done that before, I would say definitely not the time to try. But it sounds like, for him, he does that often, and he knows he can tolerate it. So I think it's great, if you know you can and you've practiced with them. But I wouldn't add it just to try to spruce it up a little bit, if you haven't done it before. But I think the benefit comes when they support your gut and can make you feel good. But yeah, otherwise, I would just say stick to what you know. Don't get too fancy with it, otherwise.

Vanessa Ronksley: Let’s say you wanted to get fancier with it, how far in advance would you need to implement this into your training to know that it might be of benefit for you, in terms of energy levels and that kind of thing?

Jasmine Moezzi: I would do it at least with a few of the longer training rides to really test it out and make sure you feel good throughout that whole ride, like some of the race rehearsal rides prior, leading into a bigger race, that'd be a great time to try it, because you're going to be going at race pace. So maybe something like that would be a really good time. A few of those rides or some other, maybe long runs, things like that. Because sometimes, for people cycling, their GI doesn't bother them as much on the bike as it does on the run. So testing it out on some longer rides, but also those longer runs, because you want to make sure that you are feeling very solid on that run. You don't want to have to be running to the port-a-potties or anything. So I think trying it on both would be really important. So at least a small handful of both, just to make sure you have a nice and calm GI system.

Vanessa Ronksley: That's actually a really good idea that you suggested, is trying it not only before your long ride or your race rehearsal, but implementing that change before your long run. Yeah, that's a really great idea, because that's -- I think that's when most people experience GI distress anyways, is on the run portion. So that is a really great idea. Now, something else that Matt had mentioned, that I find interesting, that might be important to chat about here, is he referred to slow- and fast-release carbs. Why is that important to consider prior to racing?

Jasmine Moezzi: So I think slow carbs, like oats and nuts, help keep the blood sugar stable leading into the race, whereas quick carbs, like fruit or honey, top off glycogen and give you a bump of readily -- both in your meals, like putting gas in the tank and also priming the engine. That's how I look at it with the slow versus fast, or quick-release carbs.

Vanessa Ronksley: Yeah. All right. That's awesome. Now, I think that if this was a cooking competition, Matt just plated a complete masterpiece.

Jasmine Moezzi: I agree.

Vanessa Ronksley: Like, wow. I'm really excited to try that before my long training sessions, and I would like to have all of that on race morning, that's for sure. But wait until you see Coach KO, because she's basically running her own coach cooking show in this next clip. So here's Coach Kristin Overton.

Kristin Overton: Welcome to my race day breakfast. I like to think about race day breakfast as the energy that you're going to have to top off everything to make you have a really good day. So you have to think about what do I want to put in there? Is it going to bother my stomach? Is it going to give me the energy I need? Do I have enough carbohydrates? Do I have enough protein? What do I need? So my go-to is oatmeal, for the most part. So I take oatmeal, put a little half cup in a microwave safe bowl. I use the microwave, because it's super easy, it's versatile. If you're at a race somewhere, usually you can find a microwave, even if you're at a hotel. I add a little cinnamon to my oatmeal. I like that, and I just do that to taste. Just add a good portion in there. Oatmeal has, in a half a cup, about 25 to 30 grams of carbs. So there's a little bit of protein in there. You can mix it up and use Kodiak oatmeal, which gives you a little extra protein, if you want to. I add, typically, egg whites. Sometimes you can put egg in there. It just depends on how much fat your stomach can handle. So a couple egg whites, either real egg form or liquid egg form. I use both, depending on convenience. Throw that in there. And then I add a little bit of water, and I pop it in the microwave for a minute, give it a stir, pop it in for another 45 seconds, and you're good to go. I usually add a banana. That's usually about another 25 to 30 grams of carbs. I add milk. I don't mind dairy, but you can add your milk of choice, oat milk, almond milk. I use skim milk. Love it. So once this is done, we have this nice little fairly thick oatmeal, but it's not pasty. I hate pasty oatmeal, so I add a little bit of milk to that. Add your banana or fruit. Sometimes I add it, sometimes I just eat my banana on its own. And then the other thing – so I tend to try to get about 100 grams of carbs prior to race day -- or prior to the race, on race morning. So I'll add English muffin, so toast that up nice and easy. Again, if you don't have a toaster or you want to use something a little different, use a half a bagel, white bread, that kind of thing. I love raspberry jam, so I’ll add a little raspberry jam to that English muffin. And it's all nice and digital, something solid and sweet in the morning, something flavorful, and you're good to go. Things to think about in race day breakfast: you want something that's going to be easily digestible, good, white carbohydrates. Some people don't tolerate oatmeal. Use a bagel. You can throw some peanut butter on there. Be careful about doing too many fats, as fats are a little bit harder to digest. One thing I'll also add, if I need a little extra carbohydrate to get to that 100 grams, is I'll add a little bit of brown sugar, or honey, or maple syrup, which just adds to your oatmeal experience. I hope this helps and allows you to think about what your race day breakfast is. Happy training and happy racing.

Vanessa Ronksley: So props to KO for including prep notes for our viewers. I think she may have watched a few cooking shows before, because, for those of you that are not watching the podcast on YouTube or on Spotify, she put all of the ingredients together and then voila, just like magic, she had a steaming bowl of oatmeal ready to go in the blink of an eye. It's pretty awesome. Thank you, Coach KO. So, Jasmine, what is the importance of foods that are easily digestible? This is something that Kristin had alluded to.

Jasmine Moezzi: I mean, they're really everything. Race day’s definitely not the time for your stomach to work overtime. Low fiber carbs and simple add-ons digest quickly so your body can focus on performance and not digestion. So to me, simplicity is key when it comes to this, and things that you know can easily digest is where what you should stick to on race day morning and throughout the race, of course. So, yeah, definitely very, very important one.

Vanessa Ronksley: I agree with that. Now, she also talks about hitting 100 grams of carbs, with add-ons like jam, or syrup, or brown sugar. How does an athlete know their own target numbers? Like, where would they even start to be able to recognize what's best for them?

Jasmine Moezzi: I would probably start with the general guidelines. They recommend 60 to 90 grams of carbs per hour and just seeing how you feel while you're fueling and training, especially while you're in training. So I think really making sure you start off maybe at the lower end and then work your way up to that higher end. See what feels right, sits well, gives you energy without that slosh or heaviness. And then that's your sweet spot number. And remembering that on race day, you'll be pushing quite a bit harder, probably, than some training days, so making sure you're also accounting for that extra energy you're going to be spending out there on the course. So I think that's definitely very important when it comes to figuring out your own carb targets on the racecourse.

Vanessa Ronksley: Yeah, I think it's really interesting, because I have also implemented eating a larger, carb-heavy breakfast prior to my major training sessions. And I was absolutely shocked how much food 100 grams of carbs is. I was putting it into the calculator, and I was like, oh my goodness, this is so much food. I had never eaten that much food before a training session in my life. And here I was, so excited, because I'm like, “I get to eat all this? This is great.” And it's the low fiber stuff, too. Tastes good, love it.

Jasmine Moezzi: It’s so good. Living the dream, that's what I call it.

Vanessa Ronksley: This is where your pancakes can come in handy, right?

Jasmine Moezzi: All the pancakes. Give me all the pancakes. I'm ready. I will easily eat 100 grams of carbs out with my pancakes, no problem.

Vanessa Ronksley: Yeah, same. We could crush a whole stack of those and feel perfectly fine. Well, in a perfect world, anyways.

Jasmine Moezzi: Right.

Vanessa Ronksley: So we're going to, for all the athletes who don't like oatmeal or who don't tolerate oatmeal well, we're going to switch to a coach who does not have an oatmeal as part of their race day breakfast. So this is one of the few that is very interesting, and I'm actually going to try this out, because it was so intriguing when I first heard it. So we're going to Coach Brady Hoover for our next breakfast of champions.

Brady Hoover: Hey everybody, I am Coach Brady. I wanted to share with you, today, my pre-race meal. So my pre-race, my go-to meal is I will have this meal, and be done with this meal, two hours before I start the race. So if the race is at 7am, I am done with this meal by 5am. So I whip up three eggs, I have a banana, and then I cook up sweet potato home fries. I drizzle that sweet potato home fries in honey. Now, if it's a sprint triathlon, I need about 500 calories in my pre-race meal, so that will vary on how much sweet potato home fries I cook up. If I'm doing a 140.6, a full distance race, then I need more like 900 calories prior to race start. I make sure that I finish that two hours before the race starts. One hour before the race, I then top off with a banana. And then 30 minutes before the race, I top off with my favorite gel. Now, if I'm traveling and I'm not at home, I always book a hotel or an Airbnb that has a kitchen. I hit the store, and I make sure I have everything so that my pre-race meal never changes. Usually I'll cook up those sweet potato home fries the night before, and I don't mind eating them cold, but you can throw them in the microwave. Just saves you time on race morning. So I hope this helps. I enjoyed sharing my pre-race meal, and good luck in finding out what works best for you.

Vanessa Ronksley: Sweet potato home fries. I love sweet potatoes, especially when you put a little bit of cinnamon on there, a little bit of salt. They're just so delicious. I'm not sure if everyone can tolerate sweet potato home fries before a 140.6, but Brady can. Now--

Jasmine Moezzi: It sounds so good.

Vanessa Ronksley: Right? I know. Would you ever try that?

Jasmine Moezzi: I don't know if I'd try it before a race, but I would certainly try it after the race.

Vanessa Ronksley: Oh, yeah.

Jasmine Moezzi: Eat sweet potato home fries and, oh, that just sounds actually amazing, because it's the perfect blend of little sweet and savory when you drizzle the salt on there. Yeah, it sounds so good.

Vanessa Ronksley: With some honey, too. Now, something that's interesting that Brady mentioned was that he adjusts the portion size depending on the race distance. We've not had any other coaches talk about that, from that angle. So how important is it for athletes to scale their breakfast, looking forward to the day that they have ahead?

Jasmine Moezzi: I think it's huge. I mean, you don't need 900 calories for a sprint, but you absolutely do for an IRONMAN. Scaling intake to distance ensures you've got enough fuel without overdoing it, because we don't want to also have to use the port-a-potty or have any GI issues for, especially a short distance race. It's so short and fast, you don't have that time to spare. In a full IRONMAN, you have a little bit of GI distress, you could kind of bounce back. You have a long day out there. But yeah, just think of it as matching your breakfast to the size of the day ahead, is what I usually think about it as. So yeah, it's definitely a big one.

Vanessa Ronksley: Now, would you -- Brady does this mostly by increasing the amount of carbs that he takes. Would you also recommend increasing, if you're doing a longer course race, would you increase the protein and the fat content as well, or would you try and keep that to a minimum and just increase the carbs?

Jasmine Moezzi: I wouldn't go too crazy with protein and fat, because that's not really what your body is using as much on race day. It's really very, very carb focused. So I would -- you could always add in a little bit more, especially if it's a much longer distance race, because then you will be using a little bit more of both. But I would still keep the carbs as the main focus. That should be the focal point of the plate. So the other stuff could just be little embellishments, I'll call it.

Vanessa Ronksley: More like a garnish.

Jasmine Moezzi: Exactly.

Vanessa Ronksley: Garnish it with -- Brady's garnishing his sweet potato home fries with a couple bananas and some eggs.

Jasmine Moezzi: Exactly, yeah. I love that.

Vanessa Ronksley: All right, so we're going back to the oatmeal train with Coach Steve, here. So let's see how he jazzes up his pre-race oatmeal.

Stephen Horan: Hi, this is Coach Steve. Here is my race morning breakfast. I start with Kodiak peat oatmeal, which is 42 grams of carbs. I put 1 tablespoon of peanut butter, which is 8 grams of carbs. I put 2 tablespoons of honey, which is 34 grams of carbs. And I also put one banana, which is 27 grams of carbs. I'm trying to target right around 100 grams of carbs. And that is what powers me for my race.

Vanessa Ronksley: Coach Steve is to the point, and I love it. Yeah, he's like, he rolls the same way that I do. I like to know, to the gram, how many grams are in a specific thing that I am consuming. And so I really love that he provided that information and gave a really well balanced set of oatmeal. And can we just say, peanut butter, bananas, and oats, it just sounds delicious. And honey, too, he added that in there.

Jasmine Moezzi: Yum. Sounds like heaven.

Vanessa Ronksley: Yeah, right. As long as there's a pancake on top.

Jasmine Moezzi: Right? Always.

Vanessa Ronksley: So another coach, here, mentioning 100 grams of carbs for their pre-race meal. So if someone struggles to eat that much at once, how long in advance do you have to start your strategy for building up that tolerance? Because we had mentioned before that it's good to start at the lower end and then increase, so that you can actually consume that much prior to a race, or even how many grams of carbs you're consuming during a race. So how many weeks or months in advance do you think that gut training would be appropriate? And then what kind of suggestions do you give to your athletes about testing this out?

Jasmine Moezzi: Yeah, this is really, truly where gut training comes in and shines. So starting small in training and gradually increasing carb intake over time so your stomach adapts. I mean, I can't tell you -- even for me, when I take some time off, like from offseason, and I'm not used to taking in all these gels and amount of carbs, grams of carbs per hour, I need to start back up slowly. I can't just jump back in where I was before. So another strategy is splitting the meal, eat most of it three hours out, and then top up with a gel or carb drink 30 to 60 minutes before. That way you'll still hit the total goal without overwhelming your gut. So I think just really trying to be strategic about how you get in these grams of carbs. You don't have to do it all at once or force yourself to do it, either. You just can start off slow. You could do it throughout the hour, throughout the timeframe that you need to, to get in that amount that you need. But really training your gut is key. I definitely can't handle the amount of carbs right at the beginning of the season as I can when I'm in my peak training. So it takes some time. So start as early as you can with this.

Vanessa Ronksley: Yeah, that's really interesting, actually. I'd not thought about that before, when you take a break from that training, how quickly your gut might adjust to what your normal standards would be. Yeah, so that's interesting. Now, in terms of gut training, I'm just curious, do you think that it's important to start to decrease the amount of time before you train? If you're eating your breakfast at 3 hours, is it important to sometimes eat more 2 hours or 1 hour in advance, like the same amount, so that you can get the gut to start to digest things while you're actually exercising?

Jasmine Moezzi: Maybe. I mean, I don't know if you really necessarily need to, because if you wake up early enough, I guess, on race day morning, then you should be fine, like if it's for your breakfast. If it's for during the training, your fueling during your training or races, then that's different. But I think if you're having your oatmeal or whatever your breakfast is in the morning, you definitely would rather give your digestion enough time to fully digest that before the race starts. Because there has been times where I woke up a little late, and I'm still stuffing my face with my oatmeal an hour before the start, and that doesn't go very well. Especially because I -- it's interesting to also practice some of this fueling before some of your swims, because we just do this and then go for our bike ride or long run, but we forget that, well, we're actually starting with the swim. So maybe practicing your oatmeal, or whatever your race day breakfast is going to be, before one of your -- if you're doing an open water swim practice, or even maybe a pool swim, just to see how your stomach is feeling. Because I could tell you there have been sometimes where my tummy hasn't been feeling so hot on that swim, because I ate a little too close, and then I forget that when you're swimming, your digestion could be going all over the place. So I think it's important to test it out before each of the three, but especially before the swim, as well, when it comes to seeing exactly how much time you'll need for the tummy to feel comfortable to get out there, but also have enough energy.

Vanessa Ronksley: I love that you just mentioned that, because come to think of it, I don't know about most of the listeners out there, but for me, I tend to swim earlier in the morning than any other session that I might do throughout the week, which kind of simulates race day. And this is the time of morning where I have the least amount of time before doing the activity that I consume food. And so you’re onto something here, Jasmine, in terms of practicing your pre-race breakfast meal prior to swimming. And maybe it's not the full meal, because you don't have as much time prior to, unless you're really crazy and waking up at 2 in the morning. But that's really clever to try a portion of it out prior to the swimming, because you're right. Our digestive system reacts differently depending on what kind of activity we're doing, and what we practice is going to have an effect on the outcome. So I think that's really, that's really, really clever.

Jasmine Moezzi: Yeah. And you don't have to do it before each swim, even. It could just be before a few of them, just to see. But I've noticed that this has helped me a lot in my training and racing, is really playing around with it before, more than just maybe my long ride or run. Those are really important, of course, but even just sometimes -- I do a Friday morning ocean swim, so sometimes I'll test out a bit of my oatmeal before that, see how I'm doing, and how I'm feeling, and how much time I need to digest it. So it's a pretty cool thing to test out, if you're able to, of course. But life is busy, so we do our best.

Vanessa Ronksley: Absolutely. And I do have to say, I'm a little bit jealous that you have access to the ocean every Friday morning. Wow. That’s incredible.

Jasmine Moezzi: Come swim with me in LA.

Vanessa Ronksley: Oh, if only I could. If only I could. Now, if oatmeal is not your thing, once again, don't worry. Coach Jason Verbracken, who we mostly know as Verbie, he's actually got you covered with a snack aisle special. So here we have Jason Verbracken telling us about his pre-race breakfast.

Jason Verbracken: Hi, I'm Coach Jason Verbracken with TriDot, answering the question, what is my go-to race breakfast? And that really can depend on me with the distance of the race, the time the race starts -- those play key factors into how much I want to eat or take in before the race starts, so that it won't mess up my stomach and have any GI distress. I would say, most of the time, and it's not the best breakfast in the world, I have the Quakers s’mores granola bars. I probably eat 3 or 4 of them, and maybe a bowl of oatmeal, before my race. And then about an hour before the race, I, for nutrition, I use Infinit. And so I'll start sipping on a bottle of my Infinite mix, which has 120 grams of carbs in it, a little bit of caffeine, like 50 milligrams of caffeine, and I'll just start sipping on that before the race. So I keep it really easy and simple. Maybe granola bars aren't the best thing, but my stomach likes it. I like the taste of it, and it gives me, depending how many I eat, 3, 4, 500 calories before the race, first thing in the morning when I get up. And I've never had an issue with it.

Vanessa Ronksley: So for those of you who may not know Jason Verbracken, he's like the ultimate beast. He does all kinds of racing all over the world. From Xterra, to crazy bike races, to multiple IRONMAN races. He's just insane. So when he says that he eats granola bars prior to a race, maybe this is a secret that we all should participate in, here. I've never tried these Quaker Oats s'more granola bars before, but I think that this might be one of my favorite pre-race breakfasts that we've heard about, because it's just super simple. It's easy to manage. No matter what your race you're doing, no matter what continent you might be racing on, you can stick that back in -- you can stick those with you in your suitcase. So yeah, what do you think, Jasmine, here, about this pre-race breakfast?

Jasmine Moezzi: I think it's really cool. I actually haven't heard granola bars, either. I know some people might, maybe, have it on the side, but I love that that's his main thing, and he's found what works for him. So that's super fun and different. I was really, really surprised by it. I was like, wow. And he does Ultraman and things like that too, doesn’t he? So that's like, wow. Yeah. If he can have some granola bars and go do an Ultraman, then I'm all for it. I'm all in.

Vanessa Ronksley: So speaking of these granola bars, just for a second here, because I'm not ready to put this one to bed. Are there any ingredients or things on the label that the athlete might need to watch for when choosing a specific type of granola bar, in terms of the ingredients, or the macros, or -- how would you even start to choose a granola bar?

Jasmine Moezzi: I would, I mean, speaking for a race day setting, I would look for bars that are definitely higher in carbs, lower in fiber, and moderate in fat. Nothing super high on that end, either. Avoiding anything with sugar alcohols, because they're common in diet or protein bars and can wreck your stomach mid-race. But he does like the Quaker granola bars -- so Quaker, Clif, or plain, oat-based bars tend to be safe bets. So that's what I would look for, if you want to go the granola bar route. I love granola, so it's yum.

Vanessa Ronksley: I know. I love bars as well, and I've heard from other nutrition specialists, they'll say you have to be careful about your protein bar, because your protein bar is often a ‘carb bar’. So what better time to have a ‘carb bar’ than prior to race day? This is the ultimate, here.

Jasmine Moezzi: Right. That's just everyone's dream. So it's like the time to make it come true.

Vanessa Ronksley: Yeah, exactly. So I think, Jasmine, that it's safe to say that oatmeal is the undisputed champ of race day breakfast. But every bowl, every time someone suggested it, they had their own personality. So what stood out to you across all these different takes of oatmeal? There were so many different kinds. But what do you think is most important for an athlete to glean from this type of breakfast? Or is it possible that you think a non-oatmeal option should be officially crowned as the Triathlon Coach Breakfast of Champions?

Jasmine Moezzi: Well, personally, what I loved is that oatmeal was the blank canvas, and every coach turned it into their own masterpiece, as we saw. Some went fancy, with the overnight oats and chia seeds, and then others went more old school, with instant packs and a banana. So I think what's cool is it shows that fueling doesn't need to be overly complicated, and there's no one perfect breakfast, but it's really about finding a version that's familiar, digestible, and gives you the right balance of fuel for your body and race. I, personally, am a huge oatmeal fan, so I'm going to stick with the oatmeal as the champ of race day breakfast. But you got to do what works for you. Some people are going to be like, “No way.” So I, personally, am definitely team oatmeal. Big fan.

Vanessa Ronksley: Okay, I'm going to throw a little wrench in here, because I am team oatmeal on pretty much every other day, aside from race day. I will, I love eating oatmeal as my post training session breakfast. And so I will add the chocolate protein powder in with some frozen cherries and almond milk, and that is to die for. I will create any kind of oatmeal. I will create pumpkin spice oatmeal. I'll actually put pumpkin inside the oatmeal with some spices, and maple syrup, and nuts. And so I think I could be technically crowned as the Queen of Oatmeal. But on race day, I actually switched gears completely, and I will eat white rice with peanut butter, maple syrup, and some cinnamon. And it is like -- just cue the drool. It is so good. And I figure -- I tried it this entire year for all of my races, and I had the best racing season I've had, ever. So I'm thinking that I might stick to the white rice concoction. So I don't know. What do you think about the white rice?

Jasmine Moezzi: I mean, I'm Persian. I'm obsessed with rice. I think we eat it for a living, so I am definitely a huge fan of rice. And it's, for a lot of people, very easily digestible and gives you all the carbs and everything you need for the race. And I love that you got creative, and you found something that works, and that you're excited about. I think we have to be excited about what we're about to eat. If we look at it and we're like, “Oh, this again, great,” our body's going to respond that same way. But if you make something unique, creative, but that sits well with you, then you're going to be excited about it. I know when I wake up in the morning, I'm like, “Hell, yeah. I get to have my oatmeal. Let's go. I'm going to be ready for this training session,” or whatever it is. And then when I come back, I have my acai bowl, and life cannot be better.

Vanessa Ronksley: I love acai bowls. Oh my goodness.

Jasmine Moezzi: I can't stop. I'm addicted. I go every single day to an acai place over here, and I get my little sweet treat after my training session. And, yeah, I literally, food makes me very happy. So I think just make sure you're fueling with something that feels good and that puts that smile on the face. So that's a big one.

Vanessa Ronksley: That’s amazing. I think we have to do one last quick shout out to one of the TriDot staff members, because we did a little poll in the staff, just to see who was consuming what before races. And one of our staff members, Chris Nigber, he fuels his race with a breakfast burrito -- full on black beans, all the fixings, and everything. And I was like, I don't think there's anyone else who has more of a gut of steel than Chris, if he can tolerate that prior to a race. So I just wanted to offer maybe that's, yeah, maybe someone wants to try that, if they are looking for something new to put on the menu for pre-race breakfast ideas.

Jasmine Moezzi: Why not? Go for the breakfast burrito.

[Transition Sound Effect]

Vanessa Ronksley: Welcome to the cool down, everybody. I'm still here with Coach Jasmine. She's been doing a phenomenal job with all of our race day breakfast coach questions, here. So we have a question from one of our TriDot athletes, actually, and this comes from Matthew. And it is a nutrition question. So here is what Matthew has written: “I've been trying to hit protein intake goals as part of my training. However, I'm looking for input regarding how consistent I should be maximizing my protein intake in relation to how much I exercise. For example, if I'm exercising 5 to 6 days a week, I assume hitting my max protein intake every day would be appropriate. But what if I only exercise 4 days per week? What if I'm traveling and can't work out for 3 to 4 days or can only do short workouts? Are there any general rules of thumb for when I should and should not be maximizing my daily protein intake?” What do you think, Coach Jasmine?

Jasmine Moezzi: So think of protein as supporting recovery and muscle maintenance, not just fueling workouts. So even on rest days or travel days, your body is still repairing tissues and adapting to training. So it's smart to keep protein intake steady. A simple rule of thumb is aim for consistent daily protein across the week, whether you train that day or not. If you're traveling and activity is really low, you can ease up slightly, but I wouldn't drop it drastically. It's something your body is going to need to maintain all this madness we're doing every day -- the swim, bike, run madness. So definitely don't put that protein aside. And same with the carbs, don't neglect the carbs too much either. It's just keeping everything balanced and making sure your body's getting what it needs. But you don't need to go super crazy if you're not doing as much training that week. But keep that steady intake coming and get in all those nutrients. We really want to keep those nutrients really solid, especially for recovery purposes.

Vanessa Ronksley: So essentially, everyone out there, Coach Jasmine has just told us that we can continue to eat pancakes while we're not training as hard as we normally do.

Jasmine Moezzi: Yes, your body needs the fuel, so provide it that fuel, and you're going to just be so much happier.

Announcer: Thanks for listening to the TriDot Podcast. Help us out by leaving a rating and review on your listening platform of choice. For more opportunities to learn from our coaches, check out our YouTube channel and follow @TriDotTraining on social. Ready to train with us? Head to tridot.com and get started for free. Until next time. Happy training.

‍