Advice on morning running prep?

_thirtytwo

Hi all,

I would like to start running in the morning rather than the afternoon as it gets hot and humid by midday down here in the South. My normal routine for running has me eating something light and downing a cup of coffee and a few glasses of water about an hour before I head out. I'm unsure how to make the transition to early morning runs as this kind of prep is unrealistic with my work schedule. So, my question is - what do those of you who run early do to prep for your run? Is my prep routine unnecessary?

Thanks!

rduhlir

Generally, the only time I eat before a run is if I run over 60 minutes. All the others, I just roll out of bed and start running. Sometimes, I may have half a cup of water before the run, but rarely will I eat until I get back. But you have to do what works for you.

PaytraB

I can only run in the mornings on my days off. On work days, there's no way to blend it into the routine.
On the morning run days, I enjoy my coffee and have a small breakfast/snack, like maybe yoghurt or a slice of toast, and go for my jog about a half hour or so after eating.
I really enjoy my morning runs. I do my best on these.

likitisplit

I drink some water and head out. I carry chocolate milk in the car if I'm going to the track or something for after.

_thirtytwo

Thanks everyone!

smaihlee

I do most of my exercise (running, boot camp) first thing in the morning because I find it much harder once I have something in my stomach. Pretty much every day when I first wake up, I have a shot of espresso with a little sugar in it. That keeps me going through my workout, but I do tend to get pretty hungry within about 30 minutes of getting back home.

romyhorse

I'm a morning runner and just a glass of water for me too before I head out. If I had more time I would probably have a light breakfast, but that would mean getting up at 4:30am, and that ain't gonna happen!

bttrthanevr

So the consensus seems to be hydrate and go. Not sure when, but this is probably in my future...

fit4life_73

I'm a morning person too. Most days I just get up and go. On occassion I've had half a banana or half serving of almonds or half protein bar. I can't eat or drink alot before I workout. On the downside, I can't workout if I'm too hungry. So I have about a really short window to get to the gym and start my workout.

AmyRhubarb

I do my best to hydrate the night before, and in the morning I get a glass of water, get dressed and head out. My runs are usually 3-5 miles and I have no problems going out fasted. I've tried eating a small snack a few times - hasn't seemed to improve performance at all, and mostly just makes me burp, which I don't like.

Even if I feel hungry before I head out, once I'm running it's no problem, and I really enjoy my breakfast when I get back.

zanne54

Add me to the drink a small amount of water and go camp. I don't have the time to wait an hour for food to settle before I start running.

Thanks for posting the question - it's nice to get the confirmation that I've been doing the right thing.

Lyerin

Most of the time I just have a little water before I go. However, I'm only running 30-35 minutes at a time, so I'm not spending hours out there. On Saturdays, I do my boot camp class, eat some oatmeal and then go running. I haven't had any issue with that either. If I waited longer after I woke up to go, I probably would have to eat something (banana or protein bar).

PinkNinjaLaura

Add me to the drink a small amount of water and go camp. I don't have the time to wait an hour for food to settle before I start running.

Thanks for posting the question - it's nice to get the confirmation that I've been doing the right thing.

^^^This is exactly what I was going to post. There's a lot of info out there for what to eat 1-3 hours before a run, but not when you're heading out a 5 minutes after you roll out of bed. Glad to hear I'm not the only one doing it after drinking half a glass of water.