what to eat right before you skate

[littlekateskate]

I remember reading a post like this recently. But my daughter skates late afternoons and its too early for dinner so she needs a snack. What do you guys eat before you skate. Am i better to give her carbs, protien? ect ect..

[SynchroSk8r114]

I like either a P&J sandwhich (if I'm really hungry) or some whole wheat crackers with peanut butter, granola bars, or rice pudding with cinnamon for a quick snack.

[Sessy]

I'd say give her some fruit, like banana or grapes. Definately don't do anything like chicken or french fries, she'll just go nauseous.

[blackmanskating]

I like either a P&J sandwhich (if I'm really hungry) or some whole wheat crackers with peanut butter, granola bars, or rice pudding with cinnamon for a quick snack.


I feel you on that PB&J!!!! That's something I like to eat on the way to the rink. Cut it up into squares and I can eat it on the go. Wheat bread all the way. On those cold mornings, those Campbells soup cups work great too. Classic tomato and sprinkle in a little fat free cheddar cheese and I'm good. Now I'm getting hungry!!! LOL


BlackManSkating

[desabelle]

I'm a big fan of celery sticks with peanut butter on them, or a couple slices of cheese on rye crackers.

Both fill you up and keep you sustained a little longer then just carbs.

[FallDownGoBoom]

Homemade low-fat oatmeal-raisin cookies

Kellogg's NutriGrain bars (Blueberry!)

[jskater49]

Oh Oh Oh - this is a favorite topic of my coach. She's very into eating the righ things to skate. Fruit is good, but not enough. Because fruit will give you that sugar high and then you crash - you need a little protien too, peanut butter, I eat a few cashews but few little kids like nuts...yogurt..a granola bar with a decent protien content.

j

[looplover]

I promise I'm not a schill for the company, but I swear by power bars before I skate early in the morning. I used to know an olympic swimmer and he told me about them...that was before they were bought by Nestle, but they seem just as good (and now taste much better).

[doubletoe]

The only thing I can consistently eat right before skating that doesn't make me sorry afterwards is a banana. It is truly nature's perfect single-serving snack!

[liz_on_ice]

Oh Oh Oh - this is a favorite topic of my coach. She's very into eating the righ things to skate. Fruit is good, but not enough. Because fruit will give you that sugar high and then you crash - you need a little protien too, peanut butter, I eat a few cashews but few little kids like nuts...yogurt..a granola bar with a decent protien content.

j

I definitely need protein to skate; an empty stomach or carb-only meal makes me really giddy spinning. For that 5am rush it's lowfat cottage cheese, or some almonds, or a protein bar. A slug of OJ or apple cider, but not too much, is a good chaser.

[jazzpants]

I probably need a combo of protein and carbs before I skate. Right now I had a small amount of leftover paella (about 1/2 cup) and some yogurt (not the whole carton, just enought to keep me content.

One of my best snacks is a small amount of Light BabyBel, a small handful of almonds and some fruit (grapes are wonderful for that.) Some rolled up cheese with turkey slices are also great too.

PB is currently a bit too high on the fat content for me right now. But if I were to go for PB, I would have PB and banana. :yum: (Need the potassium for leg cramps...)

[jp1andOnly]

i like a quick snack before I skate as I also do late afternoon/before dinner skates. I often will get a bit of trail mix and a piece of fruit. I used to just have fruit but i would get the shakes bad, so I realized I did indeed need the protein. By the time I get home from the rink (I have about a 45min drive) I'm craving protein again (well, depends on how hard I skate) so those nights are often chicken nights.

[vesperholly]

I like the Curves granola bars in peanut butter/chocolate. Yummy!

[sue123]

If it's the time of day where it's kinda in between meals, then I'll usually eat a Nature's Valley bar and some fruit. Can't stand peanut butter personally, it makes my mouth too chewy and feel stuck. I'm usually starving afterwards thoguh, so I eat pretty well after I skate.

[kayskate]

I agree w PB&J. I eat it on whole grain bread. I also don't eat right before I skate, but at least and hr before so it is not just sitting in my stomach when I get on the ice and start moving. I also like high-fiber cereal and add peanuts to it.

Kay

[miraclegro]

If you do carbs, get something that will not make her crash. If you know anything about the glycemic stuff, get the carbs that do not spike the sugar levels so that she crashes. Oatmeal stuff, or wheat thins alone or w/peanut butter. I usually get the pb nabs if i don't have time for anything else, or an apple on the way that will hold me. And always lots of water to drink while i'm there!

[jenlyon60]

I'm not skating much right now because of redoing my knee rehab (had major pain setback about a month ago), but before my gym training sessions (which are early morning intense 90 minute rehab and rest of body training sessions), I swear by

1 6-ounce can of tuna fish packed in water (I've been getting the albacore solid pack because it's on sale), I drain it (my cats get the tuna broth) and that gives me the protein

and

about 1 to 1 1/2 cups of dry shredded oats cereal (complex carbs)

I don't drink coffee and I don't like milk on cereal, so I eat the cereal dry, almost like eating a snack.

This gets me through the workout and the "mad dash to work in the middle of rush hour" with no sugar crash.

(I've set 2 new PRs bench pressing with this breakfast over the summer.)

[Morgail]

I like a Special K bar, some pretzels, or an apple with either peanut butter or cheddar cheese. One of those will usually get me through a pre-dinner or pre-lunch session.

[Mainemom]

Yet another vote for PBJ on whole wheat! She starts with that and then moves on to cheese sticks and those little fruit cups and a thermos of milk and then... okay she is starving by this time (4:00) and supper is a long way away after an hour drive to the rink, 2 freestyle sessions and an hour home.

[Rusty Blades]

(I would never admit it to anyone but I have a Tim Horton's "breakfast sandwich" at 6 a.m. before getting to the rink to warm up for a 7 a.m. session. It isn't much and it isn't the healthiest but it keeps the extra large cup of coffee from sloshing while I skate 8O Makes me nauseous when I stop spinning but the contents of my stomach don't :?? )

[Mrs Redboots]

Banana works for me, but other people swear by a honey sandwich on wholemeal, or better still, granary bread, or a peanut butter sandwich (peanut butter and banana is pretty magic!). Some of the kids have flapjacks or malt loaf - you really want something low GI to keep her going until her evening meal, but also something high GI to give her an instant energy boost. If necessary, give her a few mouthfuls of sports drink, diluted - no more than 100 ml, if that, though.

[Kim to the Max]

I will generally have a small bowl of cereal...usually Kashi Go Lean Crunch :yum: which has a lot of protein and fiber in it or Kashi Strawberry Fields. Otherwise, due to my work schedule and everything, sometimes I will actually just eat a very late breakfast and in turn lunch. Not the best idea, but it works for me....

[doubletoe]

If you do carbs, get something that will not make her crash. If you know anything about the glycemic stuff, get the carbs that do not spike the sugar levels so that she crashes. Oatmeal stuff, or wheat thins alone or w/peanut butter. I usually get the pb nabs if i don't have time for anything else, or an apple on the way that will hold me. And always lots of water to drink while i'm there!

Avoiding wheat is probably not a bad idea. I didn't become aware of this until recently (although it has probably been the case my whole life), but the one time I totally avoid wheat products is before skating, especially if it's a test or competition. Like many people, wheat causes me to bloat a little, so I have learned to stick to other carbs instead. I eat something rice-based that also has a little protein in it. I find that rice gives me great energy without bloating me or feeling heavy in my stomach.

[Sessy]

I do carb fruits before and salted peanuts afterwards the skating, and I don't "crash" (apart from on my butt during skating, lol!)

For me, anything with soda makes me bloated btw. I really don't get how people can drink cola light and then go spin or something. I think I'd throw up.

[Paulie86]

Banana works for me

Me too! I find it gives me an energy boost, usually one I need! I say fruit all the way before skating.

[sk8tmum]

Okay, don't jump on me ... but: the peanut butter stuff. I agree, it's great; it's a wonderful protein food; it works for me, I've lived on it for years.

But, DS's partner is acutely allergic to peanuts (seriously, I've seen her go into anaphylaxia). Having someone touching the bench in the change room with PB can get her wheezing and choking and that. Thus, we've had to ensure that PB doesn't get on DS's gloves, or that he eats it too soon before skating (vigorous tooth-brushing then a requirement). Her mom is vigilant, the kid is careful ... I don't know if your rink/skating school keeps track if there are any kids that have violent allergies. I know nobody would want to trigger a fellow skater, good lord NO!

Just something to think about. I know that PB allergies are one of those great debates in the schools and that, but, it does exist for some kids. As someone who has an anaphylactic reaction to almonds (but is much older, and the reaction is much less severe) - sticking that epi-pen in my backside is a real depressing thing (OWWWW!!!!!)

[Sessy]

Peanutbutter is great if you wanna gain weight, lol, yeah. They're actually using it to combat malnutrition in little children in africa and southamerica nowadays.

[Mrs Redboots]

Me too! I find it gives me an energy boost, usually one I need! I say fruit all the way before skating.

If you can digest it - I can, so can Husband, but one of the skaters at our rink finds that a banana before skating gives him acute indigestion!

Peanutbutter is great if you wanna gain weight, lol, yeah. They're actually using it to combat malnutrition in little children in africa and southamerica nowadays.
Indeed, but it is also very good for you, in moderate amounts. See here (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17862656/site/newsweek/) for details. Sure, if you eat it by the jarful it's fattening, but a teaspoonful on wholemeal bread, perhaps with a sliced tomato and/or pepper and/or lettuce and cucumber, or with an apple, does more good than harm!

[Raye]

I like a handfull (quarter to half cup) of mixed nuts and a banana before skating. I like the Tim Horton's breakfast sandwich after skating when I am on my way to work.:yum:

[airyfairy76]

If you can digest it - I can, so can Husband, but one of the skaters at our rink finds that a banana before skating gives him acute indigestion!

Even worse for me - it actually makes me sick, in an Exorcist kind of way! Unfortunate, but something I have had since I was about eight years old.

That's one of the reasons I have been finding this thread so interesting. My lessons at the moment are currently at about 5.45pm - I have my lunch at about 12:30 and don't find that it quite keeps me going for long enough. So I have been having a snack around 4:00pm. Sometimes I save half my wholemeal sandwich, yesterday I had a small tub of pasta and chicken, and nibbled some nuts on the way to the rink which worked quite well.

I might have to try the peanut butter thing next!

[Scarlett]

I'm one of those poor souls who is deathly allergic to peanuts/peanut butter but I'm totally on board with the protein thing.

I'm a big fan of either a piece of cheese or ensure for morning lessons or apples smeared with sunflower butter or a cheese sandwich for evening lessons.

[sk8tmum]

Okay, here's a really icky Tim Horton's thing, and it goes to show you that psychological considerations matter too:

If DD gets a Tim Horton's tunafish on wholewheat, two oatmeal cookies and a Diet Coke before a competition, she skates well. If she doesn't, regardless of what she does eat, she generally doesn't.

It doesn't matter if she skates at 8:00 a.m.. She needs the Timmy's meal. Try ordering THAT at a drive through at 6:30 a.m.

It just gives her a boost ... because it always HAS worked, it WILL work again.

Whatever works, I guess. It's a pre-game ritual.

[sk8tmum]

But, more realistically: a Boost mealreplacement drink, the one with extra calories (railthin kids) seems to work. (Not shilling for the company). It digests fast, and it's portable. It tastes nasty warm, but, you can throw it in a skatebag for a quick meal when time prevents anything else, a coldpack makes it bearable.

[Mrs Redboots]

If you want a "keep you going" snack, I find a snack pack of sushi (either fishy or vegetarian) keeps me going. Our local supermarket sells them for 99p for a box of 4 different kinds, and they are lovely!

[Lmarletto]

My daughter is 10, but has been skating late afternoons since she was 7. I find that she is less likely to be dragging by the end if she has a good mix of protein and carbs. As far as what she eats and how much, I can't see that it makes a difference. If it appeals to her, has a bit of protein and we can take it in the car, I don't worry beyond that. Sometimes she ends up with what is more like dinner at 4:30pm and just eats a snack-sized portion of dinner at 7:00pm.

[Skate@Delaware]

I see some kids at the rink eating all kinds of junk food-candy bars, sweets, sodas, etc. Then complain that they are tired!!! No wonder!

I like a really good mix carbs/protein about 1-1.5 hours before I skate. If I'm on the ice for a long session (i.e. 3 hour marathon show rehearsals) I nibble on nuts and the like.

I was eating bananas post-skate but my blood sugar was spiking so I knocked them out. I now use a protein shake with a 50/50 blend of orange juice & water.

(I save the junk food for after a heavy meal, when it's ok to crash!!!)

[Rob Dean]

I've mentioned bicycling before, although not lately as it's been a bad biking year since my accident in April. Every organized bike ride I've done (i.e. paid for, with food stops) has had PB&J on whole wheat as the primary offering at lunch. So, the bicyclists, at least, seem to think it's good for sustained energy.

Practically speaking, I'm 30-45 minutes from the rink and can't carry PB&J around in the car just in case I'm hungry, so I usually have a box of Clif Bars (another bicycling habit) around, and keep one or two in my skating bag.

Failing that, the vending machines at the rink can often be persuaded to disgorge a packet of Peanut M&Ms, which works out to be some sugar for fast energy and those peanuts for a little sustained energy. That's my son's favorite--he won't touch Clif Bars except under duress. :)

So what's in a TIm Horton's breakfast sandwich? I haven't been in Canada since the summer of '06, and I don't think they had breakfast other than muffins and doughnuts at the time. I have had quite a bit of their coffee. :) I usually have my on-the-way-to-work cup in a battered Tim Horton's travel mug.

Rob

[mikawendy]

...Practically speaking, I'm 30-45 minutes from the rink and can't carry PB&J around in the car just in case I'm hungry, so I usually have a box of Clif Bars (another bicycling habit) around, and keep one or two in my skating bag.

Failing that, the vending machines at the rink can often be persuaded to disgorge a packet of Peanut M&Ms, which works out to be some sugar for fast energy and those peanuts for a little sustained energy. That's my son's favorite--he won't touch Clif Bars except under duress. :)


Does he not like any nutrition bars or specifically not Clif Bars? If it's the particular texture or flavor that he can't stand, then maybe another brand? I really like the Soyjoy bars because they're smaller than most nutrition bars and much less sugary sweet. They are a little on the dry side, but the dried pieces of fruit in them are really good. They're made with soy flour, so no wheat (gluten free and lower carb count). Before I found them, I used to have PowerBar Harvest or Balance bars, but those are very sweet and I got bored with them easily.

[Raye]

Tim Horton's breakfast sandwich is bacon, eggs and cheese in a baking-powder biscuit. And they are sooooooooooooooooooo good! I am totally addicted :yum:

[jskater49]

Tim Horton's breakfast sandwich is bacon, eggs and cheese in a baking-powder biscuit. And they are sooooooooooooooooooo good! I am totally addicted :yum:

I would barf if I ate something like that before skating.

j

[Mrs Redboots]

On this topic, there's an article in this month's ISkate Magazine (http://www.iskatemagazine.com/) about nutrition for skaters, and I know the author of the article (a personal friend) won't mind if I quote the relevant bit:

"Some rules of thumb are:
3-4 hours before you skate have a (low glycemic index) high carbohydrate meal. Depending on training time it my be breakfast or lunch or even dinner.
Many experts recommend a (low glycemic index) high carbohydrate snack one hour before exercise. The slower, more consistent, release of energy will improve performance by delaying fatigue.
Some skaters perform well after a pre-exercise sugar fix (e.g. high GI food like jelly beans, soda, honey etc) immediately (5-10 mins) before skating BUT some find 15-20 minutes into hard exercise they get a sudden drop in blood sugar and feel tired, light headed, fatigued. Experiment if you wish but better still eat more at breakfast and lunch to stop you getting a sweet craving before evening patch (freestyle) time.
You may need to consume some carbohydrate while training if you are exercising very hard for over an hour. A sports drink is an easy way of doing this.
Eat to promote recovery within the first 2 hours after exercise as then your muscle glycogen is replenished at 1.5 times the normal rate. In the 4 hours after this the rate slows but is still higher than normal. This is very important if you are training twice a day and even important if you finish late in the evening."

[tidesong]

I usually go with normal meal usually with rice, protein, and other random stuff like veg about 1-2 hours before skating (i don't have the luxury of 3-4 hours...) , that usually lasts me through the whole 2-3 hours I usually spend on the ice no problem. I used to bring an apple but I got lazy for after skating, but yesterday I went to buy bottled milk because I always want sugar and liquids after skating badly....

if I'm in a rush I make do with a chicken bun or such... usually works too.

[Sonic]

The problem I have (and I'm sure other people experience too), is skating early mornings.

I don't like skating on a totally empty stomach but I simply cannot cope with eating 'properly' before 7am. So I eat a banana to keep me going, then have proper breakfast - cereal and some more fruit, or cooked breakfast some mornings - once I'm at work.

S xxx

[Mrs Redboots]

The problem I have (and I'm sure other people experience too), is skating early mornings.

I don't like skating on a totally empty stomach but I simply cannot cope with eating 'properly' before 7am. So I eat a banana to keep me going, then have proper breakfast - cereal and some more fruit, or cooked breakfast some mornings - once I'm at work.

S xxx
I agree, I do the same. Usually a banana beforehand and a cereal bar afterwards, and then a mid-morning snack (often sushi, but today I naughtily had a "ploughman's snack pack" of a mini-pork pie, two fingers of cheese and some cherry tomatoes. There was some chutney, too, but I didn't want that. I don't have time to cook breakfast once I get to work - it's finger food or none at all!