In this instructional video, the host addresses parents of youth athletes who have very early practices (approximately 4:45 AM–8:00 AM). She explains that athletes have been fasting for over eight hours, and their brains and muscles still need carbohydrates to perform high‑intensity activities. The core recommendation is to provide a carbohydrate‑rich snack about an hour before practice (or proportionally earlier if the window is shorter). For athletes who are reluctant to eat in the morning, she suggests starting with very easy‑to‑digest options such as applesauce or a granola bar, then gradually progressing to more substantial carb sources like a bagel, adding honey, and a banana to reach roughly 90 g of carbs. She also lists a variety of quick‑carb snack ideas (dates, dried mango, fruit leather, crackers, pretzels, muffins, bananas, grapes, rice cakes, oatmeal, etc.). The overall message is supportive and practical: with consistent exposure, athletes will adapt to eating early and sustain energy throughout practice.
Chapters
Welcome back to my series where I teach parents how to fuel your athletes. Today we are talking about early morning practice nutrition. This is for athletes who have practice all the way from 4:45 AM to 8 AM in the morning. If you have practice within 1 to 1.5 hours of waking up, I consider that early morning. Your athletes have been fasting for over 8 hours by now. Their brain requires carbs and food to maintain itself during the night. Just because we go to sleep doesn't mean our organs and body goes to sleep. They are still using food. And if you are going into a high-intensity practice where they're going to be running, jumping, cutting, doing all of these high-intensity activities, they need carbohydrates to fuel their engine. So you want to be eating these as soon as you wake up, about an hour before you practice. If it's 45 minutes, then do 45 minutes and maybe just eat a little less of it. And I know, I know, I know, your athletes are not going to feel like eating in the morning. Athletes' bodies are very good at adapting. Just like when they started lifting and their body was super sore, now they lift and their, their body has adapted. They're doing pretty good with it. Same thing goes for food here. So if you have one of those athletes who is terrified to eat in the morning, have them start with a simple applesauce and granola bar. This is going to be very easy to digest on their stomach, and it's not going to make them feel super gross during their practices. Once they master this, level up to maybe a bagel, a little bit more carbohydrates. It can give their body more energy to sustain themselves through practice a little bit more. Then once they get used to the bagel in their stomach, you could add some honey to the bagel and throw a banana in this with that. Then this is going to give them roughly 90 grams of carbohydrates so that they are not feeling fatigued at all during their practices. Some of my favorite carb options are dates, dried mangoes, fruit leather. You can do an apple, some crackers, granola bars, pretzels, muffins, bananas, grapes, rice cakes, even some oatmeal could be a great option. Any of these are great options. And remember, we are covering all of this, so come back tomorrow for video number 4.
