Pre-Match Diet

[blasterboy]

Diet for a 2 day match:

Day 1,  eggs, bacon, maybe some steak if there's any left from the night before when camping.

Day 2, 2 Tylenol and water because some of the guys on my drinking team have a shooting problem.

[10X]

I'll try to avoid anything with a lot of salt or a lot of sugar on match or training days.   That's not a bad idea every day, but I pay more attention to it on match or training days, when I've noticed that lots of salt or sugar makes me a bit more hyper.

 

I avoided caffeine for years when I was competing in free and air pistol; now I'll avoid it for at least 6 hours before bullseye or other precision events (the half-life of caffeine in humans is about 4 hours).   For speed events, I don't find that caffeine makes a difference for me, though I rarely have more than 1, maybe 2, cups of coffee a day.

[Peterock]

Fully agree on the hydration and I will actually add liquid electrolytes to my water bottle as I tend to sweat out a lot of minerals in the summer.  Coffee but no energy drinks before.

[BLT]

   On 7/12/2017 at 12:59 AM,  Foxj66 said: 

Only thing I can add is I try to not vary from my normal,

 

This is my best advice also. Stay in your rhythm. changing things up before a match is a recipe for disaster. If better habits make sense before a match, they make sense all the time.

 

Not really sure why one would vary from their normal habits. Sure if its hot out stay hydrated etc but just like your gear and ammo etc don't change stuff at the last minute before a match.

Edited January 20, 2018 by BLT

[Foxj66]

9 hours ago, BLT said:

   On 7/12/2017 at 12:59 AM,  Foxj66 said: 

Only thing I can add is I try to not vary from my normal,

 

This is my best advice also. Stay in your rhythm. changing things up before a match is a recipe for disaster. If better habits make sense before a match, they make sense all the time.

 

Not really sure why one would vary from their normal habits. Sure if its hot out stay hydrated etc but just like your gear and ammo etc don't change stuff at the last minute before a match.

 

 

My main idea is if you drink a cup of coffee on the way to work normally drink one on the way to the range. If you have soda every morning  drink one. 

 

Goes in  reverse too, don't drink a coffee if you never drink coffee 

[lfine]

Personally, I eat paleo. Lost weight and get to eat bacon.

 

But from years of marathons and triathlons, the best advice is the same I heard today again on PP:  Stay hydrated and don't drastically change your regimen. Also, sleep. Many times for many people its getting enough sleep the night before the night before the event that helps. Sounds weird but enough sleep can never hurt.  

 

And stay hydrated. Again.

[Crazy Scientist]

From the wayback machine when I used to actually be athletic:

Night before:

Carbs.  Carbs feed your muscles and your brain (gotta remember those stage plans).  Carb Loading 24-48 hours before.  A normal carb dosage with day of breakkfast.

Fats.  Lowfat.  While fats are important, most of our modern diet has too much.

Protein:  Day of--Breakfast.  Health Dose of Lean protein to help keep you feeling full longer.  Avoids the hunger crash when food might not be available for a long time.  

Water: Since you need to be training, even if you taper, lots of fluids 72 oz or more the bigger you are (I was 6'1 220 at 'fighting weight'  I kept close to 128 oz of fluid).

 

Try an avoid too much fiber and dairy near match time as it can cause irritation and bloating.

[dkamps]

Hydrate or die... bout it. Everything else is just lifestyle choices.

 

oh.. and caffeine. What is life without caffeine?

[bjones6686]

I eat and drink a normal breakfast like any other day. I usually drink a caffeinated beverage every morning on my way to work so I do the same on the way to the range. Once I get to the range and get to shooting stages I try to stay hydrated with water and gatorade. I usually bring snacks that are high in protein and help maintain my blood sugar at a good level. I'm hyperglycemic and my sugar crashes quick.

[CaptD]

....and don't eat a big lunch.  Snack your way through the day.

[pjb45]

Having a boat load of 10K-1/2 marathons under my belt, I usually follow their old adage of you train on protein and race on carbos.

 

Hydration is key out west; hot and dry.  If you are thirsty during the match you are dehydrated.  Start early and keep it up all day.

 

Shooting Nationals, Areas etc, with long days, food throughout the day will help immensely.  If you are older, your blood sugar might drop which will have an adverse effect on  your shooting. 

Big heavy meals the day of a race were never recommended so I follow the same advice. I definitely eat a lighter lunch than most folks.

 

I believe protein takes longer to metabolize so a little lasts a long time.

 

I believe keeping your blood sugar level is a real key to performance so I try to pay attention to that more than anything else.

[Knguyen1904]

I try and eat a balanced meal the night before and try and hydrate up a few days before. Morning if I’ll eat a light breakfast and just snack on jerky or protein bars low in sugar throughout the match as well as stay hydrated . 

[boudreux]

Yep shooting in Florida hydration is key. I always start hydrating the day before if not 2 days before. 8 hours in the sun is a long time. I try not to eat anything really heavy the night before or the morning of. 

[synchronicity]

Bicycle racer/adventure camper food.

Tailwind Nutrition.

[Doc1]

I'm in Houston and it is hot and humid at least 300 days out of the year. I'm getting up there in age and cramp up easily during or nearing the end of a match especially one that involves running and gunning. I try to pre-hydrate and drink at least a gallon of water/electrolytes the day before the match.

[kalaikanui]

I generally follow the "lifestyle" advise - maintain a routine... Especially before majors, I've resisted the "we're outta town, let's rip it up" business... I know its a lot of fun - a night out with the boys, but too much money spent to get to a big match then blow it by being trashed (or DQ'd ).

[dspring]

I do not eat anything at all before matches, but I do intermittent fasting every day so that’s my normal regimen. As long as I drink plenty of water I have no energy issues at all, I see people snacking all the time and it doesn’t bother me but I just feel better that way. 

 

Agree on the waking up early to take care of business, the lighter the better. 

[XxRingerxX]

Hydration hydration hydration. 

[mwray]

this before and during

[Sparky]

Wow, a lot of good info on this post.  I'm a regular water drinker and sometimes Gatorade Zero depending on

what I am doing.  But, I make sure I do both on the day before a match and continue that during the match. 

I am 70 years old and in fairly good shape and rarely get cramps.  I also snack during a match and usually

eat a lite lunch; sometimes it's a banana and some jerky.  I usually do not eat the lunch provided at a big

match.  

[Seery]

I always try and avoid caffeine the night before and day of a match.

[bcane98]

Hydration starts the day before, and continues throughout the match day. All too often I see shooters who are inexperienced with long days in the sun with high humidity. I like BBQ chicken and broccoli the night before, and I’ll start drinking a gallon of water starting at ~1500 until bed time. Avoid sweets, or at least keep them to a very minimum.


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[Boudreaux78]

Something new that I have been using with hydration. I found minerals or a teaspoon of salt really help the body use the water you consume. Take them a day or two before the match and it works great. Changed my life pre and post workouts.