what food to eat before a match and what to eat?

M

monkeyisland90

Rookie
So only thing I remember about eating food before a sports match (in this case tennis) was that i should eat a light meal 30 minutes before the showdown (something like pasta, rice, bread, powebar etc..) so not sure if there is universal or near close to this or if this is outdated please share...

The foods you eat do you try to eat same meal always (like a ritual wade boggs did where he ate chicken always)
Wondering what you eat before a match?
How long before you eat?
Any fluids?

Also what should i be eating during a match and is this important at all?

I see pros eating bannans, powerbars, and drinking some color homemade smoothies or just powerade.. Not sure if they do this for energy or to keep there mind of stuff...
 
monkeyisland90 said:
So only thing I remember about eating food before a sports match (in this case tennis) was that i should eat a light meal 30 minutes before the showdown (something like pasta, rice, bread, powebar etc..) so not sure if there is universal or near close to this or if this is outdated please share...

The foods you eat do you try to eat same meal always (like a ritual wade boggs did where he ate chicken always)
Wondering what you eat before a match?
How long before you eat?
Any fluids?

Also what should i be eating during a match and is this important at all?

I see pros eating bannans, powerbars, and drinking some color homemade smoothies or just powerade.. Not sure if they do this for energy or to keep there mind of stuff...
Click to expand...

Two weeks before a tournament I drink nothing but water. I try to eat pasta before and pretty much anything goes during. One championship match that I remember I played about 3 hours after the semis I accidentally ordered this huge pizza. I thought I was ordering a small pizza. I took it back to the club and someone asked me for some. I gave them two slices. That left 10. I ate all 10 while I was playing and when I got home was hungry again. I'm known to take an entire plate of food on the court with me. :) I think you should refuel as you play. It's no different than running a race car. You are going to have to put back in what you use as you use it.
 
Learned the hard way to never eat a Big Mac meal before playing at 2 pm in 90 degree heat. Looked at my partner and told him that I could not move. He responded what else is new. Missed the final on a full stomach
 
I try to eat past with chicken before matches, not too much though. More after the match assuming the body is accepting food, usually after cooling down for an hour or two.
 
Carry a Rotisserie Chicken in my bag now,
9oz-Jack-Links-Chicken-Rotisserie-Meat-Bar_de5f53ce-0e24-4cb6-90a2-449c10fee68d.2ae7d45be1b45ddeb13c6ae992cb050e.jpeg
 
Ronaldo said:
Learned the hard way to never eat a Big Mac meal before playing at 2 pm in 90 degree heat. Looked at my partner and told him that I could not move. He responded what else is new. Missed the final on a full stomach
Click to expand...
In hs I ordered a large Big Mac meal before a soccer tournament match because I figured I wouldn’t play. Turned out I started
 
chuckersthenut said:
Felt like I had a brick in my stomach. Definitely no beuno
Click to expand...
Hope its no brick tomorrow....................................btw, recall many yrs ago my Wifey stated that everything that looks good may not be good for you. She also meant that everyone you think is your friend may not be. But that's another tale.
 
Last edited:
Ronaldo said:
Hope its no brick tomorrow....................................btw, recall many yrs ago my Wifey stated that everything that looks good may not be good for you. She also meant that everyone you think is your friend may not be. But that's another tale.
Click to expand...
Odd I've been thinking about that lately, regarding friends.
 
I usually eat more than 1 hour before the match. I like to eat brown Basmati rice with minced beef curry with mixed vegetables and some crispy sweet potato.
 
Honestly whatever I feel like eating. So long as I’m done eating 45 mins before match time. Never had a meal that made me feel uneasy or weak before.
 
tennis3 said:
I carry one of these in my bag, just in case I want some rotisserie chicken on changeovers.

1*6VKH9cQeTIO9AYYQU9gYkw.png
Click to expand...
Or when you rotate/switch racquets. Recall a player who carried his racquets in a gunny sack in his trunk. Had several cars so he never played with the same racquet twice.................................a year. Would switch racquets every set.
 
If I have to eat within 1 hour before a match, I would probably eat only snacks like bananas, figs, dates, yoghurt etc. When it is 90-120 mins before a match, I am likely to eat pasta, noodles or rice without grease, hot spices or red meat - carb-loading is good before strenuous exercise. I also don’t drink any alcohol including wine the day before singles matches, but might have a couple of glasses of wine the day before doubles - no wine though on the day of a match. I also drink a lot of iced tea, juice, coconut water and plain water for 24 hours before a singles match especially in the summer.
 
sureshs said:
I prefer egg salad
Click to expand...
Prefer egg salad period. Learned to never eat before a match. My doubles partner forgetaboutit. Stopped at Burger King at 9 am. He had a coupon BOGO Whopper. He gets two, then asked what am I having...................
 
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Rice and tuna or matched pumkin and tuna with a bit of Parmesan cheese,
During the match it’s a banana
Post match it’s a smoothie with some berries and cacao powder.
 
I don’t eat before a tough match. It makes me feel heavy on my feet. Within an hour of finishing a match, I will have a protein powder shake(JYM
Is 30.00 a bag) mixed with almond milk and chopped bananas. That tastes good and really helps my recovery
 
Something light. My kid's GoGo Squeez fruit pouches work great for a quick fuel up--little burst of sugars but not heavy at all.
 
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