The meal eaten before training or a competitive event may be used to get the maximum amount of carbohydrates that your body requires.

Carbohydrate will maximise the stores of glycogen in the muscles and liver which will keep you going longer.

It is important that your body has time to digest the food before you start exercise. 

The ideal time to eat is 3-4 hours before exercise and the carbohydrate meal should contain 4.5 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram of body weight, so if you weigh 8 stone (50kg) so that’s 230 grams of carbohydrate. 

If you have a 10am kick off and don’t fancy pasta at 6am a carbohydrate meal of 1-2 grams per kilo of body weight can be eaten 1 hour before exercise (between 50 – 100 grams) if you are 8 stone.

If you are eating 3-4 hours before exercise then pasta may suit you, but for an early start oatmeal may be a better choice.