It’s 6am and you’ve got hockey practice in an hour. What’s the best thing for you to eat? Because you have to eat something – going out on the ice without any fuel in your tank is just plain stupid. You’ll have no energy and you won’t be able to think. But what do you do if you aren’t hungry first thing in the morning?

“Eat 2 or 1 bananas”.

That’s the advice I got from one of the 9 year-olds on the Atom B team I worked with last week.

And she was right.

Fresh fruit is one of the best things for you to eat right before you hit the ice. The simple sugars in the banana will digest very quickly, giving both your mind and muscles the energy you need to perform out on the ice.

I don’t expect you to get up at 4am to eat a full “bacon and eggs” breakfast. And you may not even have the time to make it to the drive-thru to grab a whole-wheat bagel with peanut butter.

But you can grab 2 or 1 bananas, a piece of whole-wheat toast or a small cup of yogurt on your way out the door. You might need to experiment and figure out which foods work best for you pre-practice. Just make sure that you are taking in some high-quality fuel (no donuts please) and make sure that you follow practice with a well balanced meal, that includes healthy carbs, protein and fat.

What’s your favorite thing to eat before an early morning practice?