How to Create a Winning Breakfast for Athletes (with Recipe Ideas!)

Whether you’re a college athlete trying to fuel for your next game, or you’re a middle-aged weekend warrior getting ready for a road race – proper nutrition is key to your best performance.  By creating a power-packed breakfast for athletes, you’ll feel more energized during your workouts and support your training needs.

Why Eat Breakfast?

We’ve all heard that saying “breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”  While I think all meals are important, breakfast is certainly wise to include in an athlete’s diet.  Here are a few reasons why you should consider starting your day with a nutritious meal:

• Can improve performance – Breakfast helps top off energy stores after a night of sleep, helping you perform best in your morning workouts.  Research has shown that breakfast improves endurance performance, and also improves resistance training performance.  Even if you don’t have to exercise until the afternoon or evening, breakfast still helps prepare your body for later.  In fact, one study found that when cyclists skipped breakfast, their evening workout felt harder at the start, and they had lower power output for the workout.

• Supports recovery – For athletes doing early morning workouts, having a small snack beforehand and then eating a full breakfast after can support recovery.  By eating within 30-60 minutes of finishing your session, your muscles act like a sponge, ready to soak up the carbohydrates to store for later workouts, and utilizing the protein to start the muscle repair process.  This is particularly important for athletes doing 2-a-day workouts.

• Helps muscular health – Research suggests that eating breakfast before resistance exercises suppresses muscles protein breakdown, helping support overall muscular health and strength training goals.

• Provides key nutrients – Any meal is an opportunity to provide key micronutrients and phytochemicals for your body, which support health and fitness.  For example, enjoying yogurt at breakfast provides calcium to support bone health.  Eating fish at breakfast, like salmon or tuna, provides your body with omega-3’s for heart and joint health.  Berries boost your intake of anthocyanins, which act as an antioxidant and may quell inflammation.  The list could go on and on!

Creating a Balanced Meal

Athletes should include all three macronutrients – carbohydrates, protein, and fat – in their daily meal plan.  (The specific balance will depend on your health history, workout routine, and any medical conditions.)

Breakfast is no exception.  Healthy sources of carbohydrate provide energy for your muscles (which is stored in the muscles as glycogen).  During exercise, you’re typically using a mixture of carbohydrates and fat to fuel your workouts.  As the workout intensity ramps up, though, you rely more on those carbs.

Protein is important at breakfast both for its sticking power and for its role in muscle repair and recovery.  Research shows most athletes get plenty of protein at dinner, but often skimp on it at breakfast.

Healthy fats and fiber are satiating and important for overall health, so it’s wise to include them in breakfast.  However, if you’re eating breakfast right before a workout, don’t overdo it on these ingredients.  Too much can cause stomach upset or nausea during your training session. 

This is very individualized, so pay attention to how your body reacts during your workout.  If you notice stomach upset, try keeping your pre-workout meal low in fat and fiber, and then include these in ample amounts the rest of the day.

Lastly, don’t forget about hydration during breakfast.  While the meal itself is important, as an athlete, you also want to make sure you’re properly hydrating your body (as you’ll lose fluids when you sweat during your workouts). 

Water is best, and this can be plain water, seltzer water, or infused water (like strawberry basil infused water, or a cucumber mint version). Fruit infusion water pitchers are great for making these refreshing concoctions at home.  You can also feel free to enjoy a cup of coffee or tea if you enjoy those.

Tips for Making Breakfast Happen

It’s easy to know that you should eat a balanced meal – but a lot harder to actually put it into practice.  Some athletes may find that they are short on time in the morning, or maybe they just don’t feel hungry.  Here are some key tips to help you – and then down below, you’ll find specific breakfast recipes and ideas for athletes.

1. Plan ahead. 

Benjamin Franklin once said something along the lines of “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.”  You can easily see how this would apply to preparing for a race or a big game – if you suddenly stopped practicing or training for weeks, you’d be setting yourself up for failure come the big event. 

The same logic applies to your meals.  Planning ahead doesn’t mean that you need to stick to a very specific diet.  Instead, it just means thinking about the meals you want to eat throughout the week, and making a grocery list accordingly.  This way, you know you’ve got everything you need in the fridge. 

It can also take the stress out of your morning routine.  There’s no need to worry “what am I going to eat this morning?!” if you’ve already put together meal ideas and have all the ingredients on hand.

2. Use meal prep recipes. 

Meal prep recipes are dishes can be made in advance and eaten later in the week. 

For example, on Sundays, you could meal prep overnight oats for the next few days.  Or one weekend, you could make a batch of meal prep breakfast sandwiches.  By cooking ahead of time, all you need to do in the morning is grab your oats from the fridge, or pop your freezer sandwich in the microwave. 

(In my athlete meal prep guide, you’ll find a ton of tips and recipe ideas that are perfect for meal prep.)

3. Have easy grab-and-go options available.

As an alternative (or backup option) to planning and prep, consider buying some easy grab-and-go options.  String cheese, trail mix, pre-made smoothie or yogurt drinks, fresh and dried fruit, granola or protein bars…all of these can be tossed in a purse or backpack on the way out the door.

You can also try convenient freezer foods.  For example, healthier store-bought frozen breakfast burritos can be popped in the microwave for a minute before heading out the door.  Wrap it in aluminum foil afterwards and then eat it on your way to work or school.

4. Split it in half.

Some people are naturally not hungry first thing in the morning, and that’s OK!  If you’ve got an early morning workout, try having a small snack beforehand, like a slice of toast with peanut butter or a banana.  Once the hunger kicks in after your workout, you can eat the rest of your breakfast.

Athlete Breakfast Ideas

These eight breakfasts for athletes provide recipes, but you can adjust the portions based on your individual health and fitness needs.  For example, a college rower training frequently will need much more fuel than a middle-aged woman running a few times a week to prepare for a half marathon.

You’ll also find some additional simple non-recipe ideas at the bottom!

1. PB Chocolate Chip Overnight Oats

This is my go-to many days, especially if we’ve got some almost-empty peanut butter jars lying around.  While I love peanut butter, you can also make ‘em with almond butter, cashew butter, or sunflower seed butter.

*This makes 1 serving.

Ingredients:

• ½ cup rolled oats
• ½ cup milk
• ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1-2 tbsp peanut butter
• 2 tsp maple syrup
• 1 tbsp dark chocolate chips
• (optional – blueberries, raspberries, banana, or other fruit to add in the morning)

Instructions: Combine all ingredients except the chocolate chips in a mason jar.  Shake well and store in the refrigerator overnight.  In the morning, add the chocolate chips (and any optional fruit).  Enjoy cold.

2. Egg and Veggie Scramble

Many breakfast options in our country tend to be sweet, so it’s nice to mix in savory meals too.  While I use onion, mushrooms, and spinach in this recipe, you can toss in any vegetables that you’d like.

*This makes 1 serving.

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• Splash of milk
• ½ tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp diced onion
• ½ cup chopped mushrooms
• ½ cup spinach (or other leafy green)
• ¼ cup crumbled feta (or shredded cheddar)

Instructions:

1. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk.  Set aside for now.
2. Add the olive oil to a skillet over medium heat.  When hot, add the onion and mushrooms.  Cook for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables are starting to get tender.
3. Stir in the spinach and cook for another 1-2 minutes, until it starts to wilt.
4. Pour the eggs into the pan with the veggies.  Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the eggs are almost done.
5. Add the feta cheese and continue cooking, until the eggs are fully cooked through.  Enjoy as-is or alongside toast and/or fruit (depending on your fueling needs).

3. PB Banana Green Smoothie

Clearly, I’m a peanut butter fan!  Smoothies can be a great option if solid food makes you a little queasy in the morning.  They’re easy to get down and you can pack a lot of nutrition in there.

*This makes 1 serving.

Ingredients:

• 1 frozen banana
• 1 cup skim milk
• 1-2 tbsp peanut butter
• ½ cup raw spinach
• 1 tbsp dark chocolate chips
• (optional – add ½ scoop protein powder)

Instructions:  Combine all ingredients in a blender.  Blend until smooth and enjoy.

4. Cottage Cheese Blender Pancakes

Before you immediately brush over this recipe, please know that I’m not a huge cottage cheese fan on it’s own.  However, I love it blended into recipes like these pancakes, which eliminates the textural issue many people have with cottage cheese.

*This makes 1-2 servings depending on your hunger level, fueling needs, and any additional sides.

Ingredients:

• ½ cup rolled oats
• 3 eggs
• ½ cup cottage cheese
• ¼ tsp vanilla
• ¼ tsp cinnamon
• ½ tbsp butter, divided

Instructions:

1. Place the oats in a blender. Pulse a few times until the oats become a rough flour-like consistency.
2. Add the eggs, cottage cheese, vanilla, and cinnamon to the blender. Turn the blender on for about 10-20 seconds, or until everything is well combined.
3. Place half the butter in a large skillet and melt over medium heat. Pour the batter into small pancakes in the skillet. Note that the batter and pancakes will be relatively thin – that’s normal for this recipe. Cook for approximately 2 minutes, then flip and continue cooking an additional minute.
4. Remove the cooked pancakes with a spatula and set aside on a plate. Prepare the skillet for the second batch by heating the remaining butter and then repeating with the remaining batter.
5. Enjoy topped with maple syrup, sautéed apples, or warmed berries. 

5. Sweet potato breakfast bowl

Sweet potatoes are for more than dinner-time!  They make an excellent option at breakfast, whether in a potato hash, a breakfast burrito, or in something like this breakfast bowl.

*This makes 1 serving.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium sweet potato
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 2 tbsp milk
• ¼ tsp cinnamon
• 2 tbsp peanut butter (or almond butter)
• 2 tbsp golden raisins
• 2 tbsp chopped walnuts

Instructions:

1. Microwave or bake a sweet potato until the flesh is soft. (It takes about 4-7 minutes in the microwave; be sure to poke it with a fork a few times before putting it in!).
2. Remove and let cool for a few minutes. When cool enough to handle, scrape the flesh into a small food processor. Add the maple syrup, milk, and cinnamon. Pulse a few times to create a smooth texture.  (Note – if you don’t have a food processor, just mash it up in a bowl with these ingredients).
3. Put the sweet potato mixture in a bowl and top it with the peanut butter (or almond butter), golden raisins, and walnuts.

6. Banana Protein Muffins

If you like baking, these are a great grab-and-go breakfast option.  Prepare a batch on the weekend and these will be ready to munch on all week.  Enjoy as a mini-meal before a workout, then refuel after with additional nutritious foods.  Or, combine a banana protein muffin with a glass of milk and a piece of fruit for a well-rounded breakfast anytime.

*This makes 12 muffins.

Ingredients:

• 3 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 cup oil of choice (avocado, canola, coconut, etc)
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/4 cup flour (ideally whole wheat, but all-purpose flour works too)
• 1/2 cup vanilla protein powder (I used whey)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/3 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 12-count muffin tin.
2. In a large bowl, combine the bananas, cinnamon, vanilla, oil, egg, and brown sugar. Mix well.
3. Add the flour, protein powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir the ingredients until just combined.
4. Add the milk and mix until everything is combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.
5. Pour the batter evenly into each spot in the muffin tin, filling almost completely. Bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until muffins are golden brown on top and a knife pulls out clean. Let cool for a few minutes in the pan, then remove from the pan and allow to finish cooling. Enjoy.

7. Amped Up Avocado Toast

While avocado toast has become trendy, on its own it can lack sticking power.  Adding extra veggies and a source of protein on top of the toast makes it a more balanced meal.  I love adding tuna salad since you’ll get some extra omega-3’s in your breakfast, but you could also skip the tuna salad and add a fried egg on top instead.

*This recipe makes 1-2 servings depending on your hunger level, fueling needs, and workout schedule.

Ingredients:

• 5-oz can tuna packed in water, drained
• 1 stick celery, finely chopped
• 2-3 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
• ½ tbsp Dijon mustard
• ⅛ tsp salt
• ⅛ tsp pepper
• ⅛ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup raw spinach
• ½ tsp everything bagel seasoning, divided
• 2 large slices of hearty whole grain or sourdough toast
• ½ avocado, mashed

Instructions:

1. Mix the tuna with the celery, Greek yogurt, mustard, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  Set aside for now.
2. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the spinach, and cook for a few minutes until wilted.  Toss with ¼ tsp of everything bagel seasoning.
3. Toast the bread, then spread the mashed avocado on top.  Add the spinach and tuna salad on top of that.  If desired, sprinkle on the rest of the everything bagel seasoning.  Enjoy!

8. Potato & Turkey Hash

This is probably one of my favorite breakfasts for athletes!  It’s an easy recipe that only uses a handful of ingredients, but is high in protein and tastes great.  It makes a few servings, so save the leftovers in a food storage container in the fridge and reheat for breakfast another day.

*This makes about 4 servings.

Ingredients:

• 1 sweet potato
• 1 white potato
• 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 2 small bell peppers, diced (or 1 large)
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 lb ground turkey
• Salt and pepper to taste
• (optional – add eggs to top it off)

Instructions:

1. Poke potatoes with a fork, then cook whole in microwave for about 4-6 minutes, or until they are starting to soften but still a little firm.
2. Meanwhile, heat 1/2 tbsp olive oil in pan. Add peppers and onions and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add ground turkey and cook for about 7-8 minutes, or until turkey is browned and reached proper internal temp (165). Remove turkey/pepper/onion mixture and set aside in a bowl.
3. Dice sweet potatoes. Add remaining 1 1/2 tbsp of olive oil to pan. Cook for 5-10 minutes or until potatoes are soft on the inside and slightly crisp on the outside.
4. Mix sweet potatoes with turkey mixture, season with salt & pepper, enjoy.  Optionally, you can add an egg to top it off.

Additional Ideas

No recipe, no problem!  Here are some ideas for those of you who want simple options:

• Cereal, milk, and fruit:  People love to knock cereal, but it can be a great option for a quick meal (especially for busy college athletes).  Look for cereals that are a bit lower in added sugar, and use regular milk or a higher-protein milk alternative.  Combine it with some fruit to round out the meal.
• Frozen waffles with fruit and nuts:  There are several better-for-you frozen waffles on the market these days.  I’m a fan of Kodiak Cakes Power Waffles or Van’s Multigrain Waffles.  Try topping them with some warmed berries, a little maple syrup, and some nuts.
• Yogurt parfait:  Greek yogurt, fruit, granola, and nuts make an easy breakfast that you can throw together in just a few minutes.
• PB&B:  Peanut butter and banana sandwiches are one of my go-to recommendations for athletes, because they’re rich in the right kind of carbs to fuel your workouts.  You can add a drizzle of honey on there too if you’d like.
• Breakfast burrito:  Scramble up some eggs and greens, then toss them in a tortilla.  Add salsa and cheese (and beans if you’d like).  Boom, breakfast is done!
• Quinoa & eggs:  Save leftover quinoa from dinner.  In the morning, sauté a little spinach and add it to the quinoa.  Then cook over easy eggs and add them on top.  Season with salt and pepper.

I hope this helps you create some awesome breakfasts to fuel your athletic performance!

Share:  What are your favorite breakfasts to eat?  Do you find you perform better when you eat breakfast?

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