Mavr Sports Nutrition Team
Updated October 2, 2026. 13 min read.
The night before a race is the last meal that matters and the one runners get wrong in both directions. Some eat a mountain of pasta with a rich sauce and spend the first 5K regretting it. Others get nervous, eat a small salad, and start a marathon with half a tank. The right dinner is not complicated, but it is specific, and it changes with the distance.
5K or 10K
Dinner carbs1 to 2.5 g/kg
For a 70 kg / 154 lb runner70 to 175 g
What the dinner is forComfort. A normal dinner with rice, pasta, or potatoes. No loading.
Half marathon
Dinner carbs2 to 3 g/kg
For a 70 kg / 154 lb runner140 to 210 g
What the dinner is forTopping up. Glycogen runs low late in the race for runners slower than about 1:45.
Marathon
Dinner carbs3 to 4 g/kg
For a 70 kg / 154 lb runner210 to 280 g
What the dinner is forThe last part of 36 to 48 hours of loading at 10 to 12 g/kg a day.
Ultra, 70.3, or Ironman
Dinner carbs3 to 4 g/kg
For a 70 kg / 154 lb runner210 to 280 g
What the dinner is forSame loading as a marathon. Eat early if the start is at dawn.
| Race | Dinner carbs | For a 70 kg / 154 lb runner | What the dinner is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5K or 10K | 1 to 2.5 g/kg | 70 to 175 g | Comfort. A normal dinner with rice, pasta, or potatoes. No loading. |
| Half marathon | 2 to 3 g/kg | 140 to 210 g | Topping up. Glycogen runs low late in the race for runners slower than about 1:45. |
| Marathon | 3 to 4 g/kg | 210 to 280 g | The last part of 36 to 48 hours of loading at 10 to 12 g/kg a day. |
| Ultra, 70.3, or Ironman | 3 to 4 g/kg | 210 to 280 g | Same loading as a marathon. Eat early if the start is at dawn. |
This guide covers how much to eat by race distance, what a good plate looks like, 12 dinners that are easy to find even in a hotel or restaurant, the foods to keep off the table, when to eat, and what to drink. It works for a 5K as well as a marathon, because the principles are the same and only the portion changes.
Two things, and it helps to keep them separate. The first is fuel. Your muscles and liver store carbohydrate as glycogen, and glycogen is the fuel that runs out in the back half of a long race. Dinner is the last chance to top it off before the race, with breakfast adding the final few percent in the morning. The second is gut comfort. Whatever is still in your intestine at the start line will make itself known somewhere around the first hill, so the meal needs to be gone by morning.
How much each of those matters depends on the distance. A 5K burns a fraction of your glycogen stores, so fuel is irrelevant and comfort is everything. A marathon can empty the stores completely, so fuel matters enormously and comfort still matters just as much. Ultras, 70.3s, and Ironman races are longer again, so they get the same full loading as a marathon. The table at the top of this page shows how the balance shifts with distance. For a 5K, 1 to 2 g/kg is plenty; for a 10K, aim nearer 1.5 to 2.5 g/kg.
To put those numbers in food terms: 100 g of carbohydrate is roughly 350 g of cooked pasta or rice, or a large baked potato plus two slices of bread. A marathon dinner at 250 g of carbohydrate is a big plate of pasta plus bread plus a carbohydrate-rich dessert or drink. A 5K dinner is simply a normal meal with rice or pasta on the plate.
If dessert is part of your normal evening, keep it and make it carbohydrate: a bowl of rice pudding, a couple of pancakes with syrup, sorbet, or a banana with honey. Ice cream and cheesecake add fat you do not want tonight.
All 12 are easy to make at home, easy to order, and easy to spot on a hotel menu. The carbs shown are rough figures for a half-marathon-sized portion. Eat more, or add bread, juice, or a dessert, for a marathon, ultra, or triathlon. Eat a little less for a 5K or 10K.
1. Pasta with tomato sauce, grilled chicken, and white bread
Rough carbs160 to 200 g
Why it worksThe classic: fast to digest, low fat, easy to scale up with more bread
2. Chicken teriyaki with a large bowl of white rice
Rough carbs150 to 190 g
Why it worksVery low fibre, the salty sauce adds sodium, sold almost everywhere
3. Baked potatoes with salmon and a little butter
Rough carbs120 to 160 g
Why it worksPotatoes are gentle on the stomach; add bread for more carbs
4. Rice bowl with eggs, soy sauce, and cooked spinach
Rough carbs130 to 170 g
Why it worksCheap, quick, and easy to portion
5. Pancakes or waffles with maple syrup and eggs
Rough carbs150 to 200 g
Why it worksBreakfast for dinner: very easy to digest and easy to eat when nervous
6. Chicken noodle soup with a bread roll and a side of rice
Rough carbs110 to 150 g
Why it worksGood when appetite is low or you are travelling; salt it well
7. Sushi rolls with plain rice, no tempura or spicy mayo
Rough carbs120 to 160 g
Why it worksRice-heavy and low fat; only from a place you trust
8. Potato gnocchi with tomato sauce and a bread roll
Rough carbs140 to 170 g
Why it worksSoft, filling, and lower in fibre than wholegrain pasta
9. Burrito bowl: white rice, chicken, mild salsa, a soft tortilla, no beans
Rough carbs130 to 160 g
Why it worksEasy to order anywhere; ask for no beans and light cheese
10. Rice noodle stir-fry with chicken or tofu, light on oil and chili
Rough carbs110 to 150 g
Why it worksQuick to cook and to digest; keep the vegetables soft and few
11. Couscous with roast chicken, cooked carrots, and a pitta
Rough carbs110 to 140 g
Why it worksLight and fast; works hot or cold if you cook ahead
12. Two bagels with turkey and honey, plus a glass of juice
Rough carbs120 to 150 g
Why it worksA hotel-room dinner that needs no kitchen
| Dinner | Rough carbs | Why it works |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pasta with tomato sauce, grilled chicken, and white bread | 160 to 200 g | The classic: fast to digest, low fat, easy to scale up with more bread |
| 2. Chicken teriyaki with a large bowl of white rice | 150 to 190 g | Very low fibre, the salty sauce adds sodium, sold almost everywhere |
| 3. Baked potatoes with salmon and a little butter | 120 to 160 g | Potatoes are gentle on the stomach; add bread for more carbs |
| 4. Rice bowl with eggs, soy sauce, and cooked spinach | 130 to 170 g | Cheap, quick, and easy to portion |
| 5. Pancakes or waffles with maple syrup and eggs | 150 to 200 g | Breakfast for dinner: very easy to digest and easy to eat when nervous |
| 6. Chicken noodle soup with a bread roll and a side of rice | 110 to 150 g | Good when appetite is low or you are travelling; salt it well |
| 7. Sushi rolls with plain rice, no tempura or spicy mayo | 120 to 160 g | Rice-heavy and low fat; only from a place you trust |
| 8. Potato gnocchi with tomato sauce and a bread roll | 140 to 170 g | Soft, filling, and lower in fibre than wholegrain pasta |
| 9. Burrito bowl: white rice, chicken, mild salsa, a soft tortilla, no beans | 130 to 160 g | Easy to order anywhere; ask for no beans and light cheese |
| 10. Rice noodle stir-fry with chicken or tofu, light on oil and chili | 110 to 150 g | Quick to cook and to digest; keep the vegetables soft and few |
| 11. Couscous with roast chicken, cooked carrots, and a pitta | 110 to 140 g | Light and fast; works hot or cold if you cook ahead |
| 12. Two bagels with turkey and honey, plus a glass of juice | 120 to 150 g | A hotel-room dinner that needs no kitchen |
The list of things to avoid is more important than the list of things to eat, because almost any carbohydrate-led meal works, while a single wrong choice can cost you the race.
High-fibre foods: beans, lentils, big salads, broccoli, wholegrain everything
Ferments overnight and speeds up the bowel. The single biggest cause of race-morning toilet queues.
High-fat meals: fried food, creamy sauces, pizza with lots of cheese, burgers
Slows gastric emptying for hours, leaves you heavy in the morning, adds no usable fuel
Very spicy food
Irritates the gut lining and can cause reflux or urgency when combined with running
Large amounts of red meat
A big steak takes 4 hours or more to leave the stomach and pushes carbohydrate off the plate
New or unusual foods
You have no data on how your gut handles it. Race eve is not the night to find out.
Alcohol
Disrupts sleep, dehydrates, and impairs glycogen storage. One beer will not ruin you, but it will not help.
Sugar-free products with sugar alcohols
Sorbitol, xylitol, and maltitol are laxatives at the doses found in sugar-free sweets and drinks
Excessive dairy if you are even slightly sensitive
Lactose plus nerves plus running is a reliable recipe for cramps
Enormous portions
Volume slows emptying and overloading in one sitting does not store more glycogen; spread the carbohydrate across the day instead
| Avoid | The problem it causes |
|---|---|
| High-fibre foods: beans, lentils, big salads, broccoli, wholegrain everything | Ferments overnight and speeds up the bowel. The single biggest cause of race-morning toilet queues. |
| High-fat meals: fried food, creamy sauces, pizza with lots of cheese, burgers | Slows gastric emptying for hours, leaves you heavy in the morning, adds no usable fuel |
| Very spicy food | Irritates the gut lining and can cause reflux or urgency when combined with running |
| Large amounts of red meat | A big steak takes 4 hours or more to leave the stomach and pushes carbohydrate off the plate |
| New or unusual foods | You have no data on how your gut handles it. Race eve is not the night to find out. |
| Alcohol | Disrupts sleep, dehydrates, and impairs glycogen storage. One beer will not ruin you, but it will not help. |
| Sugar-free products with sugar alcohols | Sorbitol, xylitol, and maltitol are laxatives at the doses found in sugar-free sweets and drinks |
| Excessive dairy if you are even slightly sensitive | Lactose plus nerves plus running is a reliable recipe for cramps |
| Enormous portions | Volume slows emptying and overloading in one sitting does not store more glycogen; spread the carbohydrate across the day instead |
Aim to finish dinner 12 to 14 hours before the start, which for a 7 am marathon means eating between 5 and 7 pm. That gives the meal time to clear before bed, gives you a full night of sleep without a heavy stomach, and leaves room for breakfast 3 hours before the gun. If your race starts later, dinner can shift later too, but keep it before 8 pm regardless so that sleep is not disturbed.
If circumstances push dinner late, or if nerves cut your appetite and you ate less than planned, add a small carbohydrate snack about an hour before bed: a bowl of cereal, toast with honey, a banana, or a sports drink. Around 30 to 50 g of carbohydrate is plenty. Keep it low in fibre and fat like everything else tonight.
Hydration the night before a race is about arriving normally hydrated, not super-hydrated. There is no such thing as storing extra water. Drink normally with dinner, roughly 500 ml, and sip through the evening until an hour or two before bed. Your urine should be pale yellow, not clear. Runners who drink litres the evening before a race spend the night getting up to urinate and can lower their blood sodium before they have taken a single step.
Sodium is the part most runners forget. Salt your dinner generously and choose salty sides such as pretzels, soy sauce, or broth. Sodium helps your body hold on to the fluid you drink and gives you a small buffer against tomorrow’s sweat losses. If it is going to be hot, this matters more.
A good dinner sets up a simple breakfast. If you ate well tonight, race-morning breakfast only needs to replace the liver glycogen used overnight: 1 to 2 g/kg of easy carbohydrate 3 hours before the start, plus a small top-up 15 minutes before. Dinner and breakfast are one plan, not two, and the dinner is the larger half of it.
A carbohydrate-led dinner with about 2 to 3 g of carbohydrate per kg of body weight, low in fat and fibre, with a moderate portion of lean protein and some salt. Pasta with tomato sauce and chicken, chicken teriyaki with rice, or baked potatoes with fish are all good choices. Finish by 8 pm and avoid alcohol.
The largest carbohydrate meal of your loading: roughly 3 to 4 g/kg, or about 210 to 280 g for a 70 kg runner, as part of 10 to 12 g/kg across the whole day. Keep it familiar and low in fibre and fat. A big plate of pasta with a simple sauce, bread, and a carbohydrate-based dessert is the standard pattern for a reason.
The same as before a marathon: about 3 to 4 g of carbs per kg of body weight at dinner, as the last part of 36 to 48 hours of carb loading. Keep it low in fat and fibre and salt it well. Many ultras and triathlons start at dawn, so eat early and set out breakfast before bed.
Yes, as long as the sauce is simple. Pasta is fast-digesting carbohydrate, easy to portion, and available everywhere. The problem is never the pasta; it is the cream, cheese, or oil-heavy sauce on top, and the garlic bread soaked in butter. Tomato sauce, a little olive oil, and lean protein keep it race-friendly.
High-fibre foods such as beans, lentils, big salads, and wholegrain everything; high-fat foods such as fried dishes, creamy sauces, and cheese-heavy pizza; very spicy food; large amounts of red meat; alcohol; sugar-free products containing sugar alcohols; and any food you have not eaten before a long run.
Finish 12 to 14 hours before the start, and no later than 8 pm for an early race. For a 7 am start, that means eating between 5 and 7 pm. If dinner ends up late or small, add a 30 to 50 g carbohydrate snack an hour before bed rather than eating a huge late meal.
Yes, but a normal dinner is enough. A 5K does not come close to emptying your glycogen stores, so there is no need to load. Eat a comfortable meal with rice, pasta, or potatoes on the plate, keep fibre and fat modest, and skip alcohol so you sleep well.
General guidance for healthy adults, not medical advice. Talk to a doctor or registered dietitian if you have a health condition, take medicines or have special dietary needs.
Mavr builds your whole race week, from the loading days to the race-eve dinner to the morning breakfast and the on-course gel schedule, around your distance, weight, and start time.
Ask Kai, the coach in the app