6 holiday foods you shouldn’t eat before you run

All of these foods can be considered incentive to get through the workout, as opposed to fuel beforehand

Madeleine Kelly December 7, 2018

The holidays is a time to celebrate with friends and family, and enjoy some tasty food and drinks. While most holiday foods are delicious, they also tend toward the indulgent side, and for that reason are best consumed post-workout. Below are some of the holiday foods that runners, especially runner with a sensitive stomach, should avoid consuming before completing their mileage. All of these foods can be considered incentive to get through the workout, as opposed to fuel beforehand.

Eggnog

Dairy is a real no-go for most runners pre-workout. While some can tolerate it, lots deal with stomach upset if it’s consumed too close to their run. Eggnog can also be spiked, and while the running and drinking are far from mutually exclusive, eggnog still isn’t a pre-workout of choice.

Glazed Ham

Glazed ham is essentially sugar and butter on meat, which tastes amazing, but can leave your stomach in a lurch.

Shrimp Cocktail

Between the chilled crustaceans and the acidity of the cocktail sauce, shrimp cocktail is delicious but probably something the stay away from pre-workout. Any kind of raw seafood is typically something to avoid pre-run.

Fruit Cake

Fruit cake is primarily make of dried fruit and sugar. While easily digestible sugars can be great before a run, some of the dried fruit in this cake is pretty fibrous and could cause stomach upset.

Mincemeat Tarts

A mincemeat tart is a dessert made of dried fruits and spices, sometime with beef suet, and finished with rum or brandy. These tarts are a popular holiday treat but pretty indulgent. Between the pastry and the beef suet, consider these a post-workout reward.

Latkes and sour cream

Dairy is difficult enough for runners to digest, but dairy and fried potato is a new level of dangerous.