Is eating cereal bars before running okay?

They are probably OK. When was your last meal? Do you eat afterward?

I usually eat a small sausage/ham/cheese snack 30/45 minutes before start running and I have dinner afterwards.

That is a lot of fat. Especially pre workout. For a 35 minute run, try just water pre run and have dinner afterwards. It really doesn't take long to get used to. Have some type of afternoon snack if you can.

Hi there, I usually run for 35 min every other day at 8pm. Since I'm usually hungry at that time and I don't feel like eating a lot before running, I eat a cereal bar (www.heromuesly.com) that contains 1,9g of proteins and 15,1g of carbohydrates (459 KJ). Should I eat these bars to supply me energy or am I doing a mistake? Thanks in advance. Hugo

You could do worse. You did not state what type of carbohydrate is in the bar, and that's everything. To be usable during your run, it would have to be a very simple sugar (glucose or sucrose). IMHO, you'd likely do better sipping a sports drink 15-30 minutes before the workout, every ten minutes during the workout, and consuming a recovery beverage after. Although, honestly, for shorter runs at 35 minutes, it's not as much of an issue. Probably 12 oz. total fluids before and during would cover it, and 6 oz. of recovery drink after would too, unless hte intensity of those 35 minutes is very high. Then I'd drink more. When are your meal times during the day? What are you eating? How much and how often are you drinking water?

Oh, okay. I agree; skip the fatty meal before the run and eat after.

Thanks for the comments.

Maybe I didn't make myself clear about the sausage/ham/cheese snack... it's not actually a meal but rather a kind of small sandwich. Should I really avoid it? The only meal I have before 8pm is lunch (at 1pm). Maybe I should eat something during afternoon, which I don't. If I run without eating that snack or a piece of bread with something, I feel weak and I get pain in my stomach during running.

Regarding the cereal bars, they contain... well, cereals. They are marketed as "light and healthy energy bars" (containing nuts, seeds, corn, rice, coco, almonds, etc).

Hugo

Okay. Sports nutritionists agree that you should avoid fats just before racing/training, and just after. Nutritionists agree that eating at 1 pm and having nothing until 8 pm is a really bad idea. Giving yourself a 7-hour fast is bad because: your body's blood sugar levels drop dramatically, your energy levels drop, you begin to store fat since your body thinks it's starving, when you do finally eat, you tend to overeat and gain weight in the long run. Worst of all, you can't use much of what you consume at 8 pm during your run, and there's really nothing from 1 pm left to use (it's too late).
What is your daily diet like, besides what you've told us? Do you eat breakfast? If so, is it a good breakfast or not? A good breakfast contains sufficient amounts of protein, complex carbohydrate and good fats. If you don't know what those things are yet, ask away; we'll help you! Meals should be spaced 3 hours apart, with small "meals" or snacks filling the gaps between breakfast lunch or dinner. The timing of nutrient intake is a concept all serious athletes must face.
Before a run, try drinking a sports beverage (Gatorade, Gatorade Endurance, Cytomax and Extran are okay, Accelerade is the best currently,) about 30 minutes before the race/training run. Drink a half liter first, then sip every ten minutes (maybe a 1/4 cup) until the run. Sip every 10-15 minutes during the run. That's right, carry the water bottle with you in training, and get used to it. This isn't really necessary for easy runs less than 30 minutes, but it won't hurt you, either. Immediately after the run (15 minutes after), consume a recovery drink that should contain more con centrated amounts of simple carbs and protein (4:1 carb-protein seems to work well, and Endurox R4 is best, also Countdown is okay). This is what everybody should be doing who is serious.
Good luck.

BTW, if you're trying to lose weight (I'm not saying you are), you'd do well to run first thing in the morning. Your heart rate will stay slightly elevated all day until you hit the hay. Result: more calories burned.

Thanks for the precious tips.

I'm not running to lose weight but rather to maintain it (and to relieve some stress, actually). It's extremely difficult for me to run during the morning; and it feels great after work.

Regarding meals, I have cereals with milk for breakfast and I eat a ham/cheese sandwich in the middle of the morning. I have lunch at 1pm (I m trying to eat fish and vegetables whenever I can) and I do realize I'm missing a small snack during the afternoon.

Hugo

Buy one of the big cartons of Juice Green Machine. It really fills you up like its a meal, yet its a drink so its easy to digest, and best of all, it contains lots of vitamins and minerals but 0 fat. I don't know where you live, but here you can buy the big containers in pretty much all of the major markets.

Have 2 cups of that like an hour before you run and you should befine, then you can skip the ham and cheese.