Chelsea Kyle. Prop and food styling by Beatrice Chastka.
Finding a pre-workout breakfast that ticks all the boxes—convenient, energizing, and not overly filling—is no easy feat. The ideal early bird meal will be something that gives you the fuel you need to kick butt during your early session, doesn't take long to make, and accounts for the fact that you might have a limited appetite—if any.
For some people, "eating very early in the morning can be particularly jarring," San Francisco–based dietitian Edwina Clark, M.S., R.D., certified specialist in sports dietetics, tells SELF. Luckily, it's generally okay to skip eating beforehand if that's your preference, as Steve Ball, Ph.D., associate professor of nutrition and exercise physiology at the University of Missouri, has previously told SELF. The research on how exercising in a fasting state affects performance is conflicting, as SELF has reported, but some people do find they feel better working out without food in their stomach.
For the rest of us who are up to eat something first thing in the a.m.—whether you just want a little something or are decently hungry—you've got lots of options.