Aspire guide
Parent Resources
Parent Resources manual
Pre-Practice Power-Up: Closing the Lunch-to-Practice Gap
A practical guide to the four-hour gap between school lunch and practice, with exact timing windows and ten real, portable snack solutions for backpacks, lockers, and cars.
Why this matters
Here's a schedule that shows up in almost every high school runner's day: lunch at 11:30 or noon, practice at 3:30 or later.
Read time
8 min
Audience
Parent + Athlete
Use it for
Parent Resources
Start here
The pre-practice snack is not extra credit.
Coach prompt
Ask what athletes ate in the hour before practice today, and treat every empty answer as the first fix.
Print & share
Printable handout preview
One-page sheet
Pre-Practice Power-Up: Closing the Lunch-to-Practice Gap
Read time
8 min
Audience
Parent + Athlete
Start with the printable
The pre-practice snack is not extra credit.
Best next move
Use it this week
Ask what athletes ate in the hour before practice today, and treat every empty answer as the first fix.
Quick reference map
Use the guide like a structured handout
In the library
Format
Read the full ebook here, then jump to the one-page handout when you need the shareable version.
Best use
Open the sections you need, print the handout, then send both to coaches, parents, or athletes.
Quick start
Start here
A practical guide to the four-hour gap between school lunch and practice, with exact timing windows and ten real, portable snack solutions for backpacks,…
If lunch was light
Use an easy carb plus a little protein
- A banana with peanut butter, crackers with cheese, or yogurt with fruit all work.
- Keep fat and fiber moderate so the snack digests before practice starts.
If the bus was late
Go smaller and faster-digesting, not empty
- Applesauce, a banana, or a few crackers digest fast inside 30 minutes.
- Skip heavy fat or fiber this close to practice; it will not clear in time.
If practice runs long
Pack a second snack for the back half
- Two-a-days, lifting blocks, or 2+ hour sessions often need mid-session fuel.
- Pack crackers, a granola bar, or fruit snacks with the water bottle.
What coach says
"Show up to practice fed, not empty." That's the whole message, and it works best when it's short and repeated — not a lecture, just a standing expectation.
Show up to practice fed, not empty." That's the whole message, and it works best when it's short and repeated — not a lecture, just a standing expectation. Coaches running this curriculum are asking athletes to bring one snack, every day, as a routine equipment item, the same way they'd expect a water bottle or…
Building the backpack backup system
The single best thing a parent can do isn't packing a perfect snack every day — it's making sure there's always something available, even on the days nobody planned ahead.
Keep two or three shelf-stable options — granola bars, fig bars, a couple of applesauce pouches —…
Keep a small supply in the car for pickup days when practice runs into the evening and there's a…
If your athlete has a locker, a small stash there covers the days the backpack stash ran out and…
Unlock the rest of the manual
Full access opens every section, the ebook PDF, and the printable handout companion.
What to do next
Use it this week
Ask what athletes ate in the hour before practice today, and treat every empty answer as the first fix.
Source topics
Thomas DT, Erdman KA, Burke LM. (2016) ACSM/AND/DC Joint Position Statement: Nutrition and Athletic Performance. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 48(3):543-568. DOI 10.1249/MSS.0000000000000852. • Burke LM, Hawley JA, Wong SH, Jeukendrup AE. (2011) Carbohydrates for training and competition. Journal of Sports Sciences, 29(S1):S17-S27.