I am terrible at eating breakfast in the morning. I hate waking up to an alarm, I try to get ready for wherever I need to be in the least amount of time possible, and I skip breakfast. This of course leads me to obsess over lunch, and build grocery lists in my head all day about what I’m going to make for dinner! When it comes to running, with early morning training runs and races, this habit doesn’t fare well for me. It’s hard to find something that will satiate me, without giving me a stomach ache or heartburn during long runs.

Earlier this week I tried my first batch of overnight oats! Now, I haven’t eaten oatmeal since the 90s – the small Quaker oats packages filled with sugar, dehydrated apples, cinnamon and a few oats. Man, those were good! Even those only requiring hot water is too much for me in the mornings. If I remember to buy bananas, and then remember to grab said banana on my way out the door, that’s a win!

Overnight oats to the rescue. Basically you take anywhere from 1 – 2 cups oats (I’ve been using quick oats I found at the 99 Cents Store, but I can imagine steel cut oats are phenom!) I use just enough water and/or soy milk to submerge the oats, which generally has been about equal parts oats and liquid. I add a little cinnamon, salt, vanilla extract and agave, put it in the fridge overnight, and then I have breakfast ready to go in the morning! It’s especially cute and easy to pack in the mason jar I bought at, again, the 99 Cents Store. (It just seems to have most everything I need! FOR 99 CENTS!!!)

Lid on tight, fresh berries and bananas sprinted with cinnamon, ready to go!

I’m really excited about this! Topped with some fresh fruit, or mixed with some non-dairy yogurt, peanut butter, chocolate, or chia seeds, it’s just the power breakfast I’ve been needing in my life! So, so stoked. My go-to race mornings has been a bagel, but I honestly don’t love all that bread sitting in my stomach before a run. When I don’t eat, or only have a banana, I crash and burn.

What’s your go-to breakfast on busy mornings or before long training runs? Have you tried overnight oats? How do you make yours? Let me know in the comments below!