What Should I Eat the Morning of a Triathlon?

This is a question I get a lot and definitely one that I think many athletes tend to over think. Once you get to the morning of the race, your glycogen stores should be fully stocked from tapering and eating a normal carbohydrate rich diet in the days leading up. The most common mistake I see is not eating at least 1.5 hours before. It drives me nuts to see athletes spooning oatmeal into their faces in the transition area half an hour before the gun goes off. You don't want your body wasting energy digesting food when it should all be used for swimming. Not to mention this risk of stomach cramps. I can't even buy into the practice of slamming a gel on the race line. You're just confusing your body from the task at hand.

As to what you eat, I don't think it needs to be much. As I mentioned, your body is fully stocked from resting. You just need to get rid of those hunger pains with a low fat meal that your body doesn't have to work too hard to digest and that your familiar with (ie. have tested before in training). Below are some suggestions. The real eating can begin for the longer races when you start burning through energy stores again during the race.

From Nutrition for Sport and Exercise and Performance (2019)