Advantages of Dates for Athletes & Training

September 25, 2026

Walk into any running club or cycling café and you will see the same thing in back pockets: gels, chews and bars with ingredient lists as long as the route. Some athletes have quietly gone the other way. They carry dates.

This is not nostalgia. Dates happen to deliver the exact thing endurance and team-sport athletes need most, fast carbohydrate, in a form with one ingredient. This guide covers where dates fit across a training week, how many to eat, where they fall short, and how they compare on cost with commercial sports fuel.

Carbohydrate Is the Currency of Training

Carbohydrate is the main fuel for moderate to high-intensity exercise. Your muscles store it as glycogen, and when those stores run low, pace drops and effort feels harder.

Sports nutrition guidelines from bodies such as the American College of Sports Medicine and the International Society of Sports Nutrition broadly recommend:

Training Phase	Carbohydrate Guideline	What That Means for a 70kg Athlete
1 to 4 hours before	1 to 4g per kg of body weight	70g to 280g, usually as a meal plus snack
During exercise over about 60 minutes	30 to 60g per hour	30g to 60g per hour
During exercise over about 2.5 hours	Up to 90g per hour, using mixed sugars	Up to 90g per hour
Rapid recovery (next session within 8 hours)	About 1 to 1.2g per kg per hour for the first 4 hours	70g to 84g per hour

Dates can cover a meaningful share of every one of those phases.

What Dates Bring to an Athlete's Diet

Fast, Mixed Carbohydrate

One Medjool date provides roughly 16g to 18g of carbohydrate. In soft, fully ripe dates, most of the sugar is a mix of glucose and fructose.

That mix matters. Glucose and fructose are absorbed through different transporters in the gut. Research on "multiple transportable carbohydrates" shows that combining them lets athletes absorb more carbohydrate per hour than glucose alone, which is why many commercial sports drinks and gels now use a glucose and fructose blend. Dates deliver a natural version of it.

Potassium

Dates contain about 650mg to 700mg of potassium per 100g. Potassium supports muscle contraction and fluid balance. Three Medjool dates give you around 500mg.

Magnesium

About 40mg to 55mg per 100g. Magnesium plays a role in energy metabolism and muscle function.

A Short, Simple Ingredient List

Plain dates contain dates. No flavourings, no preservatives, no sweeteners. For athletes in tested sport, supplements carry a risk of contamination with banned substances, which is why anti-doping bodies advise using only batch-tested products. A whole food like a date is a different category of risk from an unregulated supplement.

Where Dates Fall Short (and How to Fix It)

Truth be told, dates are not a perfect sports food. Three limits are worth knowing.

Limitation	Why It Matters	Simple Fix
Very low in sodium	You lose sodium in sweat; dates will not replace it	Add a pinch of salt, salted nuts, or an electrolyte drink
Fibre content	About 7g per 100g can upset some stomachs during hard efforts	Eat them 45 to 60 minutes before hard sessions; test in training first
Low in protein	Recovery needs protein as well as carbohydrate	Pair with milk, Greek yoghurt or a protein shake

Gut training matters. If you plan to use dates in a race, practise with them in long training sessions first. Your gut adapts to carbohydrate intake during exercise, and race day is not the day to try something new.

A Sport-by-Sport Fuelling Matrix

Different sports place different demands on your fuel. Here is how dates fit.

Sport or Session	When to Eat Dates	Suggested Amount	Best Variety Type
5k to 10k run	45 to 60 min before	1 to 2 Medjool	Soft, fast-digesting
Half marathon or long run	Before, and every 30 to 45 min during	2 Medjool before; 1 to 2 small dates every 30 to 45 min	Soft, easy to chew on the move
Long cycle ride (2 hours plus)	Every 30 to 40 min	30g to 60g carbohydrate per hour, about 2 to 4 Medjool	Soft, individually wrapped or pitted
Football, rugby, hockey	Pre-match and at half-time	2 before; 1 to 2 at half-time	Soft or light, quick to eat
Strength and gym sessions	30 to 60 min before	2 dates with some protein	Any; firmer dates are fine
Double training days	Between sessions	3 to 4 dates with a protein source	Any
Training while fasting in Ramadan	At iftar and suhoor	2 to 3 at iftar, more with suhoor meal	Dense, satisfying varieties

For fasting athletes, our guide to the best dates for energy boosts during Ramadan in the UK covers timing around iftar and suhoor.

Worked Example: A 70kg Runner's Long Sunday Run

Two hours before: porridge with banana and 2 chopped dates (about 80g carbohydrate)
During a 2-hour run: about 45g carbohydrate per hour, or roughly 3 Medjool per hour, taken in halves every 20 minutes, with water and an electrolyte tab
Within an hour after: a large glass of milk and 3 dates with a handful of salted nuts

What the Research on Natural Fuel Shows

Direct research on dates and sports performance is still limited. The closest evidence comes from studies on dried fruit.

A 2012 study in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition compared raisins with commercial sport chews in 11 trained male runners. After 80 minutes of steady running, they completed a 5km time trial. Both raisins and the sport chews improved performance compared with water only, and there was no meaningful difference between the two.

Raisins are not dates, and one small study is not proof. But it supports the idea that dried fruit can match commercial chews for performance during endurance exercise. A 2025 review in Food described dates as a promising functional food for athletic performance and recovery. Even so, human trials that test dates directly in athletes remain few.

Cost Comparison: Dates vs Commercial Sports Fuel

Fuel	Carbohydrate per Serving	Typical Cost per Serving	Cost per 25g Carbohydrate
Energy gel	20g to 30g	Often £1 to £2.50	About £1 to £2.50
Sport chews (per pack)	About 40g to 50g	Often £2 to £3	About £1 to £1.90
Roots Athlete & Gym Bundle dates	About 25g in 37g of dates	About £0.74	About £0.74

Date cost is based on the bundle price of £26.99 for 1.35kg at the time of writing. Gel and chew prices vary widely by brand and pack size.

Dates are not free. They are, in most cases, cheaper per gram of carbohydrate than branded gels, and you are not paying for packaging, flavouring and marketing.

Choosing Varieties for Training

Medjool: soft and fast to eat. The go-to before and during sessions. For more detail, read why Medjool dates are the ultimate pre-workout fuel.
Sukri: light, golden and easy to digest. A good post-training option.
Ajwa: dense and less sweet. Better a couple of hours before, or as part of an everyday diet.

A UK Weather Tip

Soft dates firm up in the cold. On a January long run, keep a few in an inside pocket so they stay easy to chew. In summer, a small zip bag stops them getting sticky in a saddlebag.

The Roots Athlete & Gym Bundle

The Roots Athlete & Gym Bundle brings together Ajwa, Medjool and Sukri in three 450g packs for £26.99, saving £4.98 on buying them separately. That is roughly a month of training fuel for someone eating two to three dates on training days.

Every Roots date is unpolished and unglazed, with no added sugar or preservatives. UK delivery takes 2 to 4 working days. Explore more on the Roots Products homepage, and for all-day eating around training, read how premium dates support healthy energy levels throughout the day. For recovery snacks with added protein, try our 5 easy stuffed date recipes for healthy snacking.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are dates good for athletes?

Yes. Dates provide fast carbohydrate from a natural mix of glucose and fructose, plus potassium and magnesium. They work well before, during and after training when paired with sodium and protein where needed.

How many dates should I eat during a long run or ride?

Aim for 30g to 60g of carbohydrate per hour for efforts over an hour. That is roughly 2 to 4 Medjool dates per hour, taken in small amounts every 20 to 30 minutes.

Can dates replace energy gels?

For many athletes in training, yes. A small study found dried fruit matched sport chews for performance. For races, test dates thoroughly in training first, and add electrolytes because dates contain almost no sodium.