For those of you who are counting, the June LSAT is 12 days away. LSAT test day is near enough that you may have begun wondering what kind of snack you should bring. The most important thing about your LSAT test day food consumption is timing: the brain uses up to a fifth of your energy, so you should be sure to take in plenty of calories before the LSAT. This doesn’t mean, however, that you should eat a big lunch right before the test; a food coma doesn’t bode well for your performance on the first couple sections of the LSAT. Get in the habit of eating a big late breakfast or early lunch; this will give you fuel to get through the LSAT without bogging you down. After that, try some of these snack suggestions for LSAT test day.
Energy bars. Yes, they may look and taste like Cookie Monster’s morning constitutional. Despite this, they have several advantages. They’re small and come with a wrapper, which makes them an easy fit in your LSAT test day Ziploc baggie. They’ll also give you readily available fuel for the last couple sections of the LSAT.
Fruit. Don’t let it make a mess in your LSAT baggie. Besides that, why not bite into a juicy apple on your 15-minute break? It’s better to consume your fruit as fruit than as juice. Juice functions as more of just a sugar hit, and you don’t want to crash from a sugar high during section 5 of the LSAT (or, even worse, during the writing sample).
Coffee. This discussion goes for all caffeinated beverages. The rule for LSAT test day is: do what you normally do. If you drink coffee normally, absolutely do not deprive yourself on LSAT test day. That would be insane. On the other hand, if you don’t normally drink coffee, you may be thinking that it might give you that extra little boost on LSAT test day. Don’t. Unless you want your pencil to slip repeatedly out of your shaking hand as you struggle to fill in the scantron bubble, don’t. Be wary of energy drinks and shots, too. Whatever exotic ingredients they may tout, the most common one is tons and tons of caffeine.
Caffeinated candy. Yes, it exists. If you’re a true addict, get it however you can. I’ll stick to coffee, thank you very much.
A raw egg. Just imagine the looks on your fellow LSAT test-takers’ faces as you crack one against the water fountain and slurp it down. Plus, it’s rich in protein. I take no responsibility for any health consequences — try at your own risk.
Beer. This isn’t one for during the LSAT, but for after. Reward yourself with a frothy one, or several. Whether the LSAT went well or you’re sure you’re going to cancel because you read every rule of every LSAT logic game backwards, you deserve it. If, on any given day, your shakes don’t stop until your first drink, it’s OK to have one before the test too. But that also means you have some bigger issues to deal with than the LSAT.