What Should I Eat Before a Workout?
What’s worse- working out without eating and feeling shaky and weak, or working out after a big meal and feeling sluggish and sick? Luckily, you don’t have to suffer through either of these options- there is a happy middle ground!
It’s important to make sure you’re fuelled up to help you feel strong through every rep and set, and to help you recover after your workout. Carbohydrates are the main fuel for exercise and are stored as glycogen in your muscles. Your muscles can store enough glycogen for a 60-90 minute, high-intensity workout, so it’s important to keep filling the tank.
Before you hit the gym floor or group fitness room, you’ll need to top up your carbohydrate stores and hydrate your body. When we say carbs, we mean complex carbs such as wholegrains, legumes and nuts, rather than simple carbs like white bread, baked goods and unhealthy cereals.
Our top tips:
- To help avoid fatigue, load up on complex carbohydrates. They’ll help to give you energy that won’t disappear and leave you to come crashing down after half an hour.
- If you’re worried about having that uncomfortable feeling in your tummy during your workout, ditch the fibre. Fibre makes you feel full, which isn’t always the best feeling when you’re trying to perfect your roundhouse kick in a Combat class!
- Make sure you increase your fluids, especially if you’re working out in hot and humid conditions. Aim to drink an extra litre of water per hour of exercise that you do to keep yourself sufficiently hydrated!
- Try to plan your meals around when you’ll be exercising. We wouldn’t recommend eating your dinner then coming straight to a 7pm class- aim to exercise at least 2-4 hours after a main meal, and 1-2 hours after a snack. Everyone’s body is different, so some people might be more comfortable with a shorter time frame than others!
Still a bit stuck for ideas for what you should be eating before hitting the gym? Here are some of our favourite pre-exercise snack ideas!
- Banana smoothie
- Fruit and Greek yoghurt
- An English muffin with a banana
This week is your last chance to save $3.95 per week on Food Coaching thanks to our birthday sale! If you need help with your nutrition, send us an email at info@glenorchyhealthandfitness.com.au so we can book you in to chat to one of our food coaches. Hurry- sale ends Friday 31st May!
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