If you’re getting that afternoon crash, find yourself chugging pre-workout before you train each day, feel bloated in the gym, or simply don’t have solid energy in your workouts – this one’s for you!
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That pre-workout meal is important to how we perform in the gym so let’s dive in and look around!
For morning exercisers, working out fasted is an option. You don’t really want to get up at 3am to eat a pre-workout meal before the early class, right?
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In this case, the night before is your pre-workout meal – make sure your last meal before bed is carb heavy with protein and give it a go. See how you feel and then adjust.
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If training fasted, it can be a good idea to crush some BCAA’s before your workout just to help avoid too much muscle breakdown. And make sure you’re following that post-workout protocol and eating a solid meal after this fasted training. Don’t stay fasted!
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For everyone else, and our afternoon peeps, ideally we’d like to see a carb and protein meal 1.5-2 hours before your workout.
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We need this, not for “fuel”, but actually for blood sugar control. We want to have your glucose levels in the optimum range so you feel good in the gym.
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If we eat too close to a workout, our levels our going to be spiked and digestion hasn’t gotten a chance to get started, leaving us uncomfortable during the WOD.⠀
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If we take the 5 pm class and haven’t eaten anything since lunch, blood sugar is going to be relatively low, energy is going to be low and we’re not going to perform our best.
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So, don’t be that guy or girl eating a banana 3 minutes before you jump into the class warm-up, but try to eat something 90-120 minutes before you come in.
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Why carb and protein and no fats
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Fats are slow digesting and are going to sit in the GI for a longer period of time and can leave us feeling sluggish or heavy, so we don’t really want these around our workouts.
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Pre-workout meal ideas
Chicken, sweet potato and rice
Ground turkey (99%), pasta, and veggies
Protein shake and oatmeal (bonus points for powder in your oats!)
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Need more ideas or looking to truly dial in your nutrition around your workouts? Give me a holla and let’s figure it out together!!
