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What to eat before and after your workout

Clem Duranseaud

Updated: Jan 6


Pre and post workout is important

Proper nutrition is essential to maximize the effects of your workouts. Eat too close to your workout and you will feel bloated and not energized. Eat too far from your workout and you may feel too drained to give it your all. We all have different nutrition habits according to our lifestyle and nutrition strategies will vary for each of us.




What to eat before your workout


The goal of your pre workout meal is to ensure one thing only: that you feel freaking amazing during the workout. Pre workout nutrition will vary greatly between individuals, if you are unsure about it, here’s a good place to start.


1. Drink water.

Half a litre will do the trick. You don’t need to chug it down right as you step in the gym, just have it throughout the hour preceding your workout.


2. Eat a MINIMUM of 1 hour before your workouts.

You want to feel fresh and energized! You don’t want to be digesting food as you workout so don’t eat too close to your

workouts. If you have no other option, eat a piece of fruit before your workout, although this should be in in emergency scenario only.


3. Eat easily digestible foods.

Fruits and veggies are the best. Small amounts of protein, fats and grains are ok as well. Avoid junk foods at all cost because they will cause an energy drop during your workout.


4. Leafy greens are good but not mandatory. I

t's always best practice to have some greens on your plate before a workout, but I know that sometimes life gets in the way. Try to incorporate them if possible but it's no big deal if they aren't in your pre workout meal.


5. Never eat to the point of feeling full when you eat before a workout.

If you feel full, odds are you will still be digesting most of your food during the workout and that will take energy away from the actual working out.


6. My go to if I'm squeezed for time is dark chocolate (90% cacao). I've written another article dedicated to chocolate here so you see my reasoning.

These protein balls below are fantastic to have if you are short on time before a workout. Check out the recipe here.


Chocolate coconut protein ball
Chocolate coconut protein ball

Can you do fasted workouts?

The simple answer is if it works for your lifestyle and you feel like you get good workouts that way then yes, absolutely.


I have many clients that train at 6am that don’t eat before their workouts and they crush it every time.


Similarly I have mid day clients that cannot eat before their workouts due to hectic schedules and they also crush it. If you find yourself low on energy during fasted workouts then it's probably not the best way to go for you.







What to eat after a workout


Eat within 30-90 minutes of your workout.


The reason I recommend this is more to form a habit.

One good workout, one healthy meal. Done and dusted.


When you wait too long after your workout, you might not be in “healthy mode" anymore and eating a proper meal may not be a high priority.


Think about is this way: you finish to workout at 4pm but decide to wait until 8pm to eat with friends for dinner. Instead of eating a good meal with greens, lean protein and healthy fats you hit up a restaurant. Even though you order a healthy meal, it won't come close to what you could of eaten right after your workout.


If you are not going home right after the workout just pack something healthy to eat right after.


Unless you are a bodybuilder a few weeks out of a show, it doesn't really matter if you eat right after your workout or not.


Zen bowl post workout nutrition
Zen bowls are a great post workout meal

You can eat a larger meal after your workouts because you need to replenish your energy. Eating a combination of protein, healthy fats, veggies and fruit. If you are very hungry you can add a portion of grains as well. My favourite grains to eat after a workout are brown rice, quinoa and steel cut oats.


After your post workout meal, you should feel good, not too full but content.





The anabolic window


The anabolic window is the idea that your body uses protein better right after a workout. With it comes the belief that waiting too long after a tough gym session will force your muscles to eat themselves up to get the required amino acids and thus hinder your hard earned gains.


The research on this is murkey at best. Nutrient timing (when you eat) is probably one of the last details of workout nutrition you should focus on. Anecdotally, I have eaten hours after my workouts in the past, and my muscles are still here.


Your energy and focus are much better spent on nutrient quality and consistently eating the right stuff. Like I said above, eating something healthy right after a workout is good habit to get into, but not because of the so called anabolic window.


Protein shakes yay or nay?

I only recommend protein shakes on a few occasions.


  1. If you are trying to gain weight as a means to increase your total calorie intake throughout the day. Make sure to have either a piece of fruit or some other carb source with your protein shake as this will help your body use up the protein better.


  2. If you are short on time and won’t have time to eat your post workout meal. This ties in with my previous point of eating something healthy right after a workout. If you don't have time to eat something, drink it. A good post workout shake can have fruits, protein powder, some leafy greens and your choice of water, coconut water or non dairy milk (keeps better than milk in my opinion).

  3. If you can't get enough protein through your diet. This could be due to food intolerances or preferences. Keep in mind that protein powders are a form of highly processed food and should be treated as such. I used to take a ton of it (4-6 scoops a day) but now have stopped entirely for this purpose. That is not to say I will never do it again, but for the moment I can get all my calories and proteins via whole foods.



The infamy of the “I earned it" mentality


Too many people go to the gym, crush an amazing workout and negate all its effects by eating junk food right after under the false assumption of them having “earned it”. Your cheat meals do not belong right after your workouts. Period.


If you’ve been following me for a while you know that I am all about flexible dieting and encourage cheat meals. But having them after your workout is not the right thing to do. After a good workout, your body is very receptive to the nutrients you put in it.


Treat your body to a good meal. Your body has earned to right to have healthy, nutrient rich foods. Then have your cheat meals with your friends and family and have a good time.


Conclusion


Eating the right foods around your workouts does have an impact on your success. I recommend sticking to the similar pre and post workouts meals that you enjoy. This will make the whole process smoother and easier.


Your pre workout meal should make you feel energized for the session ahead, focus on food that are easily digestible.


The goal of your post workout meal is to replenish the calories used and provide enough protein to start repairing your muscles. Keep in mind that both these functions are done with your other meals as well. You will not top up all of you calories or protein in that one meal.


As always, prioritize whole, unprocessed foods and remember to get at least 1.2 g of protein per kg of body weight.


Enjoy the gains!


Clem


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© 2023 by Clem Fitness.

Clem fitness online personal trainer

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