Timing Pre- and Post- Workout Nutrition

 Timing Your Pre- and Post- Workout Nutrition

Don’t Skip the Carbs:

Carbohydrates are the fuel for your muscles and the more you use your muscles the more carbohydrates you will need to fuel them and keep them going. It is not the best to eat right before a workout due to the muscles being used but also the stomach would be digesting the food you consumed at the same time. With both of these functions occurring at the same time it can be a challenge to have optimal performance. Many experience GI discomfort when they eat too close to their workout. 

Depending on how your body tolerates food you should fuel your workout about 1-4 hours pre-workout. If you are unsure of what time you should fuel your pre-workout experiment with different times and see what time works best for you. If you are a competitive athlete, experiment with the timing of foods while you are training and not on game day.

Some pre-workout ideas that will help fuel your body include any of the following: a peanut butter and banana or peanut butter and jelly sandwich, Greek yogurt with berries, oatmeal with low-fat milk and fruit, apple and peanut or almond butter, or a handful of nuts and raisins (two-part raisins: one part nut)

Each of those suggestions includes a protein and a carbohydrate which is important. Protein is what rebuilds, repairs, and what makes the right amino acids available in your muscles. Carbohydrates are your body’s fuel. It is even more important to get both protein and carbohydrates in post-workout.

Post Workout Nutrition

Your body uses the stored energy in your body during your game or exercise and it is important to replace it once you are finished. Once your workout or exercise is over focus on getting carbohydrates and protein into your body as they help the body recover. Getting protein and carbohydrates into the body helps it replace the stored energy that was used during the game or exercise and also helps the tired muscles rebuild and repair with protein and amino acids. You should try to eat within an hour of your exercise or game.

Some post-workout meals include post-workout recovery smoothie (or post-workout smoothie made with low-fat milk and fruit), low-fat chocolate milk, turkey on a whole-grain wrap with veggies, or low-fat yogurt with berries.

Source: https://www.eatright.org/fitness/physical-activity/exercise-nutrition/timing-your-pre-and-post-workout-nutrition