Pre- and Post-Workout Nutrition
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Athletes and fitness gurus are always looking for ways to improve their performance and achieve their goals. This is why knowing what to eat before and after a workout is so important.
Consuming nutrients before exercising will not only help maximize your performance and minimize muscle damage, but it will also give you the energy and strength that you need to perform.
Maybe you’re looking to gain muscle, lose weight, or simply maintain where you are. Let’s begin with a few general rules*:
Pre-workout Nutrition:
If eating 2+ hours before a workout: Try to eat a meal that will supply your body with enough energy (calories), but will also help you preserve muscle mass and aid in recovery. This meal should consist of whole, minimally processed foods such as:
Fresh fruit and raw or steamed vegetables
Grains such as quinoa, millet, buckwheat, or brown rice
Beans and legumes
If eating within an hour of your workout: Since there won’t be a ton of time to digest, you’ll want to snack on something smaller in this case. Here are some examples of great choices:
1-2 handfuls of nuts and berries
Protein shake/smoothie
Apple or banana with nut butter
Post-workout Nutrition
Post-workout is very similar to the nutritional needs of pre-workout. You’ll want to ensure you eat within 1-2 hours of your workout to promote recovery and protein synthesis, and the main focus here should be on whole, minimally processed foods. Now, how you get the nutrients into your body is solely up to you and your preferences. If you tend to not be hungry after a workout, a protein shake will suffice. But, if you’re anything like me, and are typically *very* hungry post-workout, a meal focused on minimally processed, whole foods is a good choice.
Here is where it gets interesting. The general rules still apply, but when you should eat, how much you should eat, and what you should eat are all dependent on your goals, your eating habits, and your preferences. Let’s dive into this a bit further:
When you should eat:
The general rule of 1-2 hours after exercise is a good rule of thumb for most of us. However, if you eat in a fasted state, whether by preference or because you have an early morning workout, you should be focused on replenishing your nutrients as *soon* as you can post-workout. If you ate properly pre-workout, then you have a little more time to leisure around and make a great post-workout meal.
How much you should eat:
This is all dependent on your goals, your daily activity level, and energy expenditure. You cannot go by someone else’s way of eating to gauge your own diet. The amount for each individual will vary and is best consulted by a Registered Dietician if that is something of interest to you.
What you should eat:
Typically, focusing on real foods is going to be the biggest priority here. Again, if you prefer not to eat immediately following a workout, liquid nutrition (like a protein shake) will do. But if you prefer to eat a full meal, that’s great too! Listen to your body - it’s constantly telling you what it needs!
For the most part, if you’re exercising for general health and fitness, there’s not much that you need to worry about in terms of workout nutrition, except focusing on food quality (minimally processed, whole foods) and getting enough nutrients before and after!
*If you are competing, there will be caveats to these rules. But, that is for another day (and another blog post!).
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