To Eat or Not To Eat…Before Exercise – that is the question we hear often from people not only following Chris’ Carb Cycling program in his book Choose to Lose
but those just working out to stay fit or following their own dietary plan.
The good news is there really isn?t a right or wrong answer to this question! ?Well, that?s helpful,? you?re probably saying. But it?s true. Whether or not you eat before a workout depends on your body, when you exercise, and how long you exercise. Here are some basic guidelines:
- If you exercise first thing in the morning, you can get away with not eating anything or you can eat a light snack. Some ideas: a banana, a piece of bread (plain or toasted, and whole wheat, of course!), a bit of natural peanut butter, etc.
- If you workout later in the day, it?s probably best to wait 30-45 minutes after eating before you exercise, and even longer if your last meal was on the heavy side.
- If your workout is longer than 60 minutes, it?s a good idea to eat a light snack before exercising because you don?t want your body to run out of energy before your workout is finished.
- What works best for me is to split my meal in two and eat half before I exercise and half after I?m finished. That way I have some extra energy for my workout.
One caution: Some people experience nausea or, shall we say, ?intestinal distress? if they eat before exercising, so if you choose to eat pre-workout, start small and gauge how your body reacts.
And the most important thing to remember is to listen to your body. Figuring out what works best for you might take a little bit of trial and error, but once you figure it out, you?ll be good to go. Literally.
78 Responses
I would also say it depends on your goal. If you are training for a sport, then performance is the goal and you should eat before. If you are just looking to drop weight then les food before may be best.
Thanks for clarifying! How many calories would you suggest to intake before a workout? I know it depends on duration of the workout but…
Is say: a fruit, cereal and toast to much for an hour workout? At high intensity?
You guys rock, my only two workout enthusiast that I listen to.
In carb cycling we really don’t count calories, we count portion sizes. Learn more about how we put together our meals here (there’s an awesome graphic at the end of the post): https://heidipowell.net/4514/carb-confusion/. And what you eat before you work out depends on what your stomach can handle – some people can’t eat certain things before working out while others can eat anything. Hope that helps! 🙂
Thanks for the information! What to eat during an exercise like a triathlon? I’m preparing for one and I’m just not sur what to eat during the triathlon!
There’s not really a one-size-fits-all answer to your question because some people can eat anything while exercising, while others can’t eat certain foods. It also depends on how long your triathlon is. Of course you’ll want to stay hydrated – a low sugar electrolyte replacement drink is an option if you’ll be exercising longer than an hour, and you might also want to eat some carbs. I’d suggest doing a “practice” triathlon and eat what you’re planning on eating during your triathlon to see if it will work for you. Good luck! 🙂
When you say eat a light snack before workout if you do later in the day, that’s my case. What kind of light snack? Because if I have 5 meals, my last one would be after I workout. And what do you mean split the meal? Thank you
Thank you Heidi this helps a lot! And that totally makes sense!
It has always puzzled me, too. I see so many articles that tell you to make sure you get protein withing 30 minutes after your workout. Most of the time I workout first thing in the morning, so it is not a problem for me.
Anyway, thanks for clearing it up.
Tina Francis-
1200 calories is FAR too few calories, especially if you are working out. I use to skip meals in college and I looked like a fluffy marshmellow. Now I consume ar I consume 2300 per day of clean meals and I look smaller and more muscular than ever! You need to eat – the body isn’t designed to run on 1200 calories!
Calories, just as anything else are not a one size fits all. I determined my calorie intake with my trainer and my Dr. For some 1200 calories is just fine. Caloric intake depends on a variety of factors.
Yes! I’m the same way!! I agree. The more I eat the right foods- the more I trim up.
A lot depends on the individual body: current weight, age, metabolism. I agree with Beth. If I eat more than 1200 calories daily, I will most certainly gain weight.
I love how you say listen to your body. Great advice.
My biggest dilemma is the calories i eat versus the ones burned, can you explain a little bit about the difference?
I like to work out before I eat, because no matter if I eat a small snack and wait for the 30 min. When I work out it seems to repeat on me, so it just better for me to work out before I eat.
I do have one question now. I’m trying to get some exercising but my time management is tuff. I work full time, full time dad/husband plus going to school which takes up the rest of my time. How can I change my way of thinking to try to get 30 min in.
Try one of our 9-minute missions!
Take the stairs instead of elevator, park further away. Do 100 jumping jacks. Take about 2-3 mins tops.