Pre & Post Workout Nutrition Guide

Making smart choices about how you fuel your body before and after activity can have a significant impact on your performance and recovery. I’m always surprised when friends and clients tell me they do not eat anything before a workout or how long they wait to refuel after a workout. There is a lot of confusion and misinformation about how to properly fuel an active body, so l want to simplify it a bit for you guys.

You don’t necessarily need any fancy or expensive supplements, but for some folks having a protein drink or bar is the easiest thing to get in before or after a workout. Real food is always going to be ideal, but I’ll share some good products I’m loving when you’re running short on time or energy.

While individual needs differ based on age, gender, and intensity of workout; here are some basic nutrition guidelines that apply to most.

BEFORE

Fueling up before a workout is essential to the quality of your workout. The belief that exercising on an empty stomach will increase fat loss is just false- sorry!  And studies actually show that proper pre-exercise fuel aids in fat loss.  If your body has adequate energy on board before your workout you will be able to perform with greater intensity, endurance, and strength AKA you will kick more bootay in the gym because you will have the energy to push yourself harder!! It is so important to top off glycogen stores (glycogen is simply the stored form of glucose in the liver) to help prevent fatigue.

It also helps prevent hypoglycemia (ever feel light-headed during a workout?), settles your stomach (absorbs gastric juices), and spares your muscles.

YOU:  “OK, but Alix I take 6am spin classes and I’m not hungry that early in the morning” 

ME: “Tough 😉 Try 1/2 banana and some water”

Kidding…sorta.  I understand everyone’s food tolerance before a workout is different, so experiment with what works for you.  If you’re noticing fatigue early into a workout chances are you needed ~15-30 grams of carbs before that spin class. Try it!  If you’re totally fine exercising on an empty stomach that’s cool too (unless you’re doing it simply to achieve fat loss and like I said you won’t accomplish that with fasted cardio!)  Rant over…

Pre-Workout Nutrition Tips

• Focus on easily digestible carbohydrates
• Lower fat foods for easy digestion
• Whole foods are best
• Hydrate with water
• Cardio: mostly carbohydrates 30-60 minutes prior to activity
• Strength: carbohydrates with some protein 1-2 hours prior to activity

Pre-Workout Fuel Ideas

• Banana or any piece of whole fruit
• Energy bites like this recipe or this
• 1/4 c dried fruit
• 1/2-1 bar (Rx, Perfect, Lara are my current favs)
• Homemade energy bar (these sound bomb)
• Oatmeal + berries
• Greek yogurt (or my fav Siggi’s) + berries
• Homemade muffin like this + almond butter
• Apple slices + cheese stick OR almond butter
• Carrots + hummus
• 1-2 slices Ezekiel cinnamon raisin bread + peanut butter + dash cinnamon and chia seeds (add sliced banana if longer workout)
• 

AFTER

Strategic refueling after a workout is crucial in decreasing muscle soreness, building muscle, improving immune function, and increasing bone mass. Depleted muscles are primed to refuel most rapidly during the first hour after exercise, but will continue to take up carbohydrates for the next 24 hours. Timing needs will depend on your exercise training schedule. Athletes training 1-2 times a day will need to refuel more quickly after exercise than a recreational exerciser working out 3-4 days a week.

Post-Workout Nutrition Tips

• Intense activity aim to refuel within 30 minutes
• Aim for a mix of quality protein (15-25 grams) + carbohydrate
• More protein is NOT necessary (>25 grams not absorbed)
• Whole foods are ideal (but I’m also a fan of bars when in a pinch)
• Rehydrate properly with fluids
  • Water of course, but electrolytes if you sweat a lot and/or workout >60-90 minutes
    • P.S. coconut water is a good source of potassium, but not sodium. So if you have excessive sweat loss you might need a sports drink that contains salt!
  • Also try adding collagen protein to your coffee or smoothie post exercise to reach your protein needs
  • I also like adding this to my water during the day when working out hard
  • Studies show that beet juice may accelerate recovery and reduce muscle pain

Post-Workout Recovery Ideas

• Chocolate milk or I’m obsessed with this drink!
• Hard boil egg avocado toast
• Protein pancakes + almond butter + slices banana (this recipe is yummy!)
• Sweet potato bowl + avocado + a fried egg or 2 + arugula
• Peanut butter + banana protein smoothie (see this post on how to build the perfect smoothie)
• Cottage cheese or Greek yogurt + fresh fruit + granola (my fav)
• Tuna or egg salad + crackers (loving these right now)
• Recovery Smoothie:  1 cup Greek yogurt + 1/2 to 1 cup frozen blueberries + ½ cup pomegranate or cherry juice + 1/2 cup coconut water + ice
•  Protein bars (<10 g sugar, 10-20 grams protein, minimal ingredients) I’m loving Rx, Perfect, KIND Protein, and Lara bars

It is important to remember that everyone’s nutritional needs are different, so experiment with a variety foods and find what works best for you!

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