If you’re going to invest the time to put yourself through a productive workout, then its essential to nourish your body with the right foods both before and after a workout! Depending on what your goals are, your choices may be different. If you are trying to lose weight or put on muscle, your food choices are going to be different. Its common knowledge that to gain weight you must take in more calories than you burn. To lose weight, you must burn more than you take in, go figure… But how do we accomplish our goals. What are the best foods to eat before and after?
The first thing to figure out is when to eat. Before you workout your body needs a moderate amount of time to digest what you’ve put in it. I wouldn’t recommend eating a big meal and then going to train or do cardio. Not only do you not want to train on a full stomach but if you are doing cardio, the goal is to lose fat and burn fat not just the food you ate! A good rule of thumb is always to wait 30 minutes, minimum to 1 hour prior to exercise. Of course you have to be realistic with yourself and that always may not work out for you but do the best you can to not eat and then workout. Post workout nutrition should be eaten NO LONGER than 1 hour after exercise. If you wait eating longer than an hour after your workout then you are risking losing the muscle you have just worked so hard for or are trying to maintain! You want to use food for energy, not muscle!
Prior to hitting the gym, the best foods are in the form of carbohydrates. Yes, carbs are by no means bad for you when choosing the right ones. Choose healthy carbs such as whole wheat pastas, breads, fruits, cereals, rice or potatoes. I would stay away from any kind of energy bars!!!
Some of my favorite pre workout meal are the following:
oatmeal and egg whites
protein shake with healthy cereal
whole wheat toast or whole wheat tortilla with lean protein
potatoes with egg whites
protein shake with fruit
brown rice with lean protein
stir-fried rice with egg whites (healthy stir fried rice, of course)
A few of my Post workout meals include:
* Fruit with oatmeal and a shake
* Protein smoothie with fruit
* lean protein with a yam or sweet potato or rice
* eggs, oatmeal and fruit
* protein shake with healthy cereal and a piece of fruit (banana is my favorite!)
* protein pancakes made with oats, mixed berries, egg whites and protein powder
* Whole wheat pasta
* Whole Wheat bread or tortilla with lean protein
You can spend all day, everyday in the gym but if you don’t eat what your body needs, it defeats the purpose. Don’t just focus on obtaining perfect abs or the perfect sculpted body, but to feel good in general and make the most of the work you put in at the gym. Its a win-win situation when you eat and exercise properly, not only are you able to obtain your fitness goals sooner but you feel great and are so much more productive in every area of your life!
Focus on what you are eating and when. Get your nutrient pre and post workout nutrition on point for optimal success and results!
Pre and Post workout Nutrition is only PART of the puzzle! You need to be sure you are fueling your body with the right nutrients all day long!! Let me help you with my Ultimate Shred 365! Take all the guess work out and start SHREDDING BELLY FAT!!
