 A lot of people ask me about their pre and post workout meal routines. Unfortunately there are a lot of myths around food and exercise that have many individuals lost or wondering why they can’t see results. The biggest myths I see is carb loading before a race and that post workout shakes are necessary to build muscle. Both of these could not be further from the truth.
When we look at working out and eating in accordance to our workouts we are usually looking for one of two things: to lose weight or increasing muscle mass. Each of these requires a little bit of a different approach but both are equally attainable. Pre workout- ‘carb loading’ or eating processed carbs only increases your blood sugar, causing a dip in energy shortly after. Your body always uses carbohydrates for quick fuel and if it’s constantly relying on it, it can’t get to the fat stores where real energy is burned. Pre workout, which falls about 1 hour to ½ an hour prior to activity is best done with a small amount of carbs and a higher intake of fats. A great option is ½ a banana with an all natural nut butter. This gives you a small boost of that quick energy from the banana and the sustained fuel from the fats in the nuts. I personally don’t worry too much about pre workout fuel. As long as you aren’t hungry, and have plenty of energy to workout you really don’t need anything additional to get your body performing. Post workout- Many post workout shakes are loaded with artificial sweeteners which cause things like bloat, gas and headaches. They are not necessary for refueling and your body doesn’t process them as well as normal food. During activity we burn much of our glycogen (energy) and break down our muscles which require protein for rebuild. I always suggest refueling with some high quality carbs after, combined with a protein to help build those muscles. This can be a healthy leftover meal, a breakfast of eggs and sweet potato, or one of the smoothies from The Smoothie Reset. The suggested time limit for refueling is between ½ hour - 1 hour after a workout & that’s usually when you’re hungry anyways! Remember that no matter how you are fueling your workout it needs to be done from a whole food approach. Your body needs the nutrients to function optimally to repair and restore. The saying is true you can’t out work a bad diet!
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