Knowing what to eat before and after working out is crucial to the success of your fitness goals. Food is fuel when it comes to exercise but only if it’s the right kind. It’s true that you can’t out-exercise a bad diet, but instead of looking at it as you exercising for your next meal look at it as eating for your next workout.
Before a workout you want to follow these simple rules before reaching for a snack:
1. Eat familiar foods
Don’t go try the new sushi place down the road before going to the gym. Keep the food simple and bland to avoid stomach aches and other bodily functions not welcome during a workout.
2. Complex carbs
What makes them complex you ask? Well, a complex carb is usually wheat based, and unlike white breads and pastas, they don’t burn off as quickly giving you ample energy throughout your workout.
3. Low fiber
Do I really need to explain this one? As the boys at my gym would call it “crop dusting” is frowned upon in the gym where it already smells like sweat and dirty socks. Something like oatmeal would be a green light food though because although it has fiber, it slowly releases carbs into your bloodstream keeping your energy level consistent.
4. Protein packed.
Protein helps build those muscles that make you look like the toned models in shape and the fitness section of Cosmopolitan. That, and Photoshop. Protein is essential to have pre-workout though because it helps build muscle by repairing the muscle you tear during a workout. Forget all the rumors you hear about girls getting too big and how protein is for boys, because it is in fact for girls, too.
Good pre-workout foods: Almond butter on whole wheat toast, yogurt with granola on top, veggies with hummus, cereal low in sugar and fiber with skim milk, chicken breast with whole grain rice, egg whites and oatmeal.
After a workout, you want to focus on replenishing your body mainly with proteins for muscle recovery and growth. The most important thing to replenish is your glycogen storage, which is the energy your body stores for energy, and you do that with complex carbs.
1. Protein for growth
Protein not only helps build enzymes that help your body adapt to high endurance exercises, but it also has amino acids that aid in muscle growth, which isn’t just for guys. Girls need protein for muscle growth to stayed toned and tight just as guys need more protein to help their muscles grow.
2. Carbs for energy
After a workout you should focus on fast absorbing carbs to replenish energy quickly as stated above. Carbs replenish glycogen so you want to eat carbs that have a high glycemic index, which just means they absorb quickly. Bananas are a great example of this because they get stored as energy and not fat.
Good post-workout foods: Oatmeal, eggs, chocolate milk (low in sugar), baked potato, powdered protein shake, and bananas.