Best foods to eat before/after a workout

LisaGaimadi

I have really upped my workouts, but I feel dumb about how to eat before and after them - which resulted in my fainting after a 1/2 hour weight lifting followed by an hour long zumba class. I don't want to eat a meal before this (I hit the gym at 6, and the class at 6:30pm), but I don't know what I should be eating. If there is a better place to ask this, please point me in the right direction.
- Many thanks in advance!

dopeysmelly

I have some greek yogurt before and then a handful of almonds and a banana straight afterwards. I also eat smaller, more frequent snacks over the whole day when I work out.

You might want to have a quick something between the gym and class. Maybe something like a mini babybel, which is just enough to keep you going but won't make you want to barf.

gothchiq

Yogurt or a banana smoothie before, regular dinner of lean meat, veg, and limited starch portion about an hour afterwards.

GothyFaery

I always make sure I get in some protein after lifting. I usually go for a cup of milk and turkey pepperoni with some cheese (that's 19g of protein). If I don't work in some protein directly after lifting, I get very dizzy for hours afterwards. Maybe you could try getting a little protein before and a little after your lifting session. I don't think I would drink milk right before Zumba though, probably wouldn't sit well during all that moving around.

wibutterflymagic

So your workout is in the evening before dinner? If it's an intense workout you don't want to eat anything for about 11/2 hrs prior to the workout. I'd probably have a little something at about 3:00 or 4:00. Just a snack not a big meal. Maybe something like yogurt, fruit and granola, cottage cheese with fruit, oatmeal, protein bar etc. Afterwards carbs and protein. I work out earlier so when I'm done with my session with my trainer I have a protein smoothie made with milk along with fruit or peanut butter then a couple hours later I have my dinner which is protein and veggies.

PAtinCO

I try not to eat directly before a workout because it makes me sluggish. Since I work out after work, I usually have a snack about an hour or two before I leave.

After working out I usually eat some cottage cheese or yogurt and a piece of fruit, usually an apple.

Abstraktimus

wibutterflymagic wrote: »

So your workout is in the evening before dinner? If it's an intense workout you don't want to eat anything for about 11/2 hrs prior to the workout. I'd probably have a little something at about 3:00 or 4:00. Just a snack not a big meal. Maybe something like yogurt, fruit and granola, cottage cheese with fruit, oatmeal, protein bar etc. Afterwards carbs and protein. I work out earlier so when I'm done with my session with my trainer I have a protein smoothie made with milk along with fruit or peanut butter then a couple hours later I have my dinner which is protein and veggies.

Why?

cwolfman13

If you're fainting after an hour of zumba and 30 minutes of lifting, I'm going to suggest that your before and after workout food is probably not the overriding issue here.

That said, I usually have some Greek yogurt, mixed berries and some granola as my afternoon snack which is about 1.5 hours before my lifting sessions...and usually an apple, some almonds, and a protein shake afterwards...and then dinner in pretty short order.

ATK57

IMO, there is no such thing as the right food before and after the workout. It totally depends on what your goals are and what you are trying to achieve. When I was on a powerlifting team, we used to eat smarties and timbits (mini doughnuts) during our workouts lol.

civilizedworm

LisaGaimadi wrote: »

I have really upped my workouts, but I feel dumb about how to eat before and after them - which resulted in my fainting after a 1/2 hour weight lifting followed by an hour long zumba class. I don't want to eat a meal before this (I hit the gym at 6, and the class at 6:30pm), but I don't know what I should be eating. If there is a better place to ask this, please point me in the right direction.
- Many thanks in advance!

What I eat before a workout is much like what I eat after. Usually a large banana (or large apple), cup of yogurt and 11oz of a protein shake and 5grams of creatine. (I do RTD because of time issues.) Also, I have about 8oz of coffee as my pre workout all about a half hour to an hour before I rack my first set. The only wrinkle is that on my morning weekend workouts that in addition I have a whole milk cappuccino. I shoot for about 300 calories in my snack before/after I workout.

Holly_Roman_Empire

OP if you fainted after a zumba class, I'm going to venture a guess that you're probably not eating enough calories throughout your day at all. Are you eating your exercise calories?

As far as foods before and after a workout, there's no guideline. Just eat what you like and what you can handle.

Kekekylene

Abstraktimus wrote: »

wibutterflymagic wrote: »

So your workout is in the evening before dinner? If it's an intense workout you don't want to eat anything for about 11/2 hrs prior to the workout. I'd probably have a little something at about 3:00 or 4:00. Just a snack not a big meal. Maybe something like yogurt, fruit and granola, cottage cheese with fruit, oatmeal, protein bar etc. Afterwards carbs and protein. I work out earlier so when I'm done with my session with my trainer I have a protein smoothie made with milk along with fruit or peanut butter then a couple hours later I have my dinner which is protein and veggies.

Why?

my thoughts exactly, why?
you want carbs and protein both before and after. Slow digesting carbs before and fast digesting after.

Cherimoose

Well, fainting should be discussed with a doctor. But it's usually from low blood sugar, and eating carbs fixes that. So either have a meal or snack with carbs 1-3 hours before working out, or a small amount of fruit juice or other fast-acting carb right before, and maybe after the lifting too. No, the sugar won't make you fat.

After the workout, a normal, balanced meal is fine,

LisaGaimadi

Thank you all. Looking at my day of eating on Monday, I ate very low carb, and definitely not enough protein. I know that I was hungry prior to the Zumba class, but afraid of jumping around on too much in the tummy. I see my doctor regularly, and have had no issues with other cardio classes - just happened on this day. The timing of the class has definitely thrown me.

I appreciate the thoughtful responses and will plan on having something along the lines of a yogurt and banana before leaving my house tonight.

Thanks again!

AlinaRose17

I don't like to eat anything heavy right before a workout, especially if taking a pre-workout. I wouldn't eat anything at all within an hour to an hour and a half before hitting the gym, but before that window I would have something with some healthy carbs and protein. Avoid fat because they are slow digesting and will weigh you down during your workout and can make you feel lethargic. After your workout, you will also need both protein and carbs in the form of simple sugars (bananas are a good example) to replace glycogen. You can also go old-school and just eat a handful of gummy bears or suck down a pixie stick or two if you wanted. Your body will not store things like that as fat right after a hard workout for a window of time.

Lalalindaloo

If I'm feeling peckish I'll have a Kind Chewy with a Crunch bar. Love them and it's a good pick me up and hour or so before I work out. Just finished today's Maple Pumpkin Seed bar. Yummy.

999tigger

Banana or other carbs before. I used to adhere to protein after, but now I just make I have enough protein during the day or my dinner after. make sure you are hydrated as well.

kelly_e_montana

^^^agree on the banana or carbs before. fats are difficult to digest right before a workout. my training partner always carries around a little container of mashed sweet potatoes with maple syrup that she eats before a workout. my go-to is old-fashioned oatmeal with banana and peanut butter 2 hours before my workout. i eat bananas during various kinds of fitness comps with no stomach duress and everywhere I look others are also eating bananas to the point of it being funny.

Willbenchforcupcakes

Before depends on the time of day, from a single cup of coffee before 5am training to a full meal within an hour if I'm training after dinner. During I tend to eat a bit of candy, and after I eat what I feel like, usually protein with some simple carbs