Pre&Post Workout - Meal or Shake?

s_hossein

I was wondering if it's important to have a shake before working out and after?

Does it have to be a meal or shake?

sjp_511

This is one of those things that seems to have many different opinions. I think you need to figure out what works for you and it could depend on the kind of workout you are doing. For example, many people don't like to have a lot of food in their stomach when doing certain workouts (such as moderate to high intensity cardio). But you may also find that working out fasted might not give you enough energy.

For post-workout there are many different products on the market for recovery. While many of them are gimmicky, after certain workouts your body may need to be refueled. It doesn't necessarily have to be in the form of a product that sells itself as a recovery shake or bar. For example, there are many people who believe that you need protein shortly after lifting weights. Some choose a protein shake, mostly for the convenience, but having some grilled chicken also gets you the protein.

jacksonpt

s_hossein wrote: »

I was wondering if it's important to have a shake before working out and after?

Does it have to be a meal or shake?

Is it important? Not in the bigger picture. Are there benefits? Maybe, but they are relatively small compared to the bigger priorities of good calorie intake, good macro balance, and good workout intensity.

I wouldn't get to bogged down in the smaller details unless you've got the bigger issues under control, but ultimately, personal preference should be your guide here.

s_hossein

sjp_511 wrote: »

This is one of those things that seems to have many different opinions. I think you need to figure out what works for you and it could depend on the kind of workout you are doing. For example, many people don't like to have a lot of food in their stomach when doing certain workouts (such as moderate to high intensity cardio). But you may also find that working out fasted might not give you enough energy.

For post-workout there are many different products on the market for recovery. While many of them are gimmicky, after certain workouts your body may need to be refueled. It doesn't necessarily have to be in the form of a product that sells itself as a recovery shake or bar. For example, there are many people who believe that you need protein shortly after lifting weights. Some choose a protein shake, mostly for the convenience, but having some grilled chicken also gets you the protein.

Thank you

cityruss

Personal preference.

Hit your calories and macro goals over the day however you see fit.

esjones12

jacksonpt wrote: »

s_hossein wrote: »

I was wondering if it's important to have a shake before working out and after?

Does it have to be a meal or shake?

Is it important? Not in the bigger picture. Are there benefits? Maybe, but they are relatively small compared to the bigger priorities of good calorie intake, good macro balance, and good workout intensity.

I wouldn't get to bogged down in the smaller details unless you've got the bigger issues under control, but ultimately, personal preference should be your guide here.

^ That!

Those benefits can also be highly dependent on what kind of activity we are talking about. An hour on the elliptical or some moderate lifting? Not going to benefit as much as a three hour obstacle course race on the side of a ski mountain. Different activates require different attention to your fuel before, during, and after exercise.

Good rule of thumb is to always try to meet your calories and macro/micro needs with real foods first. Unless you are doing high intensity stuff you are most likely just wasting money on expensive products.

s_hossein

I'm following the StrongCurves program, which is mainly strength training.

I usually have a protein shake after though.

jacksonpt

xoNatalieShaw wrote: »

You should EAT your carbs and protein about an hour before a workout. Then have an isolate protein shake like whey after your workout and eat more carbs within 30 minutes. Your body needs protein quickly after a workout, whereas eating protein an hour before will allow your body to take the protein slowly.

Generally untrue. Cals beforehand is strictly personal preference. The metabolic window is generally drastically overstated, but closer to 24 hours than the old bs 60 minutes.

jenglish712

Largely personal preference. Folks often swallow a camel and choke on a gnat when it comes to nutrition and programming.

I personally lift and do cardio fasted... because it 5 in the morning. Now we can discuss or even debate working out fasted or morning versus evening workouts... but it's when I know I can consistently make my work outs and I can't make myself eat before that. I often eat about 40 minutes after working out. Some days breakfast includes whey protein in my coffee but that will be on a day my protein goal for the day will be tough to hit.

foursirius

I like to have food about 90 minutes prior to working out. This is typically a workout shake. I shoot for a post workout meal/shake within 30 minutes of working out. I'm not really hard and fast on these rules but I try to stick to them.

Packerjohn

jacksonpt wrote: »

xoNatalieShaw wrote: »

You should EAT your carbs and protein about an hour before a workout. Then have an isolate protein shake like whey after your workout and eat more carbs within 30 minutes. Your body needs protein quickly after a workout, whereas eating protein an hour before will allow your body to take the protein slowly.

Generally untrue. Cals beforehand is strictly personal preference. The metabolic window is generally drastically overstated, but closer to 24 hours than the old bs 60 minutes.

^This. All the stuff about meal timing, recovery shakes, etc is, as jacksonpt says, BS. Is there possibly a barely measurable difference when looking at performances of elite athletes who have all parts of their diet and workout program under control. For the rest of us hitting the calories and macros is the deal.