Eat or not to eat prior to morning workout?

amdawells

Curious ... what's your pre-workout appetite like? Should you eat before a morning workout?

strong_curves

Since I work out at 5 am I don't eat before. I'm not that hungry that early anyway. I think its a matter of personal preference if you want to eat before working out or not.

tjohnoconnor

I workout at 5 am and my appetite is not very good, but I eat a little something anyway. Like 1/2 of a protein bar. A real protein bar, not a carb bar. I do this primarily because I prefer my blood sugar not to spike or drop. Drops or spikes in blood sugar levels can affect metabolic rates and the ability to burn fat effectively. It still comes down to personal choice I suppose. For all the data to show why you should eat, there ill be data to show that it is not important. Pay close attention to your own body. If you are working out and feel hunger pangs you should have ate something before starting.

ahamm002

It depends. If your goal is fat burning then studies have shown your best bet is to just workout before eating anything. Whereas, if your goal is performance then you should probably have some liquid calories or something light to give you energy.

cwolfman13

You should do whatever floats your boat.

RuNaRoUnDaFiEld

I like to do both, I like to add in a fasting workout at least once a week.

MelissaH0910

I'm usually in the gym by 4:15 or 4:30 a.m. and I just don't have an appetite that early. If I do eat first, it's something small like 1/2 a banana or a few crackers with peanut butter. Anything more would require getting up earlier, and that ain't gonna happen.

jetortola

For me, it depends what time I wake up. If I get up early (@5:30am) I just have a very small glass of orange juice with my iron supplement, and then eat breakfast right afterwards (I also only workout for 30 mins). If I don't get up until later, I have to eat first, or I'll get light headed.

avskk

I work out on my lunch break and I've found that I do better if I have a little breakfast in the morning. If I'm just doing cardio I'll have something small and carb-y (bagel thin or half an English muffin with cheese), if I'm doing weights I'll have something small and protein-y (protein shake, Greek yogurt with fruit, hard-boiled egg and turkey bacon). I'm not really a breakfast person but I want good gym performance, so this is my balancing act.

ETA: I'll also often have a mid-morning snack, and I use that to load up on fats/protein with an eye to workout fuel, too. Almonds and Slim Jims feature prominently here.

cajuntank

cwolfman13 wrote: »

You should do whatever floats your boat.

^^ This. (linked is to Brad Shoenfeld's latest study) http://www.lookgreatnaked.com/blog/my-new-study-on-fasted-cardio-and-fat-loss-take-home-points/

"A single study is simply a piece in an evidentiary puzzle and can never considered the final word on a topic. What I do think is clear from our study, however, is that if there are any benefits from fasted cardio (still highly equivocal), they would be minor at best. So the best advice for those who are simply looking to get lean is to focus on total energy and macronutrient balance; whether you perform cardio fasted or fed should depend entirely on preference."

So one could extrapolate that whether its cardio or weights or whatever exercise...do whatever you prefer doing.

micheledemetroff

I work out at 530. I have half a banana and 1/2 tbsp of nut butter (or 8 nuts). It fits in my macros for the day. I have worked out fasted and my energy isn't as good. I lift weights and then 30 mins of cardio.

amdawells

I truly appreciate all the input! It's interesting to see what everyone is doing. I'm still trying to figure out what's right for me & I've tried both actually!
My workouts are cardio right now & primarily in the a.m. after I take my kids to school. (I'm on week 5 of Insanity.) In the beginning I didn't eat anything before my workout & everything was fine. As time went on I noticed I was more fatigued. Now eating a bowl of oatmeal or having eggs an hr. beforehand makes a big difference in my endurance.
I still feel I should have a smoothie afterwards but if I have a big breakfast beforehand, should I have something high calorie/high protein after? As it is I'm having issues with eating enough calories for the day & I rarely go over.

Albertrud

amdawells wrote: »

I truly appreciate all the input! It's interesting to see what everyone is doing. I'm still trying to figure out what's right for me & I've tried both actually!
My workouts are cardio right now & primarily in the a.m. after I take my kids to school. (I'm on week 5 of Insanity.) In the beginning I didn't eat anything before my workout & everything was fine. As time went on I noticed I was more fatigued. Now eating a bowl of oatmeal or having eggs an hr. beforehand makes a big difference in my endurance.
I still feel I should have a smoothie afterwards but if I have a big breakfast beforehand, should I have something high calorie/high protein after? As it is I'm having issues with eating enough calories for the day & I rarely go over.

High protein/carb post workout will help you recover. If you don't feel sore the next day then no you won't need it.
With insanity being a runners workout, high cardio you'll get less benefit then if you lift.

Take note of your own body and change when you need it.

SkinnyMiss053

Depends from person to person. Personally I eat before I work out otherwise I feel like I can't get through it. I just eat a medium sized breakfast so that I don't get sick while exercising hehehe.

Meganthedogmom

Just depends. I'm usually not hungry at 4:30am, so typically during the week I'll wait 'till after to eat, and that way I tend to be less hungry throughout the morning. If I happen to be hungry that early, I'll eat something before. On Saturdays I usually make breakfast first, and sometimes feel I have more energy that way.

zooeyd

Eat for energy!! My preworkout is 1cup white rice, 1/2 cup beans and egg sooooo good!!

Lizzy622

I don't have time to let my stomach settle so I just have a cup of black coffee or water and eat breakfast when I get back.

KatieMusselwhite92113

I don't eat until after!

mandykent111

I prefer to take my morning supps then workout on an empty stomach. My friend competes and she is all about her fasted cardio sessions. If you can do it, then I would recommend it.

SideSteel

ahamm002 wrote: »

It depends. If your goal is fat burning then studies have shown your best bet is to just workout before eating anything. Whereas, if your goal is performance then you should probably have some liquid calories or something light to give you energy.

I disagree with this. Schoenfeld and Krieger recently posted a meta analysis that basically showed no differences between fasted and fed training.

SideSteel

cajuntank wrote: »

cwolfman13 wrote: »

You should do whatever floats your boat.

^^ This. (linked is to Brad Shoenfeld's latest study) http://www.lookgreatnaked.com/blog/my-new-study-on-fasted-cardio-and-fat-loss-take-home-points/

"A single study is simply a piece in an evidentiary puzzle and can never considered the final word on a topic. What I do think is clear from our study, however, is that if there are any benefits from fasted cardio (still highly equivocal), they would be minor at best. So the best advice for those who are simply looking to get lean is to focus on total energy and macronutrient balance; whether you perform cardio fasted or fed should depend entirely on preference."

So one could extrapolate that whether its cardio or weights or whatever exercise...do whatever you prefer doing.

^ That.

lemurcat12

If I'm running about 7 miles or less and doing it first thing in the morning on a weekday I don't eat anything. If I lift or do a class or ride my bike to work I tend to do it immediately before work (rather than returning home afterwards) and a bit later in the morning, so always eat first. Also, I dislike lifting or bike riding on an empty stomach and am less likely to be bothered by eating too soon before as with the running.

On the weekends I prefer to eat before running too and just wait a bit, since I run better after I've eaten a little so it makes the workout more intense if I want that. Also, my preferred race distance is a half marathon and I can't do that fasted, so I like to experiment with what to eat before a run.

LolBroScience

ahamm002 wrote: »

It depends. If your goal is fat burning then studies have shown your best bet is to just workout before eating anything. Whereas, if your goal is performance then you should probably have some liquid calories or something light to give you energy.

They haven't really.

Also, if your performance is elevated... you'll more than likely burn more calories than if you were not as energized.

MsJulesRenee

When I was working out in the mornings I never ate before, maybe a cup of coffee max. Now I workout at night, of course I have to eat before but I try to wait an hour or so after so my stomach doesn't get upset. I don't notice the difference between eating and not eating - but I am a morning person so that may have helped with the energy level.

ellskiNZ

I'm usually not hungry if I'm working out in the morning, maybe have a muesli bar at the most.

gmallan

Cardio generally yes, weights sometimes but often not. Both I will have BCAAs to sip on during my workout. This is based purely on what makes me feel best