Scheduling food around work hours and gym?

Dayniiie

Hi there! I am about to start back with healthy eating and exercising. I will be going to the gym Mon-Fri, along with working Mon-Fri too.

In terms of eating, when would be the best time to? I start work at 6am , and head to the gym at 1.30-2.30, or go for a 1.5hour walk then gym after that.

My job is pretty flexible on when I take my breaks, so I just question when I should be planning my meals? I have heard some say you should eat a big meal straight before a work out, and others say small snacks all day? Its a bit confusing.

I am 75kgs, 165cm, 25 yr old female. Goal is weight loss. I am on 1200 cals but eat back all my gained cals through Fitbit

Thanks for any tips and advice!

apullum

There is no "best" meal timing, just the one that works best for you. Some people prefer to work out fasted and some would rather have a small snack immediately before working out. I think most people don't like to work out on a full stomach. Personally, I'd probably have an early lunch with that schedule, and then work out a few hours later after I've had some time to digest. You should try a few options and see what you prefer.

Teabythesea_

See where meal timing falls. It doesn't matter when you eat, just that you do.

aokoye

Unless you're a professional athlete or have a medical condition that requires that you eat at certain times, there's no need to worry about the timing of your meals. I personally tend to workout early in the morning or later in the evening. In the case of the morning, I eat breakfast afterwards. When I work out in the evening (once a week at the most), I'll eat dinner after.

There isn't any performance based or weight related logic to this, rather it's that there's no way I'm getting up before 5am just to eat something and my evening workout typically falls around what for me is dinner time.

JBanx256

It's whatever works best for you & your schedule. Most workdays I eat 6x per day; some days when I'm off work AND off from the gym I may only eat 4x per day. Eating a big meal right before going to the gym is likely to make me want to yak & since I get up at 2am to train before work when I'm on dayshift, I'll just grab an easy source of carbs like a piece of fruit on my way out the door & have a protein shake while I train.

If your energy balance is squared away and your macros aren't totally jacked-up (nutritional priorities # 1 and # 2 from the Eric Helms pyramid TeaByTheSea posted above), meal timing really isn't a big deal. It may take some trial-and-error to figure out what fuels your body the best and keeps you satiated.

callsitlikeiseeit

your body doesnt care when you eat.

eat when it works best for you.

i work from home 9 am - 5:30, 5 days a week. up by 5, at the gym by 7am monday-friday. im not much of a breakfast person but sometimes ill have a bite after the gym. lunch is around 11:30 or so. dinner at 5:30 when my husband gets home (or if hes later, later). were in bed usually by 8 or 9, and asleep by 10.