Do you think meal timing matters?

Matt_Wild

For the every day folk, no. You'll notice very little difference if any.

If you train however, do you think the reverse applies or do you think there is no difference?

Your thoughts?

jamielynas

Personally, no. I don't eat until 8pm or so every night (whenever I finish training) and then basically keep eating until I fall asleep haha

Mr_Knight

There comes a point at which it starts to matter. I can't do consecutive 10km runs, for instance, without having a proper meal in between.

Sarauk2sf

From an energy perspective, yes - for me. I can train fasted if its early in the morning with no issues as long as I have eaten a decent amount the night before. If I leave it little later, my energy and stamina are impacted, so I make sure I eat something. From a weight loss perspective...not directly, but indirectly due to the noted impact on my workouts.

CyberEd312

I personally still stand by the premise that meal frequency has no bearing whatsoever on weight loss but I lift and do cardio 6 days a week with a rest day worked in there. Some days I split train (AM/PM workouts) and I have experimented and do feel my overall performance suffers if I don't eat before a lifting or cardio session. Now I personally think this is total preference and it is what works in my case and may not work for others but I have tried fasted lifting and cardio and my output suffers..... So my meals are placed around my workouts to give me what I feel is the best energy output....

Wetcoaster

If you are an elite athlete it might a small difference preparing to compete .

To the rest of us.........

No.

Cranquistador

NO.

jofjltncb6

I don't have any science to bring to this discussion...I'm mostly just in to see where this goes...

(...but I always *hoped* the answer to this was yes, just like I wanted "whole/clean" foods to matter more than they actually do...)

BeachIron

It matters to how I perform during workouts

Cranquistador

It matters to how I perform during workouts

perform.

mustgetmuscles1

ETA: I am probably closer to an everyday folk. : P

I have tried fasted work outs a few times and there was a very noticeable drop in performance. It might be something i could adapt to though. I "feel" like if my performance suffers then it might mean that some other function might suffer also.

Here is a pretty good review on some of the studies available on the subject. The whole article is good but I will post the "Practical Application" part of it.

http://www.jissn.com/content/10/1/5

Practical applications
Distilling the data into firm, specific recommendations is difficult due to the inconsistency of findings and scarcity of systematic investigations seeking to optimize pre- and/or post-exercise protein dosage and timing. Practical nutrient timing applications for the goal of muscle hypertrophy inevitably must be tempered with field observations and experience in order to bridge gaps in the scientific literature. With that said, high-quality protein dosed at 0.4–0.5 g/kg of LBM at both pre- and post-exercise is a simple, relatively fail-safe general guideline that reflects the current evidence showing a maximal acute anabolic effect of 20–40 g [53,84,85]. For example, someone with 70 kg of LBM would consume roughly 28–35 g protein in both the pre- and post exercise meal. Exceeding this would be have minimal detriment if any, whereas significantly under-shooting or neglecting it altogether would not maximize the anabolic response.

Due to the transient anabolic impact of a protein-rich meal and its potential synergy with the trained state, pre- and post-exercise meals should not be separated by more than approximately 3–4 hours, given a typical resistance training bout lasting 45–90 minutes. If protein is delivered within particularly large mixed-meals (which are inherently more anticatabolic), a case can be made for lengthening the interval to 5–6 hours. This strategy covers the hypothetical timing benefits while allowing significant flexibility in the length of the feeding windows before and after training. Specific timing within this general framework would vary depending on individual preference and tolerance, as well as exercise duration. One of many possible examples involving a 60-minute resistance training bout could have up to 90-minute feeding windows on both sides of the bout, given central placement between the meals. In contrast, bouts exceeding typical duration would default to shorter feeding windows if the 3–4 hour pre- to post-exercise meal interval is maintained. Shifting the training session closer to the pre- or post-exercise meal should be dictated by personal preference, tolerance, and lifestyle/scheduling constraints.

Even more so than with protein, carbohydrate dosage and timing relative to resistance training is a gray area lacking cohesive data to form concrete recommendations. It is tempting to recommend pre- and post-exercise carbohydrate doses that at least match or exceed the amounts of protein consumed in these meals. However, carbohydrate availability during and after exercise is of greater concern for endurance as opposed to strength or hypertrophy goals. Furthermore, the importance of co-ingesting post-exercise protein and carbohydrate has recently been challenged by studies examining the early recovery period, particularly when sufficient protein is provided. Koopman et al [52] found that after full-body resistance training, adding carbohydrate (0.15, or 0.6 g/kg/hr) to amply dosed casein hydrolysate (0.3 g/kg/hr) did not increase whole body protein balance during a 6-hour post-exercise recovery period compared to the protein-only treatment. Subsequently, Staples et al [53] reported that after lower-body resistance exercise (leg extensions), the increase in post-exercise muscle protein balance from ingesting 25 g whey isolate was not improved by an additional 50 g maltodextrin during a 3-hour recovery period. For the goal of maximizing rates of muscle gain, these findings support the broader objective of meeting total daily carbohydrate need instead of specifically timing its constituent doses. Collectively, these data indicate an increased potential for dietary flexibility while maintaining the pursuit of optimal timing.

ninerbuff

I believe it's an individual thing from person to person. I've done it where I've had something before a workout and currently train fasted (in the mid morning is when I train) and don't notice any real difference between either.
I do know for many though that if they don't, their blood sugar drops fast and they get the shakes. So it's something that people should experiment with to see if they benefit from it or not.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

metaphoria

I eat at least half of my calories for the day at dinner and after. Technically, it helps with weight loss because if I didn't save calories for then, I'd just throw my hands in the air and say "screw it" and eat everything I wanted right then like a bear preparing for hibernation, anyway. I WILL have an evening snack, regardless of calorie restrictions. So I plan for it. It's my "kids' bedtime" celebratory feast.

MinimalistShoeAddict

My weight has been stable (at goal) all year while experimenting with different forms of intermittent fasting and normal eating schedules.

I agree with some of the posters above about some of my longer workouts being negatively effected (such as a marathon) if I do not eat enough before the workout. For most other workouts I feel better on an empty stomach. I always prefer to lift weights fasted for example.

That being said, sometimes I find it fun to eat DURING workouts. Here are two of my favorite workouts from this year:

http://www.beermile.com/faq.beer#rules
http://www.krispykremechallenge.com/ourstory

Walter__

Meal timing doesn't matter to me.

I do intermittent fasting and prefer it to regular eating because it is much more convenient for my schedule.

I also prefer to work out while being satiated, as opposed to being fasted. I eat a small meal and go to the gym soon after. It gives me the energy to get through my workout session. By the time I'm home, I'm hungry and have a big shake. Then a few hours later I'll have dinner.