Exercising on an empty stomach

nnylee

I usually eat something, at least light, then wait an hour. It's not so good for me to burn when I'm running on empty. I will be sooo tired.

OLFATUG

I don't know any science that supports one way or the other, I think it boils down to personal preference. I *cannot* eat anything solid in the morning, I haven't been able to since I was a little kid. I roll out of bed at 5:30, do my exercise routine, and have a protein shake afterwards. The first solid food I eat is at lunch.

shepherdbl

My trainer said NEVER work out on an empty stomach and have almonds or a protein bar available to snack during a long intense workout. And don't forget to drink water.

juliekaiser1988

According to Bill Phillips: cardio on empty; weight training requires food.

AntWrig

According to Bill Phillips: cardio on empty; weight training requires food.

Bill Phillips is wrong.

There are millions of people who weight train in a fasted state and have no problems. Checkout www.leangains.com.

BAMFMeredith

I eat about an hour before working out. Usually something light with a carb and a protein. I can't work out on an empty stomach, I would pass out! I need that fuel. I like having a piece of fruit as my carb, the sugar gives me a boost for a tough workout without being heavy on my stomach.

mrseelmerfudd

i personally only have a protein shake about an hour before i exercise. if i eat anything before i usually feel extremely ill. your metabolism is also raised after exercise so i eat after to replenish carbs etc.

flstarlady65

I tried to exercise once on an empty stomach but ended up with a pretty bad headache. I would suggest a piece of fruit or a protein shake just to take the edge off.

zafferFL

According to Bill Phillips: cardio on empty; weight training requires food.

Bill Phillips is wrong.

There are millions of people who weight train in a fasted state and have no problems. Checkout www.leangains.com.

Bill Phillips will say whatever he needs to say to sell more myoplex.

I feel great weight training on an empty stomach.I mostly do cardio on an empty stomach if I'm keeping it to 30 mins or less. If I'm playing sports I eat something a few hours before.

challengeaccepted

I think it depends on what works for you. I'm used to exercising maybe an hour after eating. I tried to exercise once on an empty stomach and I felt really dizzy and could barely finish my 20 minute exercise.

TerryJStroud

i do complex carbs about an hour before for energy and then protein after.. to rebuild muscle

That's EXACTLY what I used to do. I'd get up and have something very small (since I didn't eat in the mornings very easily anyway), otherwise I'd get sick. After I worked out, I would have something high in protein. Used to work well for me.

AntWrig

According to Bill Phillips: cardio on empty; weight training requires food.

Bill Phillips is wrong.

There are millions of people who weight train in a fasted state and have no problems. Checkout www.leangains.com.

Bill Phillips will say whatever he needs to say to sell more myoplex.

I feel great weight training on an empty stomach.I mostly do cardio on an empty stomach if I'm keeping it to 30 mins or less. If I'm playing sports I eat something a few hours before.

True dat.

angiebarker

I usually always workout about a half hour to an hour after i eat. Not because im worried its going to make me sick or whatever just that i always feel too full after eating. Lately though my hunny and i have been going for walks right after dinner....hmm

Sidesteal

Exercising on an empty stomach does not provide any greater fat loss than exercising with food. Even if it does result in greater "fat burning" during the workout, the amount of fat burned during the workout has zero effect on losing stored body fat. Depending on the amount fat burned during a workout, the body adjusts fat oxidation at rest so that, after 24 hours, there is no difference.

Great post.

There are seemingly many areas of nutrition/fitness where people get very caught up in the short term/acute effects without looking at a larger time frame. Coincidentally, in many of these areas the big picture shows that the acute is meaningless.

Heather2784

Depends on what you're eating. You want to make sure if you eat anything hard or complex to break down you allow more time for it to break down. Simple carbohydrate snack can be eaten pretty much any time before a workout.

I never have a good work out on an empty stomach. I have my best workouts about 30-45 minutes after a bowl of oatmeal and a bottle of water and then sometimes an apple on the way to the gym. It probably depends on your workout. I workout hard, so doing so on an empty stomach pretty much is NOT an option. I wouldn't make it.

Azdak

I don't know any science that supports one way or the other, I think it boils down to personal preference. I *cannot* eat anything solid in the morning, I haven't been able to since I was a little kid. I roll out of bed at 5:30, do my exercise routine, and have a protein shake afterwards. The first solid food I eat is at lunch.

There is a lot of science, however, for the average exerciser, it usually doesn't make a huge amount of difference. That's one of the reasons why there often appears to be such discrepancies-- we have a lot of fuel reserves that are usually not fully taxed during the average person's workout. Plus there are a number of other factors that can affect a workout other than pre-execise feeding.

SaSSyhasCurls

I alway eat something maybe an hour before my workouts and a small snack right after, I been doing this way for over a year and I've lost weight.