Eating before and after Crossfit.
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gsop22
Posts: 84 Member
Hello all,
So far loving Crossfit. Although I am new and have only gone a few times just wanted see what other people are eating and drinking before and after doing Crossfit. When I did Insanity before I learned to eat about an hour or hour and a half before the workout or I did not have a great workout. As I always felt I had a great workout on an empty stomach I want to make sure I have enough energy to last..
Any thought on this topic and possible the protein to carb content also. This is my normal routine if possible before and after I go to the gym or run.
Before: Eat something small before a workout with both protein and carbs. Usually 1 to 1.5 hours before workout.
After: Drink a protein shake with about 30 grams of protein within 15 min of the end or workout.
I am trying to lose weight in the long run but my goal here is to gain muscle. Thanks for all your input.
So far loving Crossfit. Although I am new and have only gone a few times just wanted see what other people are eating and drinking before and after doing Crossfit. When I did Insanity before I learned to eat about an hour or hour and a half before the workout or I did not have a great workout. As I always felt I had a great workout on an empty stomach I want to make sure I have enough energy to last..
Any thought on this topic and possible the protein to carb content also. This is my normal routine if possible before and after I go to the gym or run.
Before: Eat something small before a workout with both protein and carbs. Usually 1 to 1.5 hours before workout.
After: Drink a protein shake with about 30 grams of protein within 15 min of the end or workout.
I am trying to lose weight in the long run but my goal here is to gain muscle. Thanks for all your input.
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Replies
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I go first thing in the AM (out the door at the ungodly hour of 4:30), so I don't usually eat before. Today I woke up STARVING, so I had a spoonful of Justin's chocolate almond butter. Afterward I hit up gym #2 to shower and get ready for work since it's closer than driving all the way back home (I just heard a rumor that my box's new location will have showers; that makes me very happy!), so I don't eat right after, but I go through Starbucks on my way to work and have a cappuccino and a banana on my drive in.
I don't have any problem with lack of energy when I WOD on an empty stomach, but then again, it's first thing in the AM, so if you go in the afternoon you may see different results. I cannot stand the feeling of working out with food in my belly, but that may just be a personal thing with me.
The formula I've seen and that works for me best when I'm afternoon WODing (or wake up starving like today) is a little bit of protein and fat (for energy) pre-workout and protein and carbs (to build muscle and replace glycogen stores) post workout.
Hope this helps!
And welcome to the CF family!0 -
Hello all,
So far loving Crossfit. Although I am new and have only gone a few times just wanted see what other people are eating and drinking before and after doing Crossfit. When I did Insanity before I learned to eat about an hour or hour and a half before the workout or I did not have a great workout. As I always felt I had a great workout on an empty stomach I want to make sure I have enough energy to last..
Any thought on this topic and possible the protein to carb content also. This is my normal routine if possible before and after I go to the gym or run.
Before: Eat something small before a workout with both protein and carbs. Usually 1 to 1.5 hours before workout.
After: Drink a protein shake with about 30 grams of protein within 15 min of the end or workout.
I am trying to lose weight in the long run but my goal here is to gain muscle. Thanks for all your input.
I think each person is different here. If I eat something small (like a handful of nuts, something like that) I can do CF about an hour or an hour and half later with no issues. More than that and I'm risking throwing up or will have to throttle back my workout because of the risk of throwing up.
I will usually eat a meal afterwards or do a shake. Technically speaking if you want that protein biologicially available to your muscles AFTER Crossfit, you would need to drink it BEFORE since it takes an hour or two to make it into your bloodstream. But I'm just nitpicking.
I'll say this, don't focus too much on the scale. Mine barely moved from July through September until we did our Paleo challenge in October. Lost 18 lbs that month and am just now getting myself back to that level of Paleo focus through Xmas.
In my experience exercise is about 25-30% of the weight loss plan and diet is the rest.
And based on your picture I'd say just focus on body recomposition and replacing fat with muscle. You'll drop a few clothing sizes and look even more fantastic in much less time than you would think.0 -
When I go to the 5:30 am sessions, I typically have just 1/2 a banana and some water before I'm out the door. If I go any later in the morning, as I'll be up for a few hours by then, I'll typically have a light breakfast (Fage yogurt and some coffee). I always, always have something with protein right afterwards. Most often, it's milk with a scoop of whey protein, then Greek yogurt, if I haven't had that already. I almost never do afternoon WODs...by that time of day I don't have the energy or time to get there and get a meaningful workout in.0
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I also WOD on an empty stomach most of the time and I am an early morning CrossFitter as well (6:30am).
My recommendation would be to look up Eat To Perform on Facebook and follow them. They follow a paleo/clean eating type diet but help you eat your carbs around your workouts. The other one that I have recently come across that I like is Feast Your Fat Away. It's a similar approach but he tends to promote a little less fat than Eat to Perform.
Great information from both.0 -
I WOD in the evening and usually have a half serving each of almonds and dark chocolate M&M's about an hour or so before. If I'm running late then it's just the almonds. Much more than that and I'll be putting my name on the trash can. I've tried other things and that's what seems sit the best.0
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6am crossfitter here too and I WOD on an empty stomach. Maybe a mug of iced coffee or chocolate milk if I'm looking for a pick-me-up, but totally not necessary. I drink a protein shake right within 30 mins of my workout afterwards (drink it in the locker room after my shower at my box), but I don't notice that making much of a difference. I could hold out until breakfast at the office (about an hour after my workout) and be fine.0
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Thanks for all of the comments. I wish I could do the 5:30 am workouts that would be a great start to the day. Not really a morning person and never feel that great working out early. I may try a few early classes just to see how I do but would love to transition to mornings if possible.0
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I'm like some of the others on this thread that cannot eat very much too close to WOD time, or I will be nauseous. Instead, I eat small meals throughout the day which works perfectly for me: breakfast, fruit at 10am, lunch at noon, protein bar at 3pm, WOD at 5pm, protein shake in the car on the drive home, and dinner after showering. Everyone is different, so good luck finding what works best for you!0
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2-3 hours before, a normal meal
1-1.5 hours before a piece of fruit with peanut butter.0 -
I usually WOD at 4:30. I have lunch around 12 and always make sure to try to incorporate some type of protein. My performance is always worse if I don't include protein of some kind. If I'm hungry before the class, I'll have a handful of nuts at least 30 minutes before. I get an upset stomach if I eat to close to the WOD.0
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My training times vary from 7am right through to 6.30pm but my food timing is usually fairly similar. I prefer the afternoon sessions but with 8-9 sessions a week, I do 2-3 days of double sessions so the mornings are inevitable.
When I train first thing in the morning, I will just have a banana 30 mins before and then a protein shake straight after (like, as I'm walking out of the box) and my normal breakfast when I get home. If I train at any other time of day I still have a banana 30 mins before the session and a shake straight after, and then if I know I won't be eating a meal within an hour or so of training I'll have a muesli bar or something similar in the car. So when I do a 6.30pm session I'll have my banana before, shake after and dinner as soon as I get home, but if I do a 4.30pm session then I'll have my banana before and a shake and muesli bar after, knowing dinner won't be for a couple more hours.
I've been doing crossfit for over 2 years and never paid too much attention to nutrient timing before/after training, other than the protein shakes, but in the last few months as I've stepped up my training I've been more careful and find that a banana is the perfect pre-workout for me. I can't eat anything heavier than that within an hour or so of training, but also hate training on an empty stomach as I find I end up thinking more about my growling tummy than I do about the WOD!
Different things work for different people so it's all just a matter of finding what works for you...0 -
I also WOD on an empty stomach most of the time and I am an early morning CrossFitter as well (6:30am).
My recommendation would be to look up Eat To Perform on Facebook and follow them. They follow a paleo/clean eating type diet but help you eat your carbs around your workouts. The other one that I have recently come across that I like is Feast Your Fat Away. It's a similar approach but he tends to promote a little less fat than Eat to Perform.
Great information from both.
ETP is a great site, I'll second this recommendation.0 -
I also do a 5 am WOD (out the door by 4:30)... for the past 5+ years I've been a die hard fasted-state kinda workout gal. Ran on empty stomach, lifted, crossfit, etc. Thought I preferred it. The issue was never about having a full stomach (tummy of steel here-- I could literally eat pancakes WHILE running a marathon, lol). I just though i performed better??? Stupid...
fairly recently, i started doing the Bulletproof coffee before my WOD (so, drinking it on the drive to the box). And let me tell you, from day one, I began PR'ng pretty much every lift, every workout, every day. My energy was through the roof compared to fasted training. Now i lay in my bed, staring at the clock, just waiting for it to go off so I can have my friggin butter coffee.0
